Do you think "Sicko" presents an accurate picture of health care in America?

Question

if you could provide some examples

Answer 1

It's a somewhat accurate picture of some problems in the health insurance system in the U.S. Not the system of delivering health care. Even a former Prime Minister of Canada (Brian Mulroney) once had to send his own mother to Miami for heart surgery. If she had to wait on the list in Quebec, she would have died. Quebec's health insurance system is known as "Plattsburgh, New York". There's a lot of surgery being done on Quebec citizens at hospitals in that city because the waiting lists for elective surgery have gotten really long in Quebec. In Ontario one can get an MRI or CAT scan done on a dog faster than getting one done on a human being. That's because the vet clinics are not part of the Canadian Health System.
So, one can come up with plenty of anecdotal tales out of Great Britain and Canada to point fingers at their system of care. I can understand Mister Moore's fascination with the subject. Given his present girth, he's headed for real health problems in the near future.

Answer 2

No, it's not accurate. Sure, he touts a good thing, and in a perfect world, socialized . . . er . . . "national" health care would be a great thing, but consider this:

France is said to have the number one health care system in the world. It has a national health plan. The government "pays for" each citizen's medical bills.

The average tax rate begins at 44% of annual income; i.e., if you make more than 24,000 euro (about $25,000 American), you are taxed at a HIGHER rate than the average 44%.

Home ownership is low, where subsidized housing is high. Why? Because you pay nearly half of your income to the government, you no longer have the purchasing power as the average American; therefore, you are more poor, not more wealthy.

The French government came out in the last few years and declared that "We cannot afford to cover every person for every thing that ails them. You must consider getting supplemental, PRIVATE insurance to help bear the burden of medical care for the average citizen."

It is the same in UK, Ireland, the rest of Europe, the Middle East, and any other country that practices socialized medicine. I lived overseas for most of my life and I was covered under the "national" health plan. However, when I needed glasses, that came out of my pocket. When I needed dental work done, that was my responsibility too. When I needed a procedure done that WAS covered by the government health care plan, I had to wait 11 months before I could begin the procedure. THAT'S how long the line was.

In the States, the same problem came back. How long was the wait? 24 days, just long enough for the doctor to get my test results back and schedule time with the surgeon.

Furthermore, every person in the US is entitled to health care, AND they can get it free of charge.

Every city in the US has a government-subsidized hospital that cannot turn you away for your lack of ability to pay.

Every county has a free health clinic where you will receive medical care for your illness, as well as preventative care to keep you from getting sick.

There is medicaid that covers poor folks in the country 100%, including prescriptions.

Yes, there's a lot of talk about the 45 million Americans without health insurance in this country, but the flip side of that is that 245 million Americans DO have health insurance, and the 45 million that don't have insurance are still not denied medical care.

Answer 3

He's a complete phoney and plays off the publics stupidity.

You're ancestors died fighting against communists like Castro's cuba and these people are now arueing that we trade our free enterprise system with a communist program. It's a slap to Thomas Jefferson's face.

Anyone that supports Michael Moore in anyway should be ashamed of themselves.

Answer 4

Based on his past performance, I would not use any word that closely describes a Moore film as being anywhere near "accurate".

Answer 5

No I think that the way of general healthcare in America is poor. We cannot get good health insurace at our jobs and our nations is one of few that do not have nationwide healthcare. I think its generally poor.

Answer 6

I don't think anything he puts out could be considered accurate.

Answer 7

i think so , in most cases