Should the Us Give free health care to all our citizens ? Would  that better disease research?
439623
Health Care is a big problem for me, I have no health care and am a diabetic. I don't take all the medicines that I should to help control it because it is so expensive. It should be controled at worst so that it don't get so out of hand as it is now. I think it might help the research end because there would not be as huge a profit to just treat a disese. It would be better to cure it.
391456
Health care is never free.  Someone has to pay doctors, nurses, and paramedics.  We can either have (much) higher taxes and the government can try to pay for it, or we can pay for it ourselves.\n\nAnd did you know that some people with cancer in Canada have to wait six weeks before the can get treatment.  It is free, but very inefficient.\n\nThis article discusses all the problems with Canada's health care system, and why some Canadians would prefer to pay for health care themselves: http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/health/article.jsp?content=20060501_125881_125881
199868
For all the problems that we have with our health care system, I'd never give it up for the non-existent system that the US has.  40+ million Americans have no coverage whatsoever.  O Canadians have no coverage.
715306
It is not free.  That's one reason why TAXES are so much HIGHER in Canada than the US.\n\nMany other countries such as Sweden have universal health care, too.
370096
No, there is no profit in helping people. Only a do gooder amount is spent on helping people. What a shame it is in America that we can not take care of our own.
844720
I thought the disease was wealth by greed .... and does ignorance breed rapacity ? those are the diseases to me.No \nonly free thinking and the return of the vote can help.\npeace out!
941323
I am one of 45 million people without access to affordable health care. It affects my life every day as I am a diabetic and I do not take all the prescribed medicines that I am suppose to. It will probably shorten my life but it is the best I can do. I do not think it is a big issue for the general public, they are not effected by it one way or the other. But for those of of us that need to be able to see a Dr. regularly, It is a dangerous situation. I think that the real answer is to do away with the private insurance company's and offer national health care so that everyone has access to it if they need it. I understand that this would not be free health care as it has to be paid for by taxes, however I would rather see my money going for people like me then to send 10 billion a month to a war in Iraq that should have never been.
90046
You must be in the UK, as you mention NHS. A colleague of mine who is an SHO (senior house officer=resident) there, tells me there's lot's of waste in that system. If women with HER-2/NEU positive breast cancer (which as you mention are a small percentage) were to receive the drug free of charge, I don't think it would break your system. From what I hear the NHS (British National Health Service) has more problems than giving away expensive drugs. The system probably wastes more money with unnecessary ambulance rides per year than herceptin. But of course this is just heresay on my part. Universal health care is great, however, like everything there need to be checks and balances. The bottom line is poor patients should receive the same standard of care as the wealthy patient. People who cry about paying higher taxes probably wouldn't even notice the difference. Our military (in which I was a former member USMC) wastes more money per hour than this drug would cost us in a year.
836356
Ok As a canadian we DO NOT HAVE FREE HEALTHCARE!!!!! we have to pay for it through taxes.  With no competition our hospitals can virtually do anything they want.  Wait times are ridiculas, and not enough equipment as in MRI's.\nStates even though patients also look at it as customer service as well, their private sector pays for the equipment, which means more resources, when you tie the hand that can do better than the public sector, you take away the ability to build.\nA lot of canadians want more private industries to provide services, but be paid the same way by O.H.I.P. ( name varies with each province but is our insurance plan)\nAmericans could have the same thing.  Technically we have to pay out of pocket for services like eyecare, chiropraters, dentist are just a few.  Our health care system is one of the biggest eater of public funds.\n\nOur PM has more power than the American President except for veto rights.  It is hard to go after a sitting P.M. where in the states your President can be censured and removed.\n\nIn Canada we are not peaceful as many beleive we are just like americans when it comes to tolerance, and violence per capita.  Remember america has like 330 million people, while Canada has 35 million odds of probability are higher due to population.\n\nAmericans give chances to their people with the free market , here banks damage your credit rating your screwed nobody to turn to, at least american businesses will give you a chance.  Banks here are worse than the states, for no free compitition as in the states .\n\nCanada government and their agencies are like the big brother approach, which is worse than the American big brother approach.\n\nIf Canada was like america when it comes to opportunities and America was more like Canada on equality,  North America would be as strong as gravity.\n\nBut Canada and America are the most wanted locations for immigrants, America above canada.  We have an image but my cousin in Florida who has lived in both countries says in short there is no difference at a citizen level, as in ordinary people everyday life.
363120
yes i think it would be a great idea for the goverment to provide us all with health coverage, it would set in place a standard rate of cost for proceedures of all kinds and employ more doctors and more staff at offices and hospitals, medical standards would be set and therefore medical mal-practice would be more governed by the actual courts and dis-allow for frivolous lawsuits. it would also thereby de-organize the pharmacuetical compnanies and how they practice. medicines would be more available at cheaper rates due to more people using the drugs provided by pharmacies.so "yes"
980889
Yeah that is common nowdays the only disease I think people should get a check like that is for cancer thats the only disease that no cure has been found.They are all some fucken freeloaders who take advantage of taxpayers money.
874679
The pros are that we could possibly research many new cures for diseases, the cons are only ethics debates for people with too much time on their hands (i.e. overpaid politicians).
1054328
I'm not going to accuse you of ignorance or call you insensitive- I understand you are merely thinking, and have asked for thoughts.\n\nThere are several problems with this proposal- \n\nFirst, how would we identify every person on this planet who has AIDS?  Not everyone with the disease has a medical record- children in Africa, for example, may not even be aware that they're afflicted.  \n\nThis does not speak toward those who carry HIV or AIDS but do not yet show symptoms- so again, HOW can we determine who has the disease?\n\nSecond, where do you propose we place all these people?  They will not speak the same language, they will not come from the same culture- AIDS is not a disease which afflicts only one population- it's global.  \n\nCan you imagine the cost to place millions of people who don't speak the same language in a "colony"?  \n\nThird, what to do with them once they are in "the colony"?  Let them fend for themselves?  Again, the cost to provide adequate housing and resources (education, food, entertainment) would be astronomical.\n\nThis idea simply wouldn't work, and it's cruel and inhumane.  Let us not forget that persons with AIDS aren't mindless zombies, they are people, and they most certainly wouldn't allow themselves to be shipped off somewhere.  Imagine the fighting this would cause!\n\nThe best way to get rid of AIDS (barring a vaccine and cure) is NOT to contract it- to prevent new cases from occurring.  This is accomplished through education and common sense.  \n\nThe money it would take for your proposed colony would be much better spent researching a cure, educating those who don't have access to education, and helping those with the disease live more comfortable lives.
376486
Well, one of the things that I think everyone is entitled to is life (life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, for America that is)... and health care has a lot to do with life and sustaining life... \nSure, it may be a bit of a liberal take on the issue, but I guess I just don't see how a capitalistic system can work for something you can't put a price on... a human life... and that's what medicine is in it's most basic form... sustaining life...\nOur health care system right now isn't working at all for most Americans, because they can't afford it... and what's the point, if it doesn't help most people...
837229
Yes, and I hope something is done about universal health care for everyone and it should be priced according to a percentage of income. High time we have some changes in America.
454977
Repuglican idea: screw you get your own. \nDemocrat idea: national health care set up on the order of Canada or England.
814963
Yes.  Governments fund all sorts of medical research projects as it is, so why not allow stem cell research to be a part of that?   \n\nIf you say "no" to stem cell research funded by governments because of tax money being spent as the issue (and not an objection because of moral grounds), then you should just say "no" to all research medical research by governments.  In this case, the issue appears to be that taxes should not be used for government funded medical research.  I think it extremely short-sighted.