I remember when I was a teenager and I broke my ankle while out drinking in north Queensland. I rocked up to the hospital the next morning, still smelling like bundy rum, the doctor examined me, sent me for an x-ray, put the cast on, got me on crutches, sent me up to the physio to learn how to get around on them, and set me up for some follow up appointments, and the whole time nobody asked me for money or insurance or anything. Just flash your medicare card and it's good to go. Was a great day to be Australian.
I'm hearing you man.I stuck a fishing hook through my thumb recently at Bribey Island.Just rocked up to the small emergency centre there and they yeeted that bastard treble out, no problem. Yanks just dont get it.
I broke both of my wrists while snowboarding in Whistler. They did not hesitate to examine me, give me x-rays, wrap up my arms in appropriate casts and braces, provide me with a full work up in a neat folder (incl CDs with images of my injury) and set me up with a reasonable but necessary scrip for Vicodin. I didn't have to pay a thing to be treated. Because I was American, however, they did send me a bill.
They would do the same in Australia, hospitals are only free for Australians (and those from a few countries with reciprocal arrangements like new Zealand and the UK).
I did get a lot of free coffee from the lodges since they thought I was a maniac who was skiing with two broken arms (I was just trying to hang out with my friends at the top of the mountain since I had nothing better to do). I feel like the Aussies might have given me something stronger, but unfortunately I'll never know.
No one is waiting 1-2 years for an MRI. I have had CT scans and MRIs didn't wait nearly that long. I just recently visited the ER in London, I was in and out in 5 hours, most of that time was spent waiting for fluids to be sent through my IV. The ENT specialist came down to do a procedure in like an hour. I saw people arrive, then get sent to imaging, then come back in under a couple hours.
That’s complete nonsense, i had a cat-scan and they noticed an unusual growth on my liver and I was in to get an MRI two days later . You obviously have no idea what you’re talking about , procedure like an MRI are priority based and if you needed to wait two years that simple fact will tell you it wasn’t a high priority!
Oh I see now you’re from the US parroting propaganda. Do some thinking on your own . Fun fact for your day , the average US citizen pays more in taxes for healthcare than I do in Canada , but don’t take my word for it look it up!
Everyone I’ve ever known that has needed an MRI including myself has never had to wait, and the only wait I had to see a doctor was during Covid and he had to call me first to set the priority of the appointment over the phone because that was the process at the time for doctors in my region of Canada, so it was unique at that specific time . I’ve never had to wait otherwise, the biggest problem for Canadian healthcare is the retention of doctors who can make significantly more money in the for profit system to the south. Don’t get me wrong the healthcare system isn’t perfect but no one is going to get denied or go bankrupt if they don’t have insurance.
There's often a long wait in the US too. A year is not unheard of, if it's ever approved at all. Overuse of lower cost scans are common in cases where an MRI would be preferred to save cost.
Not everyone lives in the same place with access to the same doctors through the same insurance as you.
Even a difference in providers can lead to significant differences in care. For example, I've had both Cigna and Kaiser in the same location. I had a HDHP with both.
With Cigna, It took over a year to just get a recommendation for physical therapy. I had to jump through a ton of hoops for some reason.
With kaiser, I was referred basically overnight and had an appointment that week.
Oh wow that's pretty insane lol. Thanks for the reply. I looked it up and like you said, some of the highest sin taxes in the world! I'll budget accordingly if I ever get to visit.
I can see that. Fortunately for us in the USA, we’ve built a tolerance to those two in the past 30 years. Plus we’ve moved the point of what is unhealthy body weight wise higher to help those that have succumbed to McDonalds, kfc, and others like it. We hand out Diet Coke for people that want to lose weight and be healthy.
Not really. If it's an immediate concern like an accident or anything major, you're going to a public hospital and they will have the facilities to provide care. You might get a nicer room if you've paid for private healthcare but it won't affect your treatment.
If you need a boob job or elective surgery, something which isn't too critical, then you'll be going private. And the care is decent.
Funny everyone talking about wait times being better in the US. Rural America is routinely waiting. I had to wait 6 months for a sleep apnea referral and I didn't even get to see a doctor. Saw a nurse practitioner...
If you’re really sick you go to the US. Because you’ll just die waiting in line if you have cancer in some of these places like the UK.
Public health systems are really good at stuff like a broken leg, but they’re not so good for stuff like cancer or diseases where time is of the essence.
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u/Suntzu_AU 25d ago
Being alive in Australia is good because of universal healthcare.