Summations Only

the old system worked, when people actually did "work" at their jobs.if you did labor you could eat that cuban sandwich everyday with no problem, but if you have a desk job, the pork lovers dream covered in cheese should not be on your diet.

Seems like you're trying harder than I am to make deeper sense of what I'm saying.It's simple, healthy people require less healthcare. We in America are NOT healthy people, and not only that but make light of not being healthy.Any healthcare system will fail under these conditions. We don't deserve universal healthcare. If marketed correctly, cyanide would be in every cereal too. Should we allow the idiots to run the asylum? 18,500 Mc Donalds...more than the entire world combined, and I've done the math, it's more by more than double. This is where it all begins.Fatties making fatty sandwiches and selling it to fatties in their cars. You tell me?- Oni

I'm sorry, should I pull up Mc Donald's statistics?I'm getting the sense that you're one of the fatties and are bother by health statistics. We already have one of those, can't you understand that? We ALREADY HAVE HEATHCARE. It works fine. I covers everyone in your household just fine. When I had a regular job it covered me and my kids. No one ever went without. You're just jumping on the bandwagon of what you THINK America needs because it's the new flavor of the month. But you have no clue. You have no idea how healthcare works here, at least not from a first hand experience. It works fine for those who take care of themselves.So we are left with the other, the poor eating habits. That one we haven't solved because every week there's a new taco at Taco Bell or crazy new burger invention.- Oni

One of the advantages of a universal healthcare system is that it can focus on prevention. As I said earlier barely a week goes by without my kids undergoing some form of preventative healthcare. Last week a dentist visited the nursery of my youngest. A few weeks ago an optician did the rounds at my son's school. A nutritionist was taking part in their lessons one week last term. Both have had various immunisations as a matter of course. Potential problems are identified and tackled early. That is the aim and I think it is a noble one.Are these not valuable undertakings in your eyes? Do you have this sort of thing in the US? No. That's my point. The deeply individualistic American (and increasingly prevalent here) attitude that what you do to yourself is your business and has no effect on anyone else just doesn't work.Instead we need people to see themselves as having a social contract whereby they can see the benefits of collective healthcare for themselves and their families whilst also understanding that this also obligates them to not actively take the piss out of the system by fucking themselves up physically through relentless overeating.It's not an easy sell. But if you genuinely want to change health attitudes you could do worse than take this sort of approach modeled on the Swedens and Norways of the world. All over the Western world there is a correlation between obesity and things like education and socio-economic background. Poor uneducated Westerners are getting fatter and fatter.The answer to this is not to simply dismiss the evidence and tell everyone to do some situps. To pretend that there are no factors beyond personal irresponsibility isn't going to be much help. That approach hasn't worked.So what do you think should be done? And how is universal healthcare not part of that solution in the way it seems to be in more healthy nations?

For fuck's sake, do we really need the government involved in telling our children to brush their teeth

They were getting free dental checkups and appointments made for those with signs of problems that needed looking into further.What is wrong with that?

Perhaps soon enough, all we'll have to do is pop out a kid and leave it on the doorstep for the government to pick up and handle it from there.

Well, I don't see any core building workout plans or telling the kids in a forceful manner to get out there and jog, or do situps, but, yeah I guess it's a start. I'd take a more direct approach. Maybe some early morning PT will get those kids in shape sooner than never. No, not all. Maybe an eye exam by 4th grade if they're lucky. But mostly, our kids are given hours and hours of homework every night that leaves them zero time to workout. It's not an easy sell at all. Frankly, there isn't one peron in the US that doesn't already know everything you want to teach them. We're not dealing with children, we're dealing with adults that know all the right things to do but refuse to do it.And don't get too comfy over there in your European skinny jeans, fats coming and it's bringing hell with it! It's on the rise in all of your countries. Even with all the preventative programs you may have. You guys are getting fatter. And why? Because you are adopting our fast food culture. Soon your health issues will increase as well, and your healthcare system will feel the pain.Maybe more fat taxes? But there's only one reason for that, shitty food cost less. Dollar value meals at Mc Donalds, Wendy's and Burger King feed the poor. We discussed that here in one of the threads.Fast food is the biggest problem in this culture and soon in yours too.You want to sit people down and explain to them not to eat garbage and to please workout like they've never heard this before, go right ahead. But nothing will come of that.My plan is simple. Shut down fast food places and make it illegal to produce harmful food. I like the healthcare we have in this country, it works fine. I don't know why you insist on us having your style healthcare?And, you only get to call yourselves healthy nations for now, but just wait. Your bragging will cease as soon as you get the Baconator. News - Medical: Its not just the Americans - Europeans are getting fat too!

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The findings were released as the 25-nation European Union announced an initiative to enlist the food and marketing industries in the fight against fat. Obesity is especially acute in Mediterranean countries, raising concerns that people in the southern region are turning away from the traditional diet of fish, fruits and vegetables to fast food high in fat and refined carbohydrates.

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Fast food!!! It will kill us all, but in a legal, free-market kinda way. Hopefully there's enough insulin for all of us.- OniEdited by onifre, : No reason given.

Well yes. I mean after all that mind control Big Brother has achieved by contaminating our water supply with flouride. It would be a shame to see that plot go to waste due to poor oral hygiene. Edited by 1.61803, : removed "go" redundant.

Yeah, I guess you're right.

40 to 50 million americans are without health insurance. Their only recourse is to wait until a condition is bad enough that it requires an emergency room visit where they can not be turned away.We are also paying twice as much per capita as countries who do have universal health coverage. So we spend twice as much and we are still leaving 1/6th of our population out in the cold. Our government already spend as much per capita on Medicare/Medicaid as other countries, and yet they are able to cover EVERYONE, not just the very poor and the very old. Our healthcare system is not working.

Well yeah! I get all that. The problem is affordability. People can't afford the healthcare provided here in the US so, 40-50 million go without.Why though?Well here's the reason: Rising obesity will cost U.S. health care $344 billion a year

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If Americans continue to pack on pounds, obesity will cost the USA about $344 billion in medical-related expenses by 2018, eating up about 21% of health-care spending, says the first analysis to estimate the future medical costs of excess weight.

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"Obesity is going to be a leading driver in rising health-care costs," says Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at Emory University in Atlanta.

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"There is a tsunami of chronic preventable disease about to be unleashed into our medical-care system which is increasingly unaffordable," says Reed Tuckson of United Health Foundation

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An obese person will have an average of $8,315 in medical bills a year in 2018 compared with $5,855 for an adult at a healthy weight. That's a difference of $2,460.

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If the percentage of obese adults doesn't change but stays at the current rate of 34%, then excess weight will cost the nation about $198 billion by 2018.

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If the obesity rate continues to rise until 2018, then Colorado may be the only state with less than 30% of residents who are obese.

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Health economist Eric Finkelstein, co-author of The Fattening of America, says medical costs won't go down unless Americans make a serious effort "to slim down by improving their diet and exercise patterns."

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Don't blame the system, blame the fatties who are making it impossible to provide healthcare for the population.If we adopt the universal heathcare system in the UK or other countries, funded by our taxes, we still won't be able to keep up with the cost increase as Americans get fatter. The only solution then will be to raise taxes further to cover the cost. Sounds like a terrible idea and not one that I can support.Workout, eat healthy, make fast food (poison) illegal, and then you'll see a cheaper overall healthcare cost affordable to everyone.- Oni

How do you know it is not some sinister governmental conspiracy to let the gluttonous "fattys" fressen themselves into the grave and thereby liberating our country of their ruinous heath care cost.Is it possible the government is secretly lowering the cost of hazardous, toxic foods?

Oh hey, if it is, smart on the part of the government. I'm all for letting people who want to kill themselves do so. But don't come begging for the insulin when you got a greasy burger tucked away in your fanny pack.Fat people usually wear fanny packs.- Oni

That's not the reason. If not obesity then it would be problems later in life, such as cancer. Cancer treatment is just as constly, and for the most part it is unavoidable even for those who have lived a healthy lifestyle. Also, in 2009 we spent $2.5 trillion combined (private and public, source). You are talking about an 1/8th of the overall cost. We are spending 2 TIMES more than other countries. Obviously, it isn't because of the fatties. While we are at it, why don't we blame those old people who keep getting cancer in their eighties.