Is national health insurance ‘socialized medicine’?

[SHRED]

No. Socialized medicine is a system in which doctors and hospitals work for and draw salaries from the government. Doctors in the Veterans Administration and the Armed Services are paid this way. The health systems in Great Britain and Spain are other examples. But in most European countries, Canada, Australia and Japan they have socialized health insurance, not socialized medicine. The government pays for care that is delivered in the private (mostly not-for-profit) sector. This is similar to how Medicare works in this country. Doctors are in private practice and are paid on a fee-for-service basis from government funds. The government does not own or manage medical practices or hospitals.

The term socialized medicine is often used to conjure up images of government bureaucratic interference in medical care. That does not describe what happens in countries with national health insurance where doctors and patients often have more clinical freedom than in the U.S., where bureaucrats attempt to direct care.

http://www.pnhp.org/facts/singlepayer_faq.php#socialized


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If we focus the discussion on Universal INSURANCE coverage then we have a chance.
When the corporate RW diverts it to scare people with, "government run health care" then we do not have a chance.

Let's all start using the term "insurance" when discussing health reforms.


my 2 cents

:patriot:

[rurallib]

1. Insurance in this country conjures up many bad images for me

Give the GOP an opening on insurance and they will insist on for profit insurance much as we have now.

[SHRED]

2. One major difference...

...between private and public insurance is that we cannot vote out an insurance exec or CEO.

We need to submit our health care to the Democratic process.

[rurallib]

3. I agree with that. But the GOPers want 'insurance'

and want it to be treated much as it is today, only the insurance company would get a huge dollop of cash from the government.
So it must be extremely clear that this is not Grandpa McCain's health insurance.