[ExI] Health care in the USA

[Rafal Smigrodzki]

On Mon, Jul 27, 2009 at 1:56 AM, Max More<max at maxmore.com> wrote:
> Damien Sullivan wrote:
>
>> Go-go US government health care.
>
> First of all, my post was intended to bring some perspective to a discussion
> in which people seemed intent on demonizing the US health care system --

### Most people talking about the US system have absolutely no idea of
what they are talking about. They think it is "capitalist". Baloney.

I am taking care of a 96 year old lady who suffered status epilepticus
for a few days, despite intensive therapy with maximal doses of three
different meds, followed by a versed coma. Her brain is more or less
burned out, her chances of waking up, much less making sense, are nil,
given her age. But her family says "But we love her!". So she is now
trach'd and PEGged, ready for long term storage, at a cost of $1000 a
day or so. Is *this* capitalism? People who never pay a penny for
medical care extorting us all because of "love"?

In a capitalist hospital this would be a non-issue - family members
who want to "have everything done" would be presented with an itemized
bill, every day, and asked to take over care if they don't pay. We'd
see how long their "love" would last.

Leftist collectivists are playing a pernicious game: They scream about
the inefficiencies caused in our system by state control (MD cartel,
Medicare, insurance regulations, EMTALA, HIPAA) but blame them on the
vestiges of individualism they want to eliminate. It's a combination
of ignorance and ulterior motives, and eventually it will cost us all
dearly.

Rafal