Pandora: Hannan's American health-care tour
Digg
del.icio.us
Facebook
Reddit
Google
Stumble Upon
Fark
Newsvine
YahooBuzz
Bebo
Twitter
Independent Minds
AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Daniel Hannan is lending his support to Republican efforts at halting President Barack Obama's healthcare reforms
enlarge
Whoops! Looks like Daniel Hannan has gone off-message again. The Conservatives' performing monkey – a Pandora regular thanks to his flamboyant haranguing of the Prime Minister – ran into trouble several months ago after launching a stinging attack on the NHS for "making people iller".
His remarks, which sat somewhat awkwardly alongside David Cameron's claim that his priority was "three letters: NHS", caused more than a few red faces over at Tory HQ, with press officers rushing to condemn the views.
Now, however, it seems the mischievous MEP is at it again. We hear that he has used his holiday to fly over to the US, where he is lending his support to Republican efforts at halting President Barack Obama's health-care reforms.
"Can I tell you horror stories about elderly people kind of left starving in wards?" he challenged one TV pundit. "Why do we put up with it?"
Hannan is in lofty company indeed: he joins that esteemed thinker Sarah Palin in his outrage. The glossy former governor of Alaska recently referred to the President's plans for reform as akin to creating "death squads". Goodness – whatever would Dave say?
Blears and Mackinlay limber up
*With so many MPs vacating their seats, the Beeb should have no problem finding Strictly Come Dancing's next John Sergeant. One potential candidate is Andrew Mackinlay, outgoing Labour maverick (his wife agrees; she thinks it would be good for his health) – but what about the charms of Hazel Blears, who seems less and less likely to return to Parliament? A member of the Division Belles tap troupe, Blears was last seen impressing with an acrobatic interpretation of the "Chattanooga Choo Choo". Could it be her second coming?
Amber has second thoughts
*Further news of Amber Le Bon's plans to launch her own jewellery range. It seems the idea has given the young model – and daughter of Duran Duran singer Simon – cause to reconsider her decision not to go to university. "You have to take every opportunity you can," Amber tells us. "I have loads of designs on paper and there is a really good jewellery course at Central Saint Martins. A friend of mine has just graduated from there, so I may look into that."
Barbara brings the chips to town
*Hats off to Barbara Taylor Bradford. We're told that the best-selling novelist was recently engaged in a gruelling day of interviews at London's swish Dorchester Hotel, when she noticed the clock had struck one and none of the assembled press had had any lunch. Instead of whisking herself off for a five-star meal, she ordered rounds of fish and chips (with "brown, not malt" vinegar) for everyone present. As they say, you can take the lass out of Yorkshire...
Emily gets her Hollywood crown
*Congratulations to Emily Blunt who, after much wrangling on the production company's part, will finally be able to take her film, The Young Victoria, to Hollywood. The actress has faced a series of setbacks with the project, which was released in the UK several months ago and, until recently, had failed to find an American distributor. Happily, we're assured the problem is no more: audiences will be able to see Blunt in full regalia from November. "It took a lot of to-ing and fro-ing," says one source.
View all comments that have been posted about this article.
Offensive or abusive comments will be removed and your IP logged and may be used to prevent further submission. In submitting a comment to the site, you agree to be bound by the Independent Minds Terms of Service.
- Print Article
- Email Article
-
Click here for copyright permissions
Copyright 2009 Independent News and Media Limited
Comments
No one in your country (aside from the minority left) is suggesting you have a single payer system like ours at all period - the comparison is just daft.
Two - none of us over here in Europe are clamouring to scrap our systems (no matter how socialist they are) - none of us are looking at the US and thinking 'I want that!' lets change. Only thing the Brits want is MORE spent on healthcare - under the single payer system, not less and certainly not getting rid of the principles behind it.
If you can spend on war - you can spend on health
Maybe. Any comments from the millions if your fellow citizens who haven't got insurance, don't get it from employers, and could never afford the premiums themselves?
2. Your anecdotal stories are just that - stories. They are also from the past era when Thatcher made drastic changes and cuts to the NHS. NHS spending has since been increased and waiting lists have been slashed as a result. Please note we are still spending less than half the amount that the US is, per capita.
3. It seems that some political consultancies are paying bloggers for each post or comment that make against health care reform in the US. Seeing that you are so quick on posting first on this post against healthcare reform, maybe you can make some extra retirement dollars.
2. Would you be treated with dyalis after 65 or 70 years of age.?
3. How come it takes so long to see a specialist or get certain diagnostic procedures in your systems?
4. You fail to answer the fact that all people have a path to treatment under either gov't programs or emergency room care as well a huge sytem of charity clinic's in america?
Over 50% of Americans by polling want nothing to do with Obamacare. We see how the govt mismanages everything it touches from the Post Office, government housing programs, the VA, Medicare, etc. Everthing the government touches turns to dog manure.
And if indeed large numbers of your fellow citizens share your view that "... the govt mismanages everything it touches from the Post Office, government housing programs, the VA, Medicare, etc." and that "everything the government touches turns to dog manure", how come you've not voted the brain-dead revenue-wasters out? Perhaps, as you seem to scorn both Democrat and Republican stewardship of your public institutions, you need to be founding one or two new political parties. Or have yourselves another revolution.
And as for the ludicrous "information" you got from the "fire chief", let me tickle you with the real facts about National Health Service care here.
Maximum time to wait to see a specialist for a consultation assessment and "diagnostic procedures": Six weeks, unless it's suspected cancer, in which case it's two weeks.
Maximum wait for surgery or other treatment after diagnosis (which would include your fire chief's knee replacement): Eighteen weeks in total (i.e. including the time spent waiting for the initial consultation), unless it's suspected cancer, in which case it's thirty days in total.
Dialysis is provided as and when clinically necessary; if you were 85 or 90 and it would benefit you, you'd get it. No procedures are ruled out simply on the grounds of age alone.
Don't make the mistake of thinking Daniel Hannan's views on health are representative of people's thinking here, even within his own political party. The National Health Service is by no means perfect - far from it! - but any political party here that proposed that we replaced our system with something like yours would be wiped out at the next election, and all the party leaders know it - including Hannan's.
Still, what you do over there is up to you; if most of you are happy to be the patsies of the financial interests of Big Insurance and the pharmaceutical companies, get on with it ...
2 The latest american polls show suppport for Obama's health and euthanasia bill to be at 39% for 52% against. Among the elderly is is much higher aproaching 60% against.
3. The fire chief story is true and you know it. If you want any non emergency treatment go to the back of the line or pay it yourself.
4 The 40 million you mention are mostly young people who don't need insurance and don't want to pay for it. There are also the self employed who would rather pay their own way rather than waste money on insurance they feel they don't need. There are also the 20 million illegals who get all their heathcare for free in emergency rooms or at free health clinics. There are also many walk in clinics for people who want to pay their own way.
5. There is no such thing as free heathcare. Someone has to pay. All the government does is get in the way and run up the costs. The more government gets in the way. the higher the costs. There isn't a governmant program anywhere. That couldn't be done for less. Heathcare was cheap and good in this country before the 60's when the government got involved. We also had a huge system of Charity hospitals run by local governmants and many private charity hospitals as well. My uncle ran the largest public charity hospital in this state. He had the best specialists in the city working in his clinics one or 2 days a week for free. Doctors used to treat the poor because their Hippocratic oath demanded it. It was far cheaper and easier for them the than all the governmant BS of today.
And, once again, most people here want to do exactly that; any attempt at imposing your system would be a recipe for uproar and total political meltdown. Typical ignorant American response to simply respond "The fire chief story is true and you know it. If you want any non emergency treatment go to the back of the line or pay it yourself." It isn't; you quite evidently know nothing about life here, like so many Americans who have no knowledge whatsoever of, and usually little practical interest in, anything beyond their own borders, or you wouldn't come out with this total and utterly fallacious drivel. Even if you paid privately for a knee replacement here, you'd be looking at nothing like 25,000 pounds - not even ten thousand. Someone's been winding you up - Brits quite enjoy doing that with Yanks because they perform so amusingly and predictably ...
No skin off our noses if your anachronistic anti-Communist paranoia leads most of you to stick with the system you've got. It's on a level with your absurd national devotion to the right to bear arms, so that unbalanced and deranged individuals, frequently schoolkids, can massacre relatives, work- or school-mates, acquaintances or passers-by on a depressingly regular basis, yet anyone suggesting restriction of access to weapons gets howled down. "It's people that kill, not guns"; what have you people got - some sort of communal death and sadism fetish?
If you're happy with your weird and considerably sick society, live with it yourselves; just don't try to impose your perverse "American way" on the rest of mankind. Trouble is, as a nation, you're such raging egoists that you think your way of life is the blueprint for human happiness, and that the rest of us should take it aboard whether we like it or not. Yanks are just so depressingly obtrusive in this world. A bit of reticence and humility, given the crap that you've spread about in the last twenty years, might make a refreshing change.
As an average UK citizen, I can tell you that NO ONE in the UK is FORCED to have public healthcare. There is a thriving, affordable, parallel private insurance market. The public option is for people who can't get or don't want private insurance.