Per the New York Times editorial, “How Much Will Americans Sacrifice for Good Health Care?, one urgent issue relative to a broader government role in providing healthcare is rationing. No nation (and certainly not those in Europe or Canada) provide universal access to everything. Government bureaucrats make decisions about what medical treatments (new cancer drugs, surgeries, new genetic interventions, etc.) are paid for.
Today, of the 74 cancer drugs launched between 2011 and 2018, 95% are available in the United States, 74% in the U.K., 49% in Japan, and 8% in Greece. Access to these cutting-edge drugs means that patients can use the latest treatments to help cure their conditions; it’s why the United States has the highest five-year survival rate for cancers in the world.
Do we want Uncle Sam, MD to replace the considered opinions of our own physicians? Government-paid healthcare presents significant hurdles as well as interesting opportunities and healthcare rationing is an important part of the discussion about any kind of government-run healthcare proposal.
Today, of the 74 cancer drugs launched between 2011 and 2018, 95% are available in the United States, 74% in the U.K., 49% in Japan, and 8% in Greece. Access to these cutting-edge drugs means that patients can use the latest treatments to help cure their conditions; it’s why the United States has the highest five-year survival rate for cancers in the world.
Do we want Uncle Sam, MD to replace the considered opinions of our own physicians? Government-paid healthcare presents significant hurdles as well as interesting opportunities and healthcare rationing is an important part of the discussion about any kind of government-run healthcare proposal.
