Other health care systems: International DUers, please read and reply

[warren pease]

One small but important chance to drive another stake into the corrupt, market-driven, privatized, greedy heart of the US for-profit medical system.

As some of you know, I've been doing articles blasting the US health care "system" for years. I've done a few more under my real name or other aliases. And instead of getting used to this deadly scam, I just get more and more pissed of with every bloated premium I pay or every tale of misery and sickness I hear.

My latest appeared in Online Journal (http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_2165.shtml) and I've gotten quite a bit of response -- much of it recounting individual horror stories as people try to cope with the nightmarish bureaucracy that exists mainly, IMO, to put as many barriers as possible between health care consumers and the insurance industry who are supposed to pay their medical bills.

This is an excerpt from the most outrageous example of systemic abuse I've gotten since the article came out last week:

==================================================================
I am in the throes of dealing with three medical
problems. In order to get three simple blood tests performed this
week, I had to do the following yesterday:

1. Phone call to primary insurer to ensure coverage
2. Phone call to secondary out-of-state contractor to find approved lab
3. Phone call to doc's office to get procedure code--not known
4. Phone call to first (erroneously chosen) lab to get procedure codes
5. Phone call to secondary insurer to give procedure codes. Lab is
not approved even though the hospital it is attached to is approved
6. Phone call to approved labs to find out whether I need new
form--no answer at either facility
7. Series of six runaround voice mail messages at lab 1--after
reaching correct person, I get cut off
8. Series of four runaround voice messages at lab 2--asked to be
called back and never am
9. Direct call to lab 2 to confirm procedure code--must have new form
from doc
10. Phone call to doc to get new forms--two voice mail messages
11. Phone call to lab 1--no new form required

All of this required two hours of my time. For one blood test. In all
I was transferred or left a voice message or had to listen to menu
options a total of 22 times. For one blood test.

And this is after the secondary insurer misinformed me that all the
facilities of an approved hospital are within the network. They are
not. Just because a lab is contained within a hospital, employs
hospital staff, and bills through the hospital does not mean that it
is part of that hospital.
====================================================================

Just another normal day in health care hell.


YOUR HELP WANTED:
If you're still with me, I'm planning an article that compares the experience above with those of people around the world lucky enough to live in more enlightened countries. Given the momentum generated by "Sicko" and by various other exposes of this rotten con game, I'd expect it to get fairly decent distribution and secondary pickup on the web, and possibly in hard copy as well.

But I can't do it without your help. What I need is input from international DUers, particularly from Europe, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and anywhere else that has a functional universal-access, free or very affordable health care system in place. If you have the time and are willing to help with this project, I'd like you to take the above example of needing blood panels for specific health issues, and tell me what that process would be like in your own country.

My bias is that you can't design a worse system than the one we're stuck with here. But it may turn out that yours is equally abusive or impenetrable -- although I doubt that's even possible.

Anyway, if you're so inclined, please reply with a paragraph or so outlining what it takes in your country to get a simple blood test. Doesn't need to be long or complex; in fact, simplicity is better (unlike this ridiculously long post).

You can respond to this post or PM me. Either works fine. Also let me know if it's OK to use your real name, screen name or if you'd prefer not to be identified at all except by country.


Thanks so much for your help. I'm just trying in a very small way to help the reform movement that seems to have coalesced around "Sicko" and put one more thorn in the sides of these greedy parasites.


Best,

wp

[ChazII]

1. Makes me miss the good ole days

when the lab work was done at my doctor's office.

[Spazito]

2. Here is my experience....

At my Doctor's office, after an examination, etc, my Doctor would fill in a form detailing the tests to be done, give me a copy to give the lab technician. In the small city I lived in, prior to moving to a larger center last year, I would have to go from my Doctor's office up to the hospital where the lab is located, give the form to the clerk manning the desk at the lab and, either wait while the lab technician finished up prior work or go right in and have the blood work done.

After that is complete, I go home and await a call from my Doctor's office, usually within the week, telling me the results.

There are no phone calls needed to okay the tests or anything else. There are no payments asked for or made.

Does this help?

My preference is that you refer to me by my user name or merely by country.

[canetoad]

3. Australia here

I've had a couple of blood tests in the last few years. Procedure is:
1. Visit GP who orders test for diagnosis. (no charge, covered by Medicare, generally no longer than half hour wait)
2. Take GP's written test order to local path lab for blood drawing. (no charge)
3. Re-visit GP for results. Usual time frame 2 - 5 days. (no charge)

[SidDithers]

4. Pretty simple in Canada...

If your family doc wants to test your blood, they will write out a testing requisition form, indicating the type of testing to be done. The patient then takes that requisition form to either their local hospital, or one of a number of private labs to have the sample taken.

We're fortunate in that there is a lab that operates out of the waiting room at our doctor's office. My daughter needed a blood test not too long ago, and it was very easy. At the appointment with the family doc, we were given the blood test requisition, and then we walked across the waiting room to the lab office, waited about 10 minutes for her turn, and then had vials of blood drawn from her arm. No phone calls to insurers, no hassles, and no cost to us.

There are occasions, however, where particular blood test or screening procedures are not covered by our Provincial Health Plan. I'm not sure why, but when my daughter was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, one of the blood tests would have cost ~$75 if we'd gone to a private lab, but was no charge if we went to our local hospital. Also, many Canadians have Extended Health Coverage which will usually pay for those diagnostics not covered by the Provincial Plan.

Hope this helps.

Sid

[warren pease]

5. Thanks all for the input so far

Please keep those messages coming. It's about 7:00 or 8:00 in western Europe -- depending on where you're located -- and I hope you have time to read and reply this evening after dinner.


Thanks again,

wp

[theNotoriousP.I.G.]

6. Germany here

I just went to the doctor (where I had to pay a new and very controversial 10 euro co-pay which is due every quarter one visits the doctor's office, not per visit)and she x'ed the boxes of what tests she wanted performed and I walked up one flight of stairs and got my blood drawn. Went back a week later and got the results.

[Matsubara]

7. In Japan it's pretty much like the other countries, but we have $8 copays for each visit.

Go see primary physician, he gives referral for specialist. Specialist gives you a note that you need XXX bloodwork done, you take that to the appropriate window at the hospital then get the bloodwork done. The patient doesn't have to call anyone or get permission from anyone. The whole thing should usually be $8 for the doctor visit, $8 for the hospital visit, sometimes there are fees for tests, but they are affordable, if I remember right - it has been many years since we've needed any.


But I'd rather you not quote me on this as this is several years-old memory I'm working with.


Definitely much easier, better and cheaper here, though.

[warren pease]

8. No named sources; I'll just cite Japan...

And I'll note that the information may be dated. Do you by chance happen to know anyone who's had more recent experiences with this type of procedure? If so, would you mind asking them if things have changed much and, if so, has the cost gone up significantly?

Thanks a lot,

wp

[warren pease]

9. Kick because I really need help with this project n/t

[warren pease]

10. Another kick because this is really important n/t