The NHS, why do you lot hate it?

[MG]

This is mainly a message to our American Cousins. Our beloved British National Health Service (NHS) has been under constant attack in your media in relation to President Obama's Health Plan (which may I add would be fantastic for your country), I mostly want to see what the general view of normal Americans is as opposed to the media.

I can say from personal experience that the NHS is fantastic. I was able to receive medical care costing £600 absoloutely free! Is that not worth having?

Before anybody goes bashing our NHS let me throw in some statistics (these are your own CIA statistics mind)

Infant Mortality rate: UK=4.85/1000, USA=6.26/1000

Life Expectancy at Birth: UK=79.01,USA=78.11

HIV Prevalence rate: UK=0.2%, USA=0.6%

Thoughts please?

[kingsdominionlvr]

I am in full support of Universal Healthcare for America, but at this point conservatives who get their funds and dinners from the insurance companies will not allow it. All I can really pray for, is that at least the public option gets passed. That is a good start.

[ParkTrips]

Thoughts please?

What does HIV infection rate have to do with whether or not health care should be run by the government? HIV is most prevalent in the black and hispanic communities in America, neither of which make up a significant portion of the British population. Also, that is just what you said: an infection rate, not an indicator of how well varying health care systems work.

 

I can say from personal experience that the NHS is fantastic. I was able to receive medical care costing £600 absoloutely free! Is that not worth having?

I don't blame you, I'd love to get free healthcare! Hell I'd love to have everything in life free. But "free" is not a word I would use to describe health care in the UK. Its still being paid for through taxes.

 

With that said, and without me explicitly stating my position, I don't think this thread is fit for TPR. These threads never go too well.

[MG]

Yes you are correct on the HIV infection rate front. That was rather short sighted of me. Apologies.

[Wes]

With full respect, I am unfortunately going to lock this. We've tried to stay away from political, religious, and "hot button" issue threads on TPR. When we have allowed them in the past, they have degenerated into bad flame wars and have generally not been good for the fun, easy-going nature of TPR. Like it or not, health care is a very "hot button" issue in America, and there are people on TPR on both sides of the spectrum who will want to debate this.

 

I honestly don't think a forum whose main purpose is the discussion of amusement parks should be a place for threads asking people about such an issue. There are plenty of other forums and social sites where this could be posted, unfortunately TPR isn't one of them.

 

If you have any questions or concerns about this feel free to PM me and we can discuss further.