|
|
|
|
||
|
||
|
|
||
| SEARCH | SUBSCRIBE | ||
|
 |
Europeans
Mull Free Medical Care Benefits By
Paul Ames and Raf Casert, the
Happily, paying hefty medical bills is not a
big worry. "Just about everything gets reimbursed
at 100 percent," the former diplomat chuckled. "It is tough to
think of a better system." Europeans have long been proud of their
cradle-to-grave public health systems and critical of the Earlier this week, Congress approved a
sweeping overhaul of Medicare, created in 1965 to provide public health
support for the elderly. The changes introduce a new prescription
drug benefit for 40 million older and disabled Americans and create
competition between traditional Medicare and private plans beginning in
2010. Supporters say the reform was long overdue,
while detractors worry it could place the elderly in the hands of private
companies more concerned with profits than quality medical care. Europeans also are debating the costs of
health care and the role of private insurers as government finances are
strained by the responsibility of caring for a growing elderly population. "We are slowly getting away from the
principles of the European social model that health care was a right and
that the community made treatment available," said Anne-Sophie
Parent, the director of the European elderly people's platform AGE. Government drives to cuts costs risked
"an approach where you end up with different classes of service,
where those that can afford it have the best care and health becomes just
like any other service you can buy," she said. But in most of western Europe, health care
is still available free or at low cost. For example, Swedish patients pay small fees
for doctor visits, but never more than $118 a year total. The state also
absorbs all medicine costs above $236 a year. In the French A three-day treatment session for cancer
patients costs $2,000, but the patient pays only $36 of that. Some
patients can have a dozen sessions a year. One elderly man recently received a check in
the mail for $300 without explanation. He called the health service and
was told he had been designated chronically ill and thus deserving of the
extra annual payment. Annual flu shots are free, too. Despite fiscal restraints and an economic
slowdown, the To pay for it, Europeans have some of the
world's highest taxes. "We are prepared to pay more and have
the best services," Parent said. However, rising costs have taken their toll. In Although most health care for all is free,
as are prescription drugs for patients over 60, the long waits and
sometimes patchy services in public hospitals have forced some to use the
expanding private sector. "For a lot of older people, that isn't
a choice," said Penny Banks, of the King's Fund health care charity
in She also complains that the definition of
"health services" is limited, with seniors often paying for
in-home or residential care not directly linked to medical treatment. Even citizens in In Yet a decline in public services has seen
those that can afford it switch to private care. The French system, created in the wake of
World War II and frequently held up as one of the world's best, was caught
unawares by this year's summer heat wave that killed 15,000 people, mostly
elderly. Berthelot, who spent those months sheltering
within the thick walls of his centuries-old rural residence, said he was
confident that support for the health services will remain strong. "Even though it takes a bite out of the government budget, we all see the advantages of the system," he said. Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging |
