Medicare-for-All has long been a goal of the Left. Single-payer health care was hard to understand so the message was changed to Medicare-for-All. When states like California, Vermont, Colorado and others have toyed with the idea of a state-based Medicare-for-All program voters voiced concerns about cost overruns and rationing of medical services. They were wise to do so.
With the Left in love with the idea of a national health program like Medicare-for-All, it’s wise to compare experiences other countries have with similar programs. Historically the British National Health Service (NHS) emphasized easy access to primary care, while rationing more costly services of specialists and expensive drugs. Lately the NHS is even experiencing problems with access to primary care. According to BBC News, NHS practices cannot cope with waiting lists:
A GP says practices cannot cope with the number of people who need medical help.Dr Satpal Shekhawat, who has a practice in Kirton Lindsey, Lincolnshire, said waiting lists kept growing and GPs were struggling to handle the workload.“The demand is rising year on year. We’re seeing it at our practice, but it’s across the board,” he said.
Dr. Shekhawat claimed to have once seen 40 patients during an 11-hour shift with no time for a real lunch break. There are also behind-the-scenes tasks and unpaid treatments in addition to seeing patients. GPs are pushing back at what they consider unsustainable practices.
His practice has limited the number of pre-booked appointments to 25 per day for each staff member, so they cannot be rushed. They have increased appointment times from 10 minutes to 15 minutes.The surgery is also considering stopping work that they are not paid for by the government, like ear syringing.
The moves are part of a work slowdown by members of the British Medical Association to force the NHS to boost resources. The NHS claims it plans to hire an additional 1,000 GPs by year end. Where it will find them is hard to fathom. It takes about seven years after college to train GPs. More from BBC News:
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, many GP practices across the country are stopping or reducing certain services as part of collective action.
Background: in August 2024 members of the British Medical Association voted to take drastic measures, so-called industrial action and possibly go on strike. The [UK] Standard reported:
GPs have voted in favour of industrial action over a lack of funding, raising fears of severe disruption to NHS care that could last months.It’s the first time in more than 60 years that family doctors in England have voted for collective action.Family doctors in the British Medical Association (BMA) voted overwhelmingly in favour of collective action in a ballot of 8,500 members, with 98.3 per cent backing action.
What kind of industrial action?
Doctors have been told they can “pick and choose” from measures including a limit on the number of patients they see to 25 a day, which could force patients to use A&E or call 111. The BMA says that GPs have an average of 37 patient contacts per day.Other actions may include refusing to share patient data unless it’s in the best interests of a patient, referring patients directly to specialist care rather than following longer and more complex NHS processes and switching off NHS software which tries to cut prescribing costs.
The British Medical Association encouraged GPs to choose from a list of 10 potential actions [see list]. The work is increasingly arduous, and GPs complain the pay is not sufficient for the workload. GPs earn between $87,000 and $132,000 a year. By comparison, American primary care physicians earn between $162,000 and $246,000 annually.
The United States also has a shortage of primary care providers but that’s partly due to our emphasis on specialty care. The NHS also has a shortage of specialists, with record high waiting lists that force patients to wait months, even years for some specialty treatments.
Read more at the British Medical Association: GPs prepare to take collective action after overwhelming ballot result.