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I kept meaning to make a note of this show that was on BBC America - if you are all all squeamish about teeth, do not, under any circumstances, watch this show. If the teeth aren't bad enough (and they are, honestly, the chick whose teeth were worn down to stubs because of her anorexia wasn't bad, but the broken, blackened teeth of the other people just looked painful - and evidently were) they show a wee bit of dental work that made even me (a hardened Discovery Health Channel viewer) cover my eyes. Serious - the Saw movies have nothing on this. Probably because it was real life.
The saddest part was that one girl was so afraid of the dentist that she needed to be sedated to have the work done. Her mouth was already so far gone she couldn't really eat and was in constant pain. The waiting list? 2 years. 2 freakin' years. I whined when I had to wait a week to go in about a missing filling that really didn't hurt. And again when, in order to have my extraction done under mild sedation (not fully asleep, but not just Novocaine), I'd have had to wait 3 weeks. But seriously - 2 years! At that point for her it wasn't even a dental problem any more, it was a health problem.
I'm sorry, but that's just awful. And I know you can buy extra private insurance and have things done faster, but man, if part (and a fair part) of my salary is already going to a tax for health care, it seems like crap to have to pay even more.
And I know I'll get crap about this, but I really, really, really, REALLY hope we don't get socialized medicine in this country. Based on Britain's scale, if I made there what I make here, my health insurance payment (which would then be a tax and not a premium, but what's the difference?) would DOUBLE. No, really, I worked out the math. DOUBLE. Oh, and something I almost forgot about - they'd also take the equivalent of a month's worth of premiums out of my husband's checks every month, where as of now he's covered under mine. So really, my payments would go from $X to $3X. And, yes, I suppose I wouldn't have copays, but I visit the doctor once a year and take no prescription medications, so that really wouldn't factor in to my case. And yes, it's all about me. :p But really - take a look at your check and your health insurance premiums. How would you feel if they suddenly tripled? Ours went up $6 every two weeks last year and I thought people would have a conniption.
Do I think our health care system is perfect? No. Do I think socialized medicine is the answer? No.
Next time I get sick, I'm going to the vet. It only costs $100 for a full checkup and medication for my dog... But then again, a vet only pays a couple grand a month for malpractice insurance, some doctors have premiums as high as $40,000-$50,000 a month. Somehow, I think there just has to be a correlation.
The saddest part was that one girl was so afraid of the dentist that she needed to be sedated to have the work done. Her mouth was already so far gone she couldn't really eat and was in constant pain. The waiting list? 2 years. 2 freakin' years. I whined when I had to wait a week to go in about a missing filling that really didn't hurt. And again when, in order to have my extraction done under mild sedation (not fully asleep, but not just Novocaine), I'd have had to wait 3 weeks. But seriously - 2 years! At that point for her it wasn't even a dental problem any more, it was a health problem.
I'm sorry, but that's just awful. And I know you can buy extra private insurance and have things done faster, but man, if part (and a fair part) of my salary is already going to a tax for health care, it seems like crap to have to pay even more.
And I know I'll get crap about this, but I really, really, really, REALLY hope we don't get socialized medicine in this country. Based on Britain's scale, if I made there what I make here, my health insurance payment (which would then be a tax and not a premium, but what's the difference?) would DOUBLE. No, really, I worked out the math. DOUBLE. Oh, and something I almost forgot about - they'd also take the equivalent of a month's worth of premiums out of my husband's checks every month, where as of now he's covered under mine. So really, my payments would go from $X to $3X. And, yes, I suppose I wouldn't have copays, but I visit the doctor once a year and take no prescription medications, so that really wouldn't factor in to my case. And yes, it's all about me. :p But really - take a look at your check and your health insurance premiums. How would you feel if they suddenly tripled? Ours went up $6 every two weeks last year and I thought people would have a conniption.
Do I think our health care system is perfect? No. Do I think socialized medicine is the answer? No.
Next time I get sick, I'm going to the vet. It only costs $100 for a full checkup and medication for my dog... But then again, a vet only pays a couple grand a month for malpractice insurance, some doctors have premiums as high as $40,000-$50,000 a month. Somehow, I think there just has to be a correlation.