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Why going Dutch is going for broke
national |
anti-capitalism |
feature
Saturday April 02, 2011 00:09 by Marie O Connor
Fine Gael's UnFairCare policy
Fine Gael’s UnFairCare policy demands more scrutiny. At a time when support for the Dutch model is declining in its country of origin, Fine Gael proposes to import this charter for privateers into Ireland. Marie O'Connor looks at Dominic Haugh's study, which reveals an unaffordable three-tier system, growing waiting lists, cancelled operations, out of control budgets, bankrupt hospitals, professional gravy trains and spawning bureaucracies, all encouraged by pro market think-tanks. Related Links: Nurses call for Health system based on social solidarity not private profit | Thousands March to Defend health Services in Letterkenny | Over 15,000 protest health cuts in Clonmel | HSE Cuts Mental Health Funding Even Further | Plenty of money for the Bailouts. Very little for Health and the People | ‘The Great Gas Giveaway; How the Elites Have Gambled Our Health And Wealth’ | Free marketeering in health | Beacon's Co-location' hospital in Cork draws nearer. See Anger as Cork health workers fight on two fronts ...
Going Dutch will make private health insurance compulsory for everyone. Around 75% of healthcare funding will still come from taxation, however. The state––taxpayers–– will pay for medical card holders and children up to 18 years of age, and give those on low incomes an allowance payable to their chosen insurance company. Many taxpayers will pay on the triple, once through general taxation, a second time through mandatory insurance premiums and once more through employee deductions.
by Ratonal Ecologist Mon Apr 04, 2011 12:51
We need a health service not an ill-health service. People need to be trained from an early age to look after their health. Many health conditions respond well to dietary and lifestyle programmes. However, for those that don't, of course we need doctors, nurses and so on and always will. First thing we should analyse is why most people end up in hospital and implement ways of cutting this down.
by T Mon Apr 04, 2011 23:46
You raise a good point about the ill-health system. It seems we deem things a success when we say the health system has treated say 200,000 people in hospital this year compared to some smaller figure some other year.
by opus diablos - the regressive hypocrite party Tue Apr 05, 2011 10:40
..its less a public health service, and increasingly a private sickness industry. Not mentally healthy, for starters. But we're up against that corporate PR juggernaut. Yankee Big-Pharma would not approve a change. It might effect their economic health. Their spin gets more doctoring than we do.
by author Tue May 03, 2011 22:15
You had better organise a rally now or you will end up like the Dutch.
by Serf Sat May 07, 2011 09:01
"The Dutch Government now deducts insurance premiums at source from wages and welfare payments of uninsured and defaulting citizens and imposes significant fines for non-payment. " |
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Comments (7 of 7)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7An interesting article.
On the surface universal health insurance is attractive as in theory at least it means a level playing field and everyone gets access when needed.
However, people wait months for appointments in the private sector and then may wait again if the consultant recommends surgery. The wait is duein the main part to not enough doctors in the public health system.
How does giving everyone insurance change that?
Many doctors in Irish hospitals are already non nationals. We must train many more doctors who must sign a contract to work for a number of years in Ireland in return for no fees and a grant. We do train enough nurses and physios - but we don't employ them - this can be remedied if we act before recent graduates have all emigrated.
Without more doctors, universal health insurance is only going to make all patients wait for some time - its a win for current public patients who could see their waiting times reduced but not abolished, but possibly a loss of currently insured patients who could now have to wait for some weeks.
The other problem I see is the lack of incentive to work/take a better job/payrise if this would put you into the category where you have to pay the insurance premium in full. As premiums are likely to be higher than now, who is going to take a payrise that will leave them significantly worse off taking into account health insurance implications.
www.macliam.org/Health/AnalysisFineGaelFaircare.pdf
Editor: The above report has now been uploaded to Indymedia and is available here. Just click on the link below to get the report
Critical Analysis of Fine Gael FairCare Health System 0.25 Mb