Posted on 08/26/2009 5:33:10 PM PDT by Kaslin
“In France, medical school is free. Entry is very difficult and students must pass a national competitive exam”
There are many states like New York that do have Medical School which are free. All Medical Schools in the US are of an excellent level.
All prospective students must take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), a highly competetive, long, extensive exam. Passing ther MCAT is not good enough. It is only the top 10-15 % who are accepted into Medical School. Medical School is the most highly competitive, most difficult professional school to get into.
You are correct. The french system, Securite Sociale is going broke, and has been running at a deficit for the last 20 years.
You don’t have to be a French citizen, but you do have to have a Carte de Sejour, the equivalent of a Green Card here. ie, you can’t be an illegal resident and get free medical care. Studcent from abroad are also eligible, but have to buy a Mutuelle, an sort of supplement that you pay for
Doctors can’t be sued, which alsdo means you have no recourse if a doctor or hospital screws up or is negligent.
IMO Tort Reform is absolutely essential to bringing the cost of health care down for all. Texas has done very well with capping the amounts in malpractice lawsuit
Tort Reform in the US must try and eliminate the frivolous and baseless lawsuits. But as a consumer of medical services, one has to have recourse.
The will of the people gets to speak every two years. We are not a democracy, but a representative republic, and our elected representatives are tasked with voting in the best interests of their constituents and the country. That may not necessarily be what their constituents want on any given issue.
To answer your question: the Dems are Socialist. They want Power over the ‘little’ people.
I am watching the Clarence Thomas hearings on old videotapes - because there is nothing interesting on tv this week.
It is fascinating to see Biden, Kennedy, and Leahy were just as snarky then as they have continued to be for decades. The dialogue, however, is much better than today’s farces of congressional hearings. Clarence Thomas talked circles around them.
Why did the whackos want CO2 declared a pollutant?
yitbos
Hi again!
You seem to have soured on your France-memories since the last time we spoke!
I’m so surprised about your post, I mean I hope it’s clear that I’m the last person to want socialized medicine in the US.
That said, almost nothing you write in your post fits with what I’ve personally experienced since 2001.
Perhaps things have changed since you lived here?
I only know ONE person who gave birth in the American Hospital of Paris, and that was a friend of mine who had recently married and moved to France and didn’t speak French yet. My daughter is now due to give birth and has registered in Hopital Tenon (20ème). My other daughter will also give birth in a hospital in the 19ème.
I have such experience with dentists here, and ONLY the emergency office SOS DENTISTS have ever pulled a tooth! What on earth are you referring to? Root Canals!? I’ve had two here (they took 45 minutes, not 4 hours!, and they are fast, painless, and crown are 1/5 the price! If I move back to the US, I will come HERE for dental work! (I once asked my dentist here how is it that in the US a root canal takes multiple visits, and she answered that they probably bill per visit, not procedure, so they drag it out.) In any case, perhaps my US dental anecdote is dated, because I’ve been in France since 2001. (I think your first-person French info is also dated...)
Also, what’s that with avoiding the real issue of heavy student loans needed to pay for medical school?
Anyway, please re-read my TWO posts. You’ll see that I’m not advocating changing the US system, (besides taking employers out of the middle-man role!), I’m just saying that there is really amazing medical care here too. Fast, efficient, complete.
Of course, in the US, doctors should be able to earn a living in relation to the expertise and training they invest.
It’s true, you must be part of the European Union.
I DIDN’T SAY THAT WE SHOULD USE THE FRENCH SYSTEM AS A MODEL!
I said the opposite.
Of course there is a ‘deficit’, it is a government program, not a money-making business. This is one of the COSTS of government in a Socialized system, duh.
My only point is that it is GOOD, not horrible like we read about in Canada.
What happened here in FR, subtle points can no longer be made?
I didn’t think I said anything that deserved caps.
Nice talking to you.
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