Not a very nice true story!!

[Nigel H-J]

Watch it if you wish but please be aware that the interviewee has been critically burn't in a light aircraft fire, here is a story of what every pilot dreads and hopes never happens to him/her.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5lcOMvAvIc

Regards
Nigel.

[Airspeed]

I did indeed watch that inspiring interview, Nigel.

Amazing that he maintained control whilst engulfed in flames, and brought the aircraft down.
An element of luck that his personal impact with the ground did not kill him.
Huge surgical costs, and it must have been extremely demanding rehabilitation.
A further reminder, as we go through life, that there's always somebody worse off.

[Nigel H-J]

Hi Mike, when on You Tube this video came up and curiosity was the reason for watching it and had thought that this person was a very lucky passenger in an airline crash but became even more interested when he stated he was actually flying the light aircraft when he noticed a flame.

What really shocked me was the medical bills, why in America are they so high? Is it that for those who have medical insurance the hospitals can charge what they like and know that they will get the money?

Maybe some of our compatriots over there can fill me in. How much does medical cover cost etc.

Coming back to his story, one cannot even begin to imagine the horror as events unfolded, some would say he was very brave but bravery in his case doesn't come into it, for it is a fight for survival and a determination to get out as quickly as possible. All I can say is that I hope I never find myself faced with a fire, cannot imagine how much pain he had to endure.

Regards
Nigel.

[Chris Trott]

First, that's an amazing and inspirational story. Thanks for sharing it.

The bills are high for a couple reasons, most of them BS.

First, the hospitals have to provide care for everyone who shows up and needs it. Period. Whether they can pay or not, they get helped. Where a lot of people misunderstand is the difference between life saving treatment (i.e. they need it) and other services. The other services to some extent can be refused or delayed until payment, but if you come in by Ambulance or it's a real emergency, no hospital would risk its certification and refuse treatment.
Now that in itself creates a problem - how does the hospital provide for everyone else and keep itself open if someone shows up but can't pay? Well, they raise their rates for those whom it knows can - those with insurance (government or private). Most hospitals hope to get wealthy benefactors who will create funds to help the uninsured and indigent, but they can't rely on it (sadly).

Second, there's the government insurance. Social Security (Medicare) and Low Income (Medicaid) government medical insurance pays a fixed rate based on a table that is set annually and is determined by taking the "costs" of certain services and paying a percentage of the average. So, if the hospital were to bill exactly what a service cost, they'd loose money every time someone on Medicare or Medicaid came through the door. So, they hike their costs to hopefully break even. Even then, the government often "sees through" this and still pays at a lower rate.

Third, there's private insurance. These pay negotiated rates for most services. As such, these rates don't always fully cover costs if the hospitals were 100% honest. So again, they hike the rates to hope that the discount still at least breaks even.

Basically, the whole system is setup to encourage inflation of cost. But the biggest driver is the government and those on government insurance because the problems with government insurance means that most people on those programs go to the hospital emergency room for treatment of even simple things like a cold or sinus infection instead of their Primary Care Physician because they can't get in to see them for weeks (or even months in some cases).

This is where the fallacy of "Universal Healthcare" falls flat in the US. Everyone in the US knows that our cost is high, but they also see the lie in letting the Government run it because we can all see with our own eyes that those whom are forced to rely on Government assistance aren't treated well. Hell, our own Veterans Administration is under major fire right now because of the absolutely abhorrent treatment our veterans have been receiving due to chronic waste and mismanagement of the VA Healthcare program and system. If the government can't take care of our veterans, then why should anyone believe they can take care of the entire country?

It also doesn't help that it costs a doctor several hundred thousand dollars to get their degree at even a "public" institution of higher learning (aka Universities). That amount of debt doesn't help lower salary demands for hospitals either.

[GHD]

Thank god for our National Health Service.

[Nigel H-J]

Chris many thanks for that very comprehensive review you gave. I can only quote and agree with George, my sentiments exactly.

Thank god for our National Health Service.

Regards
Nigel.