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Here's a little story that happened to me yesterday about what life can be like in a country that has some version of "medicare for all," in which I got sick and had to go to the hospital in France, where I have NO insurance:
I had had some kind of bad chest cold that was lingering for two weeks. I was doing all the usual things to treat it, but it wasn't improving much. Then all of a sudden, I felt MUCH worse. It was time to see a doctor, but it was Saturday. What to do?
So I looked in an online directory and found doctors in my neighborhood who made house calls. The first one I called said that he could come to my apartment to see me in about two hours. Standard visit cost: €30 out of pocket, and he also took French insurance if I had it.
During the 2 hours before the visit time, the doctor was reachable by text and responded to my texts. As the appointment approached, based on our text conversation it was decided it was better if I went straight to the hospital, and we cancelled. Total cost so far: €0.00
I went to the nearest hospital, and was checked in and had seen a nurse within 5 minutes of arriving. No French insurance? No problem.
I was having respiratory issues, but was not in crisis. In the US, this might usually mean a wait of many hours. Not so in France. After about an hour, I saw a doctor. He prescribed various medicines, which I purchased at the pharmacy. Total time: 2 hours Total cost: €47
I should add that the €47 included the medicines which I had to buy at "full price," but everyone made sure to give me any paperwork I might need to submit this "high" cost of €47 to my US insurance.
Everyone was very sorry that I had to pay for all of this on my own.
I came down with strep throat at the beginning of my honeymoon in Spain. Found a doctor and went in. Wait time was about 20 minutes. The doctor explained about the rapid strep test, also mentioning its (at the time; it might be better now) high false negative rate. The longer 1/
culture test wouldn’t work because we were leaving Madrid for other parts of the country in a couple of days. He examined me and listened attentively while I explained that I get strep every 7-8 years or so, and know what it feels like. It’s not at all like a cold or flu, 2/
almost makes me want to cry. i wish every american would read this thread
My brother in law who is a physician had UTI while in London 19 yrs ago. Found a clinic in directory, walked in, then out with antibiotics less than hr later - gratis - professional courtesy Dr. to Dr.
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