Single-Payer Health Care in Vermont

Originally posted by utherpendragon
http://www.worldsrichestcountries.com/ according to his wording and the site I provided he is not wrong. I saw no one talking about per capita other than you.

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper"The US is the richest nation in the world"

I provided per capita figures and per capita you are WRONG.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

His wording was an attempted rebuttal to my per capita figures about the cost of healthcare in the US.

Per capita in this case is the only data that's worth a dam.

Here, let me spell it out for you.

Me: "Per capita we spend more than any other country in the world"

Him: "That's because we're the richest country in the world!"

The fact that we have 300 Million people x our GDP is irrelevent to the per capita (per person) cost of healthcare.

Originally posted by normbenign
Does it surprise you that a government bureaucracy is supportive of other bureaucracies?

So the CBO estimates - considered THE referee accepted by Democrats, Republicans and Independents alike - who's estimates the wingnut and teaparty (redundant I know) groups have no problem citing when they say something that fits their agenda......

Is falsifying data?

Originally posted by normbenign
I am not specifically aquainted with Norway, but Norway can no more ignore economic law than the law of gravity.

There are some factors which may play into lower costs, mostly differences in culture, and environment.

It is a silly argument anyway, on either side to compare relative costs under differing systems, differing cultures, differing work en ...[text shortened]... the uninsured, and uninsurable, and it's going to cost less? Sounds like a fairy tale to me.

If it's a fairy tale you best start believing in it. What kind of difference in "culture and environment" would explain how Norway can offer health care at a lower price? I explained already why universal health care is more efficient. There is less bureaucracy, because you don't need as much cash flowing around, you don't need any marketing and you don't need huge hi-rise office blocks for insurance companies. You cut out the middle-man, you don't create one. Also, the incentives for overtreatment disappear, greatly enhancing the efficiency of health care providers.

Originally posted by utherpendragon
http://www.worldsrichestcountries.com/ according to his wording and the site I provided he is not wrong. I saw no one talking about per capita other than you.

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper
[b][b]"The US is the richest nation in the world"

I provided per capita figures and per capita you are WRONG.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

[/b]

[/b]It makes no sense to not look at per capita when comparing health care costs. It makes equally little sense to look at the flat amount when comparing wealth; by that logic Liechtenstein (one of the richest countries in the world) would be dirt poor.

Originally posted by KazetNagorra
If it's a fairy tale you best start believing in it. What kind of difference in "culture and environment" would explain how Norway can offer health care at a lower price? I explained already why universal health care is more efficient. There is less bureaucracy, because you don't need as much cash flowing around, you don't need any marketing and you don ...[text shortened]... s for overtreatment disappear, greatly enhancing the efficiency of health care providers.

In Norm's world, efficiency and economic well being only come from the rich. You're taking the rich out of the equation with single payer. Ergo, it cannot be efficient.

No figures or stats no matter how true or overwhelming are going to make him abandon his "religion".