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Your statements are somewhat misleading. She had to wait at the PUBLIC hospital. France has both public and private hospitals, just as we do. Our public hospitals are overcrowded and have huge waits too. Also, we don’t know what the 350 Euro charge was for at discharge: did she ask for a private room? Did she ask for special food, long distance telephone calls, or other special services? In the 15 years I was in France, I had several surgeries and I never had a bill to pay at discharge (except for perhaps a phone bill for long-distance calls). I also never had to wait for urgent surgery. I thought the French health care system WAS “the be-all and end-all solution”. I had the best care of my life. WAY better than here in the US– there’s no comparison. If I was giving the health care in France a grade, I’d give it and “A” and the health care here an “F”.

I agree with the above comment — we’d need to know more to judge here. Also the article makes no comment on the nature of the surgery and whether or not it was urgent. I would suspect that it was a minor surgery and the author was not being upfront about that. Or, at least he should say he didn’t know the nature of the surgery, if that is the case.

I have been living in France for over 30 years and am currently back in the US for the last year and a half. I am so glad I came to Mass. where I am obliged to take out health insurance. It is working very well, as far as I can see. Yes, I pay $550 a month. But, as my French husband would always point out when I complained about high costs and high taxes in France: we were getting something for it, especially peace of mind about our health care. It seems that in the US, one can be wiped out financially due to an unexpected accident or lengthy illness. I’d rather have the French system.

My husband and I are frequent travelers to France. During the past three trips he came down with bronchitis. In each case, we went to the village doctor, where he was seen immediately — no wait, no insurance forms to complete. He paid the office visit fee (approx. $30), was treated at once and prescribed the medication needed. The medication was readily available at the village pharmacy, and the costs were reasonable. Our friends who have retired to France rave about the French healthcare system. They supplement their national healthcare coverage for $1200 a year which gives them access to private hospitals if needed. She is a severe diabetic; he has had knee replacement surgery. In each case, treatment for their conditions has been first rate and comprehensive. The French do not stress over healthcare coverage and costs, and we Americans should not as well.

Way to pick and choose quotes from an actually very pro-French healthcare article.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/051709dnbusfrance.40cc221.html
And you seem to be neglecting the fact that $465 is still much cheaper than the surgery would have cost in the United States.

Even the French admit to having serious financial difficulties keeping the system funded. I have great difficulty believing the first comment, that the French system is an ‘A’ and the US system is an ‘F’- being a Nurse Practitioner in the US, I cannot believe the disparity so great. I acknowledge the need for reform in the US, but how far do we go? What specifics need reforming? I would start with eliminating waste and fraud in the VA and Medicare/Medicaid. This would safe 10s of millions. Then tort reform across the countrym either at the Fedral level and/or at the state level. Here in Tennessee a health care provider is completely open to any financial hit from a malpractice suit- one’s home, retirement funds, one’s children’s college funds can be taken, everything can be taken if one’s malpractice insurance does not cover the ruling/award. This is patently absurd.
We must cap awrds for malpractice and control the typed of suits that are allowed to go forward. Additionally, the French idea of personal responsiblity is excellnt, everyone should be required to pay something, even if it is just one euro. I would love to be able to pay just one euro, or perhaps one dollar for a visit, or know that I would be reimbursed for the other $29 of my charges to see my doctor. We should not just clamber for the public option. Our taxes will skyrocket and we will still be unable to afford the coverage. Will we cover immigrants as well? Legal and illegal? Many decisions must be made, publicized, reviewed, discussed, voted upon. We should not rush this.

The answer for the US isn’t to pattern itself 100% on the French system, or any other single system. We have the benefit of watching other countries blaze the trail on reform. Now that essentially every other 1st world nation has universal coverage, we can analyze what works and what doesn’t and cherry pick the very best features from each system to create something uniquely American.

We need reform, and we need it soon. But let’s focus on what works elsewhere and adapt it to our needs in the US.

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