Facts About Free Health Care

Free health care is sometimes referred to as universal health care. Generally, it entails government involvement to make basic health care available to as many people as possible in a specific country. Adults and children who are legal residents would receive "free" health care to cover their medical, dental and mental health. Although patients may be required to pay a small charge, most of the funding comes from private insurance and government funding.

History

• Germany's universal health care system started with the Health Insurance Bill of 1883. It is the oldest free health care system in the world. It was followed by the Accident Insurance Bill of 1884 and the Old Age Disability Insurance Bill of 1889.

  England's evolution into free health care began with the National Insurance Act of 1911. The legislation covered the majority of working people and their dependents. It also covered people who paid into the plan even if they were unemployed. In 1948, this system was replaced with the National Health Service, which created universal health insurance for all legal residents of Britain. Currently, the United States is the only industrialized nation that does not have universal health care for its citizens.

Size

• According to the Organization for Economic Corporation and Development (OECD), the U.S. expended 16 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on health care. This is seven points higher than the average for other OECD nations, which is 8.9 percent. The typical American pays $7,300 per year on medical costs. The next highest was Switzerland at $4,417. Great Britain has the lowest cost, at $2,992. Both of these countries have free care.The average for other OECD countries participating in the survey is $3,692.

Geography

• A survey taken by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions asked 14,000 people residing in Canada, France, Germany, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States to grade their country's health care system from A to F. In Switzerland, 66 percent of respondents rated their system in the category of A or B; in France, the figure was 63 percent.

  Canada followed at 46 percent and the United Kingdom at 32 percent. Only 22 percent of Americans rated their service with an A or B. In the category of D or F, Germany received 44 percent, the United States rated at 38 percent and the United Kingdom received 20 percent. France, Switzerland and Canada followed with 12, 15 and 20 percent respectively.

Effects

• Statistics show that people who live in countries with free health care have a longer life expectancy. In the 11 countries with the highest life expectancy, nine of them have some form of free health care. Japan: 82.12; San Marino: 81.97; Singapore: 81.98; and Hong Kong: 81.86. In Canada, the average life span is 81.25 years while in France, it's 80.98. Switzerland's citizens live an average of 80.85 years. In Germany, the United States and Great Britain, the life expectancy is 79.26, 79.01 and 78.11 years respectively.

Misconceptions

• Many people are under the impression that free health care will stifle ingenuity and originality in medicine. However, former Washington Post reporter and author T. R. Reid states that although there is much groundbreaking research in the United States, countries with universal health care have their fair share of fresh ideas and advances in the industry. He points to hip and knee replacement techniques, which are French innovations. Canadians are the pioneers of deep-brain stimulation techniques that are used for treating depression.

  Reid also said that contrary to people's perception, universal health care does not necessarily mean there will be long waits for appointments. He admits that some countries with free health care programs have issues with long wait times; however, Britain and Germany actually outperform the United States when it comes to the duration clients had to wait for an appointment or schedule elective surgeries.