Should the NHS be privatised?
958978
No,\nThere is no other way to provide the necessary level of care than by a medical system paid for by national insurance.\n\nIf you look at the USA - it is far more expensive and inefficient than the UK without having a demonstrable increase in standards of health.\n\nIt is inefficient because its bureacracy is immense you have\nThe admin of loads of different health care providers -hospitals doctors etc.\nYou have the admin of the HMOs\nYou have the admin of the insurance companies\n\nThat costs more money than having just the admin of the health care system\n\nSecondly the private care system leads to all sorts of short termist economics that are bad for long term health and long term expenditure on health care.\n\nMore money gets spent on drugs than on preventative medicine and primary care to keep people healthy.\nAll sorts of expensive tests are done which are not strictly medically necessary.\n\nMany people are not covered by health insurance which has a knock on effect in several areas -\n1) the problem of poverty illnesses such as TB - prevalent among the homeless and STDs from people who have no access to health care.\n\n2)If you can't get proper quality health care you may take more days off work  -this has a knock on effect on the economy and therefore tax levels.\n\nI am not saying the NHS works perfectly but it is improving in many aspects - \neven the private health care companies are noticing a down turn in demand for things like knee and hip replacements to be done privately.\n\nOne issue though is that some consultants like to push people into their private clinics where they get paid twice as much and so keep waiting lists longer without good reasons.
537688
Privatization allows for private companies to own industries instead of the public.  Some people think that this is bad but let me give you an example; The Fishing Industry.  Okay take a group of people seated in a circle and pass around a cloth bag full of chocolate candy kisses.  Tell everyone that they may each take as many as they wish and when the bag gets back to you, you will double the number of candies inside the bag and pass it around again.  I guarantee that the bag won't make it around the circle once before all the candies are gone, each person thinking that everyone else is conserving, so they can take a few extras.  Now give everyone there own bag of candies and tell them to take as many as they want and you'll double whats left.  This time everyone will have candy in their left in their own bag.  This is privatization.  This is an example of the fishing industry, now that some parts are privatized no one over fishes because then their area won't have any left for next year.
962108
The reason that billions are being wasted in the NHS is due to the Private Finance Initiative.  A private company foots the bill for building a new hospital, and the NHS leases the hospital at a price for a certain number of years.  So, instead of say, an old hospital being modernised at a one off cost of £35 million, its demolished, the land sold off to build luxury flats that no one can afford, and a new hospital built on the outskirts of town.  Great, weve got a brand new hospital, and the NHS has made a nice profit on the land that the old hospital was on.  In reality, the NHS then lease back the new hospital for say £25 million a year for the next 25 years.  Thats £625 million going to a group of faceless fat cats instead of into the healthcare of the public.  And of course, they demand their money before all others, so the NHS has to sack staff, cut down on its cleaning bills, close wards etc, while people who have paid their tax and NI into the system, in the vain hope that theyll get a decent level of care when they need it  can go to hell.   This happens with schools as well.  Its a disgrace.
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.
1009343
good question.  the answer is quite simple....  the government doesn't see free education (k-college) and free health care as a priority for all of its citizens....\n\nmany first world countries have this!!!\n\nby privatizing health care.....  companies makes zillions of dollars in by charging outrages prices for health care and prescription drugs....  it's the good and bad of a free market.  \n\nit's a shame that a country so rich couldn't provide basic health care to all of her citizens!!!!!
824820
Definately.\nComplementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is currently available at about 10,000 hospitals nationwide but this is usually done by doctors or physios who have received extra training, full-time post are relatively rare.\nMy speciality area of CAM is chiropractic, and benefits of including it on the NHS would be...\n-Decreased pressure on the NHS\n-Decrease in inappropriate referals for X-rays and orthopedics\n-Earlier referals by GPs\n-Earlier treatment means a decreased risk of surgery, and an economic boost to the NHS\n-Also a decreased risk of permanent disability\n-Less economic pressure on elderly who can't afford private therapy but often need it the most\n-Decreased perscription costs
248856
No.  Not if what they are using the hospital for is required treatment.  Too many people will go to emergency rooms for things that aren't really an emergency because they figure they will get free treatment.\n\nA better way would be if there was free and equall health care for everyone.
916344
Since the Thachter Government of 1979 onwwards most things are privatised. The only remaining State owned companies are: \n\nBritish Nuclear Fuel \nThe Post Office\nThe Police \nThe Prision service (although a number of the prisions are privately owned) \nThe BBC \nThe Schools, Colleges and Universties \nThe Health service \n\nChannel 4 and associted chanels (but ran independently)\n\n\nEven with these a number of services like cleaning, catering, repair and mainteance is carried out by private contractors\n \nEverything you list in your question is privately owned.
263425
Well, there is no such thing as a utopia, thus, it's only stating facts that we would have homeless people.  Besides, our society has an economic class system (ever heard of the term middleclass?)  It's good that the government spends money trying to promote .... whatever they are trying to and has obviously failed, at least at the moment.  \n   However, I don't think they should just stop the fundings altogether, but instead they should cut down on those and take care of our national deficit and debts first.  Or, even better, build a better healthcare system ... \n   Now, wouldn't that be grand?
901130
The general rule-of-thumb is that the marketplace will provide the public sector with all goods and services that a society would need.\n\nThis 'fails' under certain circumstances with modern society. If roads need to be built across state lines, or a telphone system, then the costs and cooperation needed end up being too prohibitive, for any one company to perform.\n\nHence the government steps in and creates a govn't agency, or a quasi-govn't entity to get the job done. Typically these organizations are beyond the normal supply and demand and competiveness features found within the private sector for lowering prices, and enhancing services (aggressively).\n\nThe idea of "privatization" is to move these quasi-govn't 'things' to the private sector and reap the benefits that come with better mgmt. and lower prices.
952919
No! Countries which have national health have oppressive tax bases and the systems are highly ineffective and unresponsive. I believe that we should look into to insurance and medical reform. Pricing structures should be examined. For example why should insurance companies be allowed to pay one price to doctors while people off the street must pay more. \nInsurance coverage should be made affordable for all wishing it, perhaps in the form of a government group plan which leverages large scale buying power much the same way as corporations do. \nWe should also review medical savings accounts. Contribution should be allowed to carry over from year to year allowing people to build medical nest eggs. Currently the plan allows tax free contributions, but they are lost if not used in a particular calendar year.\n\nThere are many things we can do to help make Health Care more affordable and available to all in this country, but creating what would be the largest entitlement in American history is not the answer.
480478
No because there should be a right to free medical care (as in the British Health Service) and to free education throughout life (Life-Long Learning).\n\nWhat bothers me is that some people have to pay, when it should be free for everyone as of right in a civilised society.
768222
Violent people junkie or otherwise have no right to NHS treatment until they are calm. Personally I'd call the police and have them dumped in the cells.
3606
Those privileges would be nice but I don't see it as a big deal. The prices there are not significantly lower than elsewhere to make it worth much. I agree with the above commenter that health care and education are much more important. I would like to see better health care options for veterans.
209352
The health centres should be renovated cos.It should keep the nose up front to the needs of people in the market.Only wen they r satisfied the target is achieved...
837708
i'm in the UK, we have an equally mucked-up, directionless party in power and no viable opposition.\ni think ur just a normal person, exasperated with spaff politicians that bander 2 whatever they think will win/gain votes.\nour NHS is disintegrating b4 our eyes and no-one really seems 2 care.\nu r a free thinker that refuses 2 b pigeon-holed.\nmany more like u and the politicians may have no choice but sit up and listen.
1184496
Absolutely not.  Our health care system is a mess, it's true, but I think the best way to fix it is with less government intervention, not more.  You see, as with everything else, you tend to get all the best and most expensive stuff you can when someone else is paying the bill.  Well, if the government is paying the bill, that really means the taxpayers.  It's not fair for healthy people to have their tax burden substantially raised because some others can't or won't take care of themselves.  Which leads to a related point:  If you're paying your own bill, you're more likely to take good care of yourself, so you don't end up paying more than you absolutely have to.