[ExI] What Makes People Vote Republican

[Emlyn]

2008/9/20 Stathis Papaioannou <stathisp at gmail.com>:
> 2008/9/20 Emlyn <emlynoregan at gmail.com>:
>
>> I don't know how it'd be if you had a serious illness (eg: cancer), I
>> have heard some nasty anecdotes, but I'm not sure I trust those.
>
> You're relatively speaking better off if you have a serious illness in
> the public hospital system in Australia. I have seen plenty of people
> arriving in an ambulance from a private hospital either because the
> hospital can't provide the sort of treatment they need or because the
> hospital is worried that their insurance will run out. I know people
> working in the health care industry who have private health insurance
> but say that they would rather be in a public hospital if there were
> something seriously wrong with them.

When I was working on medical software, the health care professionals
here said the same thing. It would be tougher to be a private hospital
in Aus than it is in the US though I think.

I also know of people (years ago now, but maybe it still happens),
lying about private cover status in mixed public/private hospitals;
they'd say they didn't have cover even if they did, if they thought it
might be expensive. Going in as a private patient here still has the
potential to ruin you here because there can be things not covered
which are very pricey, whereas a public patient doesn't have that
issue. Private patients get private rooms and high class hotel like
treatment, but also can get a very large bill.

-- 
Emlyn

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