The Healthcare System of France

[@BarreDeFaire]

I grew up in France in a middle class family, only my dad worked and my mom was taking care my 3 siblings and me at home. They never had to worry about healthcare expenses. I have now been living in the US for the last 8 years and I just can't understand how Americans can deal with such a shitty and expensive healthcare system. In France, we would have been protesting in streets (it's a national sport) long ago to demand for a better healthcare system...

[@Ajax1984]

We put up with it because from our perspective we're better than France! Thus anything France came up with, couldn't be good! Also, it goes back to the idea that socialism is bad/and thus socialized healthcare is bad. Even though when you don't put profits before human lives, you bring down costs. Duh.

[@sunnydaze80]

Americans are too complacent to get out and protest. I realize this comment is 3 years old, but given recent events, when you do get out and protest, the bigots tell you to leave if you don't like this country. Seriously, the general attitude is, that's just the way things are. It's the American way, blah blah blah.

[@dorianmichelarmenterossanc668]

BarreDeFaire i lived 28 of the 35 years i am in Cuba. Yes CUBA a third world country. I never paid a penny to see a doctor and i got great results. Our problems came from scarcity and that mostly due to USA embargo. Americans don’t know what they are missing cuz they have never lived it and they have a culture centered mostly on individualism & greed.

[@dorianmichelarmenterossanc668]

Raul Herrero Really are you gonna tell me i have no idea when i first hand experience the embargo? And now that I’m living in USA i see the same pattern around the world. U can go a f..... urself

[@antonioiniguez1615]

BarreDeFaire the public healthcare is what's so bad about it

[@camilledumeige3]

People say that if Breaking Bad took place in France Walter White would have handed his carte vitale and end of story.

camilledumeige3 So true xd

[@christianmarcel7766]

This is very true, although breaking bad can only happen in the US. The US have the worst system ever. Period.

[@rutvin8763]

Cringe. This dumb comment is spammed on every healthcare system video.

[@commentor3485]

Guess the US healthcare system produced one "good" thing

[@spooney100]

True although to be fair if Walter White lived in pretty much any nation in the developed world other than the US, Breaking bad wouldn’t have happened.

[@niwanotanuki]

Please excuse my english as I am french; I never comment KZbin Videos but I must say I find this explanation of my country's healthcare system and the comments made by people from different countries very interesting, especially comments from some american citizens. I am really happy with my healthcare system and though I know it's very costly I'd rather sacrifice everything else in order to keep it as it is. I know that if I get sick, i will be taken care of, I'll get surgery or expensive new drug if needed, whatever money I make, whatever job I have or not. I can choose a doctor or a hospital I like, they can charge me what they want, I'll get reimbursed based on the regular prices and my extra insurance (provided by my company) will take care of the rest. I never feel like I am being forced into a system. I never feel like it is institutionnalized charity. What I feel when I benefit from it is the meaning of the third word of our national moto : Fraternity. I am happy to collectively pay taxes that will help my fellow citizens and inhabitants of France because together we are a nation and we must help each other as such. I know it is a cultural difference, but I cannot stand it when I read someone who wrote "I don't want to pay for anyone else but me; poor people who cannot afford healthcare are responsible for their own lack of fortune (they lazy people); too bad for unlucky people but let them rely on charity". Like it is people fault that they got sick, or couldn't afford to a monstrously expensive university to get a job that can cover their health expenses. I can't believe everything is up to the individuals. I think we are molded by the cultural and social background we come from and we cannot do anything about that and it is unfair to blame people for not winning the birth lottery. Of course people are not equal and will never be. But I think that in a country, as a nation, as a state it is my citizen duty to support a system, how imperfect it might be, that help people at least be freed from the worst injustice of all, so that they can keep their dignity as human being. I would add that I am absolutely not shocked by anything state-run like many americans are; for a long time state lead industrial ventures in France were very succesful and prestigious and it still rings on in nowaday society (like the very cheap prices for excellent broadband and high-speed internet coverage). Our country was built around the idea that "the people is the state, the state is the people". It is a very long comment I know, but sometimes it has to get out! :-)

[@RealLargeManTheGiantOne]

Moi je trouve que le system français est géniale. Je me suis cassé le coude il y a un an, j'ai rien payé.

[@diomedesnathan3126]

Égalité

[@cabbagelettuce3340]

niwanotanuki I am happy to help my fellow citizens that also contribute to the system. I don't want to help those who are unemployed and have kids just to get benefits. No thanks.

[@passelemonoistp2643]

Merci pour cette tentative d'expliquer notre système de santé et surtout l'esprit de solidarité qui nous anime.

[@Omar-if1cu]

Cabbage Lettuce Not everyone without a job is worthless....What if it’s an 18 year old who got kicked out of his parents house, had to get a job and his own place but then all of a sudden one day he had a car accident that put him in the hospital for a while and since he was a new employee he was only a “temp” so he couldn’t get health insurance and they fired him when he couldn’t go to work anymore.... now he is unemployed and uninsured and in the hospital in bad condition... when he comes out of the hospital he will have a bill that will basicly ruin his life economically in such a devastating manner.... trust me there are many other situations I can describe here... please don’t suddenly turn blind or death just because of your pride of not wanting to help others.

[@kurzgesagt]

Even if the french system is expensive - if the outcome is that good we should adapt it everywhere.

[@danielsixta8556]

...except the paying for homeopathy part. If someone wants to throw away their money on really expensive placebo can do it on their own dime.

[@kurzgesagt]

Yeah right. We have the same problem in Germany. Insurance companies cover homeopathy and all the crazy or desperate people think this somehow validates it...

[@SarthorS]

***** And in the UK, although I believe that no British university offers a degree in Homoeopathy any more, so a step in the right direction.

[@clamum]

Homeopathy... LOL. What a joke. Reminds me of conspiracy nutters for some reason.

[@SarthorS]

Well that's one of the problems with these alternative health therapies. Some people who offer them know they don't work and are simple con artists. They should be put in prison. However many of them really do think this stuff works are think they really are helping people. In some cases the placebo effect can actually help. These people don't deserve to be treated the same as the scammers but they still need to be stopped and educated about these things.

[@CoJau911]

French med student here, making 250 euros a month (i know...). Last year i had to undergo major surgery. On week in a private hospital, an MRI, a day in surgery and all other expenses : 2,500 euros. (When i see American prices i seriously don't understand) 2,200 were covered by Social Security, 200 euros by my individual insurance. I had to pay 100 euros (less than 150$). Best health care system ever !

[@brandonfrancey5592]

Health care in France may be relatively expensive, but you get what you pay for, unless you're American and you just pay more thinking it's better.

[@msven]

Most are too distracted by social media and reality TV to know any better.

[@MrRizeAG]

m sven I am American, and I can confirm this is fact.

[@msven]

Mr. Rize AG haha I'm an American too. I thought I'd leave that off to see if anyone tried to say I don't know what I'm talking about. :)

[@OnThaMove]

You can rest-assured that you absolutely KNOW exactly what you're talking about, and sadly, having lived France for many years, I couldn't agree with you more.

[@MegaAwesomeExtreme]

I'm American, and I can say that our healthcare system is completely broken. It's so horrible.

[@Hesttia]

As a French person I can say that I trully appreciate that anyone (even foreigners) can walk in an hospital and be taking care of regardless of their financial or social situation. No one will ask you if you can afford a test or a procedure before helping you. Because if you can't afford something the government will help you pay. Most hospitals will also make payments plans to help if it's necesarry. We have amazing benefits. Also as a woman I can get the pill nearly for free for my entire life (I understand daily contraception is expensive in certain countries). We are truly bless on this topic. But don't get me wrong we're French so we still find ways to complain about it of course.

[@sion8]

Bonjour ! (Since we both share English as a common language, yet we both share different Romance languages. I will write this in English) The French health system sound wonderful and I wish everyone on Earth could share something similar to it, however I have a question does this system apply to all of the French Republic or just the European part?

[@Hesttia]

***** Woo that's just unthinkable in France. Your employer can't force their religious views on you (it's also illegal for an employer to discriminate someone because of their religion). The pill is reimbursed by the government anyway, so there is no place for religion at all and it will never be taken into consideration

[@Hesttia]

sion8 Bonjour! Everyone who is recognize as a French citizen is covered by this system (at least the general one but there's a few specific ones depending of your profession as explained in the video). It doesn't matter if you live on the continent or one of the other French territories outside of Europe. If you are French then you are entitle to this for a very simple reason: we consider that our social security (and everything it entitles you to receive) to be a basic right not a privilege therefore all French must be covered regardless of their situation. As for the French people who live abroad all year long, I'm not sure. I would guess that if they don't pay taxes in France or reside in France at all, they are covered by the system in the country where they live. But I'm not sure about this. I hope this answered your question :)

[@sion8]

Well I was asking just about the Overseas Departments (such as Guiana) Collectivities (Such as French Polynesia) and not about French people that live outside the French Republic, which I would think don't have the capability to get access to the same system outside of France but it seems that they could if they can get to some part of France by what you're saying.

[@freewal]

+sion8 Anyone who works has the right to be covered by Social Security even a foreigner : it's normal he pays a payroll tax for the service. For a foreigner who is in an emergency situation like a refugee : he has the right to access to an alternative program : L'aide médicale d'Etat, even if he is an illegal migrant. It offers same service as Social security

[@kd1s]

Thanks for exposing the fact that we in the U.S. have one of the worst and most expensive health care systems in the world. I would welcome the French solution here - or even the British or Canadian systems. The way we handle health care in the U.S. is ludicrous.

[@alecneate76]

Don't go for british, it's not good.

[@supreme5580]

I'm skeptical about Canada's quality. But France sure ranks number one in many indices/surveys

[@Tetratronic]

Maaaan, I had no idea the French healthcare system is THIS good.

[@KeepMeChilled]

them clever French sticks

[@sirosiris5045]

***** I dont know if you could find better HealthCare system than in France . It is so amazing , the hospitals quality and proffesionalism its just as in heaven and all of that its free .

[@BucketheadChuck]

+Gray Fox Maaaan, it's also broke!

[@PhilJonesIII]

+BucketheadChuck All of France is broke but its worth noting that it always has been. Getting credit in France is difficult. Overdraw your bank account and you are breaking the law, your account gets locked. It sounds harsh but people get used to saving first and are generally very careful with money. And the quality of life outside cities is good.

[@GFmanaic]

Lol what. Social security is not broke, getting credit has never been easier these past few years, and you cannot overdraw you bank account, so saying it is illegal is not true, because you cannot (some allow for a certain margin, but that is within contract). That said, I agree people tend to manage their money better that way.

[@wigglebiggle1811]

My French teacher had an accident while in France. Saw a specialist, got x rays and pain meds, etc. Hell they even offered to fix it that day. He was so worried about the cost especially as a foreigner but it cost him nothing literally. Now that's quality.

[@romainamuat3910]

Well, the video says social security reimburses around 75% of health related costs, but actually if care is needed it is covered. For instance, with CMU-C coverage you can get (cheap and ugly) prescription glasses (from a list of glasses made by the social security administration) for free but anti-reflective coating will be paid by you. In the case of your teacher, it is likely that he only had to pay for the pain meds (even though I am not even sure).

[@josearaujo8616]

@Blackstone No it would not... If you travel to the USA and have to go to an hospital you will see that, and how much it will cost you in the end....

[@timsyoutube6051]

@Blackstone why should you pay for roads when others don't? Why pay for schools when others don't? Why pay for the police when others don't? Pretty soon we're all sat in our homes, with a gun pointed at the door, in case someone takes what's yours. We do need to do something about people flying here for the nice free healthcare, but the US way of thinking is not the way.

[@hathejoker]

France's healthcare system sounds insane in a good way. Kudos the the French.

[@neurokid1]

I couldn't hear anything beyond FREE MEDSCHOOL are you freaking kidding me....

[@doffduv6711]

Lester Sanchez In France all university studies are free: medicine, judicial, history, economics, mathematics, chemistry, physics ... There are also private schools in other areas, for trade, for example. Universities are a free service provided by the state. Me for example I'm at the medicine university, it's totally free, and the state provides a scholarship for me that I rent an apartment because the university is far from home.

[@AfroBolshevik]

Also even for people who are not citizens of France (like a foreign US student) they get heathcare through there uni free of cost Along with the price of uni being free or completely low of cost along with student discounts from free museums, heavily discounted food sevice (mcdo, subway, etc.), public transport, and other benefits as a full french student. It's very forfilling being a French student

[@julielilote3496]

+seneg ruk I agree i went to nursing school paid a small fee the rest taken care of

[@hugogo2182]

+Philémon Esunga mcdo en france cest pas cher wallah

[@AfroBolshevik]

Hugo Goddard​ ouais tu as raison, mais c'est génial encore!! Parce que j'ai pas de sous parfois mdrrr

[@LeonNikkidude]

US should learn from French system.The best hands down!

[@obsessedwithotomegames3788]

Minus the fact that birth is not a medical procedure there.

[@789french5]

As an actual Frenchman I can vouch for how awesome the system here is. I pay 3 euros to go see my doctor (can pick whoever I want) and because I'm a student all my prescriptions are free! If you don't have a "mutuél" (the plans that cover the 15% of drug costs la sécurité sociale doesn't, the costs are around 1-2 euros a box. The one downside of the system is that the French consume a LOT of medications. You can get pure codeine and ethlymorphine OTC and we consume the most SSRI and Benzo's in the world. So that is probably the worst, we actually get too much healthcare and the pharma industry profits :/

[@arnaud2646]

Cocorico !

[@massimoheitor1924]

When you say you pay 3 euros, you pay much more than that, that's just the small part you see that isn't hidden by the government. The government ultimately takes money from regular French people to pay for that health care.

[@evilsharkey8954]

Massimo Heitor, yes, but the total is still much less than the US.

[@fishofgold6553]

​@@massimoheitor1924 Yes, and that's what's good about it. The cost is distributed throughout the population rather than having to be shouldered by one person.

[@mela6046]

@@fishofgold6553 can............Fishofgold6 ...get an ...A M E N .......!?!.....

[@justinnorwood5477]

Pretty much from this video we can conclude that France is the bets place to go for health insurance. If someone works, then they have healthcare! Its amazing how countries can find a way to get the job don when it comes to health. Things that we aren't even close to covering in the U.S., they cover in France. One distinction in France is that doctors make far less money but they receive more benefits (medical school for free). This is a trend that other countries will struggle to adopt because they're too money hungry. The best part is that the people of France do not pay that much for their healthcare. Lastly, the fact that cancer patients in this country can get any drug they want is awesome. We're talking even experimental drugs! The French are doing things right in every way possible, other countries seriously need to look into their healthcare system.

[@1905parth]

You don't even need to work, you just need to be a legal resident. And even if you're a tourist and have an accident it will still be free.

[@franckmeinhardt1866]

You don't have to work to have it, you just need to be a legal resident! :)

[@srabbelier]

The French system sounds to me more or less like what health care should be like. Didn't know that France has their health care ducks in order to this extent.

[@Bozo1360]

The reason you don't know is because this topic is VERBOTEN in the USA. The insurance industry and the pharmaceutical industries in the USA try to keep the superiority of the other nations under wraps.

[@MrCracou]

The fact is that in France and most countries people just don't understand some US TV shows when they say "they have huge meical bills, they are bankrupt". It just does not exists there (there is not even a comonly used word to define "personnal bankrupcy").

[@ccmanize]

MrCracou I have a friend who was skiing in the United States and hurt his shoulder. He was gonna get an ambulance to the hospital until he found out it would be $800! So he just decided to come home to get it taken of.

[@Timmie1995]

I'm Dutch, and when I saw this video, I thought: 'Wow, that's got to be really expensive, if you pay so little as a patient. We have to pay more, but it saves the government money.' Then I saw we spend even more. Where does all that money go?

[@Schleiban]

The Dutch don't spend more money, they just spend more as a percentage of GDP. The Netherlands' GDP is smaller than France's.

[@Timmie1995]

Schleiban I know that, but it's still odd that we pay more as individuals, yet the government spends more as well. I've found out what the problem here is, though: he said that prescription drugs in France are really cheap, and the opposite goes for the Netherlands. I have a prescription drug that's almost the cheapest you could imagine, and it costs me 11 euros to buy it. Drugs are insanely expensive here.

[@jordanreeseyre]

TimMinecraftMassacre This could be a result of negotiating leverage when purchasing drugs from manufacturers. Frances large population means they can negotiate low prices by buying in relative bulk.

[@Timmie1995]

***** That might be part of the problem, but the Dutch government also like to have rules for everything, and that makes for way too much bureaucracy. That, beside the drug problem, might make things more expensive as well...

[@danycashking]

TimMinecraftMassacre Not just that, hallo ook Nederlander hier ^_^, i think the main problem is management, idk if you experienced this but in the Netherlands doctors tend to take a doctor's visit and unless you are quite sick or have an unusual sickness they will send you home right away eventhough they will still charge for the visit, i'm currently living in Curaçao and it's a lot different here when doctors even if it's just a stomach ache they will have blood work done or give you medicines or etc. although here they also have their own problems that doctors will charge for many procedures that were unnecessary or surgeons especially charge for operations that never happened which is causing an enormous deficit in the health care sector. also some areas are quite expensive like dental care here is so expensive the govt stopped covering it, a pair of braces costed me 5000 guilders, it's cheaper to travel to a nearby country and get dental care there and come back then get it locally, i have many friends who just fly to Colombia every time they need dental treatments.

[@romainamuat3910]

It is funny. I have a French friend here in Georgia, with a pretty good insurance, who preferred to pay for a plane travel to get hospitalized in France even if it was a standard operation to the elbow.

[@ericmarseille2]

My French Grandma, who had emigrated to the US, HATED France...She just HATED her country of origin...EXCEPT FOR HEALTHCARE...She'd come back every year to be treated, and she didn't have harsher words for France as she had for the American healthcare system, which is saying something!

[@nraynaud]

Just a slight moderation of vocabulary: patients in France don't get any cancer treatment "they want". It's the "death panel" who get what they want. The death panel has no hard budget limit, and they can include the patient in a drug testing if it's relevant. They go purely on benefit/risk/patient discussion.

[@clarak1586]

My mom has cancer, she goes to different specialists and appointments every other week, a nurse comes to our house to test her blood levels and inject her meds that cost around 1000 euros each every month. All 100% free. I cannot imagine living in the us, i would be terrified to get hurt or sick and be in such debt all because something unfortunate and unplanned happened to me.

[@1glenwi]

@Clara K Hello 👋 It’s a lot more easier being there in France I think, how’s the economy over there?

[@soberbob]

The Australian health care system would be awesome to do next. It's a little inefficient, and it doesn't cover specialists, but if you break a bone, get cancer, or need to have a child, you are never going to be out of pocket.

[@clementine3218]

They also have a unique mobile hospital program with all the necessary ER equipment in the ambulance. A doctor rides along with the paramedics because they realized most emergencies aren't really emergencies and can be treated on-site. This frees up hospital beds.

[@supekele]

I'm rather happy that their system is so thorough, but homeopathy? Really?

[@Vulcapyro]

***** And people are fully aware when they're actually sick and when it's just "small stuff", and they really know that these treatments have no evidence for their efficacy? They can really tell when they should go to a real medical professional? Suuuure. The whole point of a placebo being a placebo is that it has some measurable benefits, so of course it can "help". The danger is that people _don't_ know what they're doing, and that they would rather try things that _don't_ work rather than things that _do_, or avoid professionals that would be able to properly assess and diagnose problems. Small stuff be damned.

[@shezario]

Pretty sure theres a translation error. From what I know the term covers a lot more then what is usually refered to in english. Eg. Any herbal treatment wich is in fact proven to work but not manufactured by pharma companies. One example would be specific herbal teas for minor stomach issues.

[@romainamuat3910]

@@shezario sorry for topic necromancy, but it is actually true, state reimburses around 30% of homeopathy "drugs" even though many doctors are currently fighting this thing. The reason given by homeopaths is that it can actually be cheaper to give a "drug" without side effects even though its efficiency is not proven. Many are saying they are charlatans, good thing is that they actually followed med school like other doctors and are trained to reorient patients toward hospitals if needed.

[@pianissimoforte1816]

Homeopathy is not reimbursed anymore in France ;)

[@JoannaVancouver]

2021 Update France’s national healthcare system will stop reimbursing patients for homeopathic treatments beginning in 2021. This comes after a national study by French medical and drug experts concluded that there is no evidence that homeopathic remedies work apart from a potential placebo effect.

[@addicted2caffeine]

lived in France for 7 years. honestly the best healthcare I've ever seen. and sooooo cheap. about double the price of the NHS but 10x better.

[@prp3231]

The nhs is on life support. People waiting for hours and hours for an ambulance, on hospital trolleys in corridors, lowest number of beds per head of population in Europe, lowest number of doctors per head of population....stay in France, enjoy the high speed railways, the advanced road infrastructure, great tourism, cleanliness....

[@addicted2caffeine]

@@prp3231 haha I've been back here in the UK a while. In all fairness the quality of life is very different. In the UK the modern luxuries ie broadband eating out your money goes further in the UK a lot further. etc... Is better. However in terms of quality of life I still think France has better food and medical. And just work/ home ethics. The UK is half way to American western society. Although as a Brit that lived in France and all my family still does I can honestly say the french system is so pro french it's near racist. It discriminates against anyone that isn't french. And becoming french is complex my sister got married to a frenchman. She still can't have the nationality because she's still in uni doing higher education forget that she's lived there for 18+ years. She's 25 and has lived there since 7. She doesn't even remember the UK. Yet they refused to give it to her 🤣 she's got to be employed and married for 3 years then she can take a french language exam .

[@12345fowler]

Also in France the health insurance system will reimburse you for the days of work lost when sick. This is why the spending is huge compared with other system where this covered by other branches of insurances.

[@ThePomme33]

In addition to that if French people travel and got hospitalized in other countries, just keep all the receipt and you get the reimbursement!Yes, we love our healthcare system!We treasure and we want to keep it!

[@thevoid8948]

As if I didn't already want to move to France,now I do even more.

[@TheDraconifors]

Granted I haven't experienced the French health care system myself, but that sounds fantastic. I'm quite jealous.

[@Pat121V]

I think socialised health care is key, and the key to socialised healthcare is to have adequate numbers of healthcare workers and infrastructure to deal with the inevitable increase in patient visits, and of course compensate the loss in salary for healthcare workers in other ways.

[@JoachimTHIBAULT]

First of all thank you for that video. It's so rare to see an american video praising something french. But what a shock in the comments. Everybody is talking about homeopathy. I'm French and i don't believe in homeopathy (i'm probably too cartesian for that) and I didn't know it was covered but i do my homework and check : homeopathy represent 0.3% of the expenses ... so it's not a big deal if some people like sugar and placebo effect.

[@Cloud_Seeker]

Well I think the problem people have with it is that it the system spend any amount of money on it, quackery like that shouldn't be endorsed in any way, sharpe or form.

[@alliswellkolkata8925]

Why

[@cloudie1464]

That's funny, people are complaining about homeopathy in France but in the US, doctors will prescribe you ridiculous amount of medicine that they know are useless.

[@queuesnake704]

France sounds pretty awesome.

[@mariadavis3797]

A French lady recently told me that while visiting San Francisco she had a tooth pulled out; it cost her $1000. The same procedure in France costs € 36.50.

[@Hodoss]

Yeah. People often admire how beautiful the French look. But part of it is thanks to our egalitarian and ethical health system. You won't see a French with rotten teeth. However poor you are, if a tooth gets bad the priority is to solve this issue before it gets worse. The priority is no French is left with bad teeth. If you dare to walk into a good French Dentist cabinet, you will not escape before your teeth are fixed. Even if you say you can't pay, it's not an excuse. It will be done for free if it has to. A good French Dentist fixes everyone he gets, paid or not.

[@1glenwi]

@ Maria Davis Hello 👋 It’s so amazing how France Government handle their economy, how are you today Maria?

[@elwynbrooks]

Ugh I want to live in France

[@Aud-Rey38]

As a French myself, I feel lucky to live in France. "Oh I have an infection but no money, guess i'll just die then!" sounds...prehistoric.

[@jochemvanl]

Sounds like an amazing system. Except of course for covering homeopathy... that's just ridiculous. In the Netherlands you can get voluntary insurance for alternative medicine, but there's no way that the mandatory insurance will cover this. Covering unproven non-experimental treatments (like homeopathy or acupuncture) is not something that should be paid through a socialized system.

[@naota3k]

A well written comment, and agreed.

[@LPSDave]

Even as someone that works in an "alternative" healthcare field, I can agree with that.

[@Octavius1922]

I could see acupuncture being covered to an extent. There may be no evidence of it actually relieving pain, but if the person believes it does, then it has a placebo effect and cuts down on healthcare costs overall. That's why some insurance companies here in the states actually cover acupuncture.

[@LPSDave]

But they don't cover massage, for the most part. Something that has scientific studies backing it up. I'm a little bitter :P

[@OBviouslyRachie]

Colin Philips Yes, acupuncture can work and neurologically it's not quite exactly thought to be "placebo" effect, although every treatment has placebo effect tied to it. It's about gate theory of sensory stimulation of the spinal cord - which, in a nutshell, would say that it 'modulates' pain by creating sensory stimulation or input elsewhere than the area of pain which through interconnecting neurons could reduce the substance P (which causes pain) at the level where the original pain is. Basically, by creating stimulus or irritation elsewhere, it down regulates pain at the other site (kind of like when someone is hitting you on the arm, you don't necessarily feel a dull pain somewhere else because your spinal cord's 'attention' is higher somewhere else where you're being hit) that's the prevalent theory anyways

[@iwilitu6591]

The more i see these kinds of comparative videos the more I rethink my decision to try to pursue a career in the US. After all Europe is a pretty amazing place

[@grimjowjaggerjak]

Where do you comes from ?

[@iwilitu6591]

juste kevin France 😅

[@Aud-Rey38]

I don't even want to set a FOOT in this crazy place that is the US.

[@equn]

France thumb up! Liberté, égalité, fraternité

[@Francisco-j1e]

I absolutely the motto!

[@tetsubo57]

So here we have a model to go by. One that works and saves huge amounts of money compared to the US 'system'. So why aren't we adopting? Oh yea... 'reasons'...

[@danycashking]

the main reason is change, it sounds like an easy thing to do, but the only thing more obstinate then habits is religion and greed, changing a system would cause an outrage among the people, from the doctors who will earn less, the the common folk who will have to devote part of their taxes to it above all the taxes they already pay, it's a big change

[@tetsubo57]

Daniel Schoop It's a big change that would save lives, improve the lives of everyone and save us billions. It is a win-win-win.

[@danycashking]

tetsubo57 I'll use an example, it's the same with green energy, but it's not as easy as the UN coming together deciding that everyone should go 100% green and it's done, the implications are huge, even if money weren't a problem, to calculate how to substitute current power production plants, to replace the demands, the paperwork, the manpower to carry out the implementation, the resources to teach the existing workforce or new workforce how to go about with the new system and use it (re-education is one of the biggest challenges when implementing new systems), and etc etc etc, there are *many* things that will need to change and it's just not viable to just implement it on a whim but needs thorough analysis and then a system to implement it over a certain amount of time at a manageable pace must be made, and that's without keeping in mind that there may be opposers to the new reform, and with a new health care system there most definitely *will* be opposers.

[@tetsubo57]

Daniel Schoop I am well aware of the complexity involved. And it would still be worth the effort. If politicians were actually concerned with what is best for our nation rather than just doing what their corporate masters tell them to do. Even with the ACA we have a hundred miles to go. Best to have a cohesive and functioning goal to head towards. Which we don't at the moment. Like most things in the US we do a half-assed job, blame the political opponents and go out to get some more money for the next round of elections.

[@danycashking]

tetsubo57 yes but that is the thing, we as normal people see solutions and think oh it's *that* easy, why don't they just do it then? But do you think countries would put themselves in debt for fun? No but they don't have a choice because obvious and simple solutions are hard to get to, a big example is how to pass resolutions through the house of representatives and the senate there for the US, not to mention because of the federal system of the USA each state also has a certain amount of autonomy to decide certain things themselves, and we normal people tend to gloss over all those issues that politicians have to go through to even start with a new reform, and that's without taking account how different parties will shoot down new ideas and resolutions simply out of pride, humans are very proud and ignorant people and we will disregard something simple because someone or a collective we don't agree with came up with it or proposed it even if it were to our benefit.

[@TSBoncompte]

"but it's socialism and therefore unamerican" xD yanks are funny

[@InorganicVegan]

Yep, it's unamerican when you're 64, but not when you're 65. -_- #muricalogic

[@Deeraise]

Diana Peña And you're patriotic if you support the troops-a huge socialized institution-but you're an evil pinko commie if you suggest cutting back on military spending. Double standards are... standard.

[@GuardsmanBass]

That's unfortunately America for you. The benefits get better the more voting/lobbying heft you have, and the elderly have a ton in this country.

[@TSBoncompte]

yeah, stupid old people, wanting to not die for not being uber-rich. they should just die, unless they can afford to pay doctors enough so that they all can buy a new porsche each yer. i mean what are we, commies? by the love of fuck ¬¬

[@sebastienparmentier6022]

It's funny because agriculture in the US, especially with wheat, soy and corn, is completely subsidized, wholly uncompetitive, and thus completely socialist.

[@vincentnevels5132]

God Bless you France!

[@shieh.4743]

That is the system I want for Canada. Wow that's great.

[@quibily]

I'm an American woman and married to a French man, and even though we currently live in the States, I've been thinking about having our ( currently just an idea) child in France. It seems like it would be both cheaper and safer.

[@SuperLn1991]

Well, you won't pay anything and you would recieve 900 euros after the birth. Every women in France recieve it (it double for twins), no matter your income. I used it for a stroller and a dishwasher.

[@mela6046]

I would LEAVE THE USA TOUT DE SUITE ! rip up my US citizenship & NEVER NEED TO FILE A YEARLY FBAR

[@1glenwi]

@@SuperLn1991 Hello 👋 That’s very nice to know, how’s the economy over there in France ?

[@WhimsicalEloquence]

Could you do a video on the Healthcare system of Signapore which, while complex, is very interesting.

[@Cliffdog01]

New Zealand looked pretty good on that Graph. I want to say HOORAY, I am very glad to know that you are continuing this series.

[@brycepatties]

What I've learned from these videos about other nations' health care systems is that it is generally considered a right to be healthy in every other first world capitalist country in the world.

[@UnknownXV]

Which is absurd, of course. Health cannot be a right. It is far, far too expensive to be considered so. The only rights that make sense are liberty and the pursuit of your own happiness, not at the expense of others.

[@InorganicVegan]

UnknownXV Answer this question: Do you think the uninsured or poor are to simply to be left out on the street to die? If not, you think healthcare is a right.

[@UnknownXV]

Diana Peña I think people should voluntarily help them. If you're asking me if I think we should force people to help them, the answer is no. To claim healthcare as a right is to either claim the services of a doctor and hospital as your inalienable right, or to claim the use of force to procure the funds to pay these people is your right. Either way, it's theft. This cannot be a right. It is a privilege. A service rendered.

[@InorganicVegan]

UnknownXV A NHS is more efficient, so you'd be spending less money. -_-

[@brycepatties]

UnknownXV The belief that people should voluntarily help the poor or uninsured is what lead to America's healthcare system in the first place. It's a business in America, so if it is more profitable to charge the people who really need insurance more for that insurance, those people are going to be discriminated against for factors beyond their control. Also, I don't know about you, but I sure am much happier when I'm healthy. Isn't the government supposed to secure the inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness? I don't like telling people who need more help than others to go screw themselves if they can't afford the help they need.

[@SMFortissimo]

I like this episode. It focuses on informing us of a system that works. It seems the majority of the videos on this channel pose a common belief and explain how it's wrong. It's refreshing to hear about something that's right.

[@1glenwi]

@Jenny Hello 👋 I totally agreed with you, it just feel good knowing you’re listening to something real, not some made-up craps How are you today, Jenny?

[@TheRunningLeopard]

And everyone in my high school is wondering why I am taking French over Spanish.

[@LibertyFirst1789]

France isn't getting ahead with their system. Their social programs are taking their economy down by the nose.

[@InorganicVegan]

***** HA! Their deficit as a % of GDP is lower than ours, and their debt is not as bad as ours. Furthermore, weren't you listening? France spends less on healthcare than we do, idiot.

[@LibertyFirst1789]

Good thing deficit as a percent of GDP isn't the leading indicator of economic health. Having said that they are at 95% and we are at 104%. We are insanely irresponsible, they are just crazy irresponsible; a veritable pillar of fiscal restraint. Their unemployment rate is over 10%.Their GDP growth has been near flat of quite some time. One of the reasons our deficit is so insanely large is Obamacare. Ironically, our attempt to do what they did increased our cost of health care. Be careful when you call people idiots, sometimes (like now) it's you that is the idiot.

[@Vulcapyro]

***** I sure love it when people +1 their own comments.

[@smalltime0]

***** You should compare the government assets and government incomes as a % of GDP. The French Government has more assets as a % of their GDP and its government actions make up a large portion of economic activity. Overall their finances are probably in a better shape.

[@jeromedefrancais7015]

For information: Mister Ambroise Croizat founded the French Social security system (or social safety net) and the retirement system, between 1945 and 1947. he was a French syndicalist and a communist politician. Pour information: Monsieur Ambroise Croizat a fondé la sécurité sociale et le système de retraite français, ceci entre 1945 et 1947. il était un syndicaliste français et un politicien communiste.

[@EnzoLounesLu]

Ahah love my country more than ever

[@JillH1995]

I'm glad this series wasn't just limited to the US and Canada. The French sound like they have a really good system. Some other countries I would like to see explained: Japan, UK, Russia, Australia, a Scandinavian country or two, China, South Korea (since it spends a relatively low percentage of its GDP on healthcare, according to your graph), and a few Middle Eastern countries.

[@timetuner]

Covering alternative medicine isn't nearly as silly as everyone seems to think. Alternative medicine itself is usually kind of silly, but think about the costs vs the benefits. Placebos can have pretty significant benefits for some people. Provided that they've already received conventional treatment, making people believe that they're feeling well will probably have an effect that's more than worth the cost of some dried plants and water.

[@andybearchan]

I can see why you think that, especial when it comes to things like pain, appetite, mood and other discomforts that every individual feels differently. I can see how you'd think that if there is no disease associated with the discomfort, then people can do what every they want to feel better. I, however, am angry as hell at alternative medicine claims. Allowing these bozos to state that they have some secret knowledge that the medical community doesn't know is how they get desperate people in the doors. This creates distrust and fuzzy thinking that prevents people from getting real treatment for their illnesses. My grandmother was going to an alternative medicine clinic for her constipation and, finally, when the visits began to become more and more frequent someone at the clinic told her to go to a real doctor. She lost all of her colon and some of her lower intestine to cancer that could have been treated if it had been found by a real doctor when her symptoms started. Even now it is hard to keep her for taking hundreds of dollars of "dried plants" to "help" her discomfort. She has a serious medical condition and none of these things have been tested for safety. In a healthy person it could be okay, but the claims on these bottles, with quite a bit of fine print, are just reckless.

[@timetuner]

andybearchan This is a pretty serious issue with alternative medicine, but one that I think might be lessened if it was covered by insurance. Patients could be required to consult their general practitioner and receive conventional treatment for any pressing issues before it would be covered. Alt medicine practitioners receiving payment through insurance would be held to price standards and could be held liable for blatant negligence and misinformation.

[@imutig3451]

I know it's a very long time after this comment, but in case you guys are still there : homeopathy isn't covered by the french social security anymore, after studies in 2020 by the Health Ministry have concluded that no results were seen due to use of homeopathy outside of the placebo effect.

[@Cucumber-ej1pm]

I would love to see a video about competition ,that is to say free market forces, in the Health Care Industry. Why it does or does not work, and how it has never succeeded in substantially lowering costs or increasing quality in the U.S.

[@cassesque]

Interesting that the French system is actually less socialised than the British. Wouldn't necessarily have expected that.

[@GuardsmanBass]

I'm actually a little surprised by that, too. The French went on a similar program of nationalizing companies after World War 2 to the British, but they didn't do that to their health care system.

[@PsyX99]

Well. The British became very socialist after the WWII too... And one day, i woman a bit crazy was elected...

[@clamum]

***** wat

[@PsyX99]

Without Margaret Thatcher, the UK could have been a socialist country ^^.

[@oscarmikefoxtrot]

***** Damn that crazy milk snatching lady... well at least we won the Falklands war. Also I like your picture.

[@VictorECaplon]

You didn’t talk about the vital card and it’s benefits. It is only 5% of the cost for administrative fees and all your medical history is stored on it and shared across the country. This makes healthcare also efficient, fast and with less mistakes.

[@The_Foxymew]

Should do Norwegian health care some time. It's super nifty. At least what I've experienced of it.

[@sion8]

FINALLY!!! Thanks guys! Very informative and makes me wish that The States would have such a system that everyone could benefit from.

[@ChocolateTeapot93]

Can't argue with how much the French spend. Over in the UK we WISH we were spending more on the health care system.

[@KeepMeChilled]

I don't think we should spend more on healthcare in the uk, instead we should focus on restructuring how the 'management' role is *really* making a difference. it might be different at other places but from what i see.. these guys are only there collecting data, and counting the money on spreadsheets. i don't understand why management are making more money than clinical staff.

[@ChocolateTeapot93]

Yes that's a big problem. We should be paying those people less and spending more on nurses and the like. I saw a report on the news that said people in NHS hospitals in england are dying from dehydration. I'm pretty sure that problem would disappear if nursing staff weren't underpaid and overworked.

[@terralynn9]

Thanks, that was very interesting! I knew nothing about France's healthcare system before.

[@michaeldeguzman9564]

this one time in france i got the black lung. (it's an american pie reference) in any case, i did get sick in france. i had a bacterial lung infection of some sort during christmas - my mother knocked on my door saying merry christmas, i responded by saying that i was coughing blood. we went to the hospital the next day. doctor consultation, bloodwork, chest x-ray, and antibiotics - the whole shabang cost 300 $. 300 american dollars. i was an american student there and ALL of that only cost 300 $. how much would that cost in the US? even better, my parent's insurance actually covered 80-90% of that cost. france my be seeing a rise in xenophobia and fascism, but by golly is there health system veritably emblematic of egalitarianism...and the food. can't forget the food.

[@saber1epee0]

Brilliant Video. Sound, fair, and blatantly factual treatment of the way the system works.

[@owencjones]

It's also really notable that in France, the state run ambulance service, the SAMU, dispatches vehicles which are staffed almost entirely with doctors, so if you have an accident, you get trauma-experienced doctors very quickly. There's a LOT of controversy about it, because SAMU docs are pretty badly paid, and a fair few people choose not to use it at all, but SAMU is pretty much excellent in terms of patient care. The only downside I've ever found to the French system is that the culture within the doctor-patient relationship is a little more authoritarian. I offended a doctor once by refusing to allow him to lance a contusion on my forehead (A ridiculous idea), but this attitude isn't unique to France.

[@lauralangham9657]

Very informative. Most people in the U.S. receive their health insurance from their employer and they are not interested in having government health insurance until they get older.

[@krackerkid5]

and we havent adopted this system why?

[@sebastienparmentier6022]

Greed from one side, complacency from the other.

[@dimbulb23]

sebastien parmentier True but you forgot "It's a commie plot!".

[@madman3891]

dimbulb23 lol!

[@KeepMeChilled]

fear of the french

[@callummoran9635]

France has a total population of 65.7 million people while the u.s has close to 320 million people that more than 5 times the population of France and we all already spend 17.7% of are total GDP on health care in the u.s.

[@buddyholly8572]

THE FIRST QUESTION ASKED AT THE ENTRY OF A FRENCH HOSPITAL "WHAT IS YOUR SUFFERING" IN THE USA "YOUR CREDIT CARD"

[@jasonweikert1922]

I am an American living in France. I love their system. I know taxes are insanely high, but hey no one will go bankrupt by getting sick or by going to collage.

[@saber8689]

Hey Dr. Carroll, I'm actually starting my pediatric residency in about 2 months and wanted to let you know how awesome these videos are, especially the references under each video! Neil

[@MartinE-Type]

If you do another one of these you should look at one of the Scandinavian health care systems. I really like the one we have here in Sweden.

[@MitchSchenck]

Last time I was in France, I ate some bad oysters or something. I was sick in bed with vomiting and diarrhea. So, I called SOS Médecins. Within an hour, a doctor arrived, examined me, and wrote me 3 prescriptions. I didn't have insurance in France, so I paid the doctor 40 Euros, and the prescriptions cost less than that. The prescriptions relieved my symptoms quickly, and I was back on my feet in 2 or 3 days. All for under $100. In the USA, unless you know a Doctor personally, a family member or neighbor, you're never getting a housecall. You're going to an emergency room. In France, SOS Médecins sends a Doctor to you within an hour anywhere in France.

[@vonigner]

I bet you can give the health sheets for the doctor visit + the prescription + bill from pharmacies (feuille de soins) to your american insurance and they'd pay you back. Your health insurance and your credit card insurance in the US covers you even outside of the US (nota that this works for me too).

[@samanthaistan]

I'm excited for the next video on video games and violence. I'm a psych major, and we talked about this during lab one time; there is a correlation between aggression and violent video games, but correlation does *not* equal causation. I really hope you stress that fact.

[@Nukleurfire]

thats not even the issue. i think its a foregone conclusion that violent video games can cause aggression. but then, so do violent movies, or books. or even stupid studies on video game aggression. like marijuana the issue is not whether they cause any harm (everything causes something that can be labelled as harm) but whether it is so much that it warrants action

[@IceMetalPunk]

//doubleslash And also, "so much" should be a measure weighted by different types of harm, since there are plenty of different ways to hurt a person or a society.

[@JanCRefsgaard]

I always found it funny that almost every week we hear how hundreds (sport) hooligans beat each other up... when was the last time you heard about a large fight at a gaming conference or counterstrike tournament?... but apparently it is the (violent) video gamers who have anger problems???

[@smalltime0]

The conclusions I've seen from the few good studies that exist , is that violent people tend to play violent video games and commit acts of violence. That is hardly alarming as those people also watch violent films and the like. I'm yet to see a paper or scientific article which says that violent games can lead to regular people committing violent acts.

[@rogerwilco2]

Living in The Netherlands, I found this interesting. Keep the series going, it's very informative.

[@9myr]

Do the netherlands as well please?

[@oliverjamarie]

As a Frenchman, I must agree that we have an awesome healthcare system. The problem is that it currently seems threatened. In France, Social Security is a State run association that covers diverse mishaps such as unemployment or healthcare is greatly funded by taxes docked off from your salary called "Social Contributions". One of the many economic problems the government is facing today is the deficit of Social Security. Not only that, private companies view the Social Contributions as to high and in response limit hiring employees while unemployment is on the rise. Our new Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, recently announced a program which he wants to put into law called the Responsibility Act where the french government would take off all Social Contributions for workers paid at the minimum wage. In response, private companies agree to hire more workers. In consequence, the government needs to save up 50 billion Euros and will have to do financial cuts which threaten institutions of the French Welfare State. I'm not trying to present my view on the Responsibility Act. I just think that this isn't getting enough World Coverage.

[@thesnowedone]

Wow - I really like the French system; will you perhaps go more into depth? Also are you planning on looking at any other healthcare systems (the good, bad and ugly)?

[@GuardsmanBass]

I think he's looked at the US, Canada, and UK before this, so hopefully. I'd especially be interested in the German and Japanese systems.

[@DrLennieSmall]

GuardsmanBass He hasn't done the UK yet, I suspect that will be next

[@jordanreeseyre]

Jorvikson As a brit I would be interested to see it explained from an outside perspective.

[@prp3231]

Most mainland European countries are advanced in health care, transport infrastructure, tourism, education system. Other poorer countries are struggling, people waiting for hours and hours for an ambulance, waiting in hospital corridors on trolleys, struggling with recruiting doctors and nurses, not being able to see a doctor on time, poor dentistry, struggling with the number of hospital beds per head of population...some countries choose to show off in sports and entertainment rather than investing in doctors and nurses. Says it all

[@SenpaiTorpidDOW]

Violence in video games. Hehe. Loving this channel.

[@lupeavalos9342]

If USA adopted French healthcare system will be better.

[@alexiane250]

As a french I agree and do like the system but I feel like it should be pointed out that there is a growing problem with general doctors being too few because they all chose to work in hospital where the pay is better and much less stressful. It not the end of the world but it is a problem and it is becoming worst.

[@nighteyes360]

alexiane250 Not to mention the growing number of the elderly. It's going to cost us more money over the time.

[@inademv]

+alexiane250 Maybe the French system should consider expanding the education and training of nurses and physician assistants like the US has. It's one of the few (only?) things that we do right over here...

[@myriade6767]

Er ... most of the young nurses I know of don't want to work. They want to take care of little kids (this job is usually done by old nurses, with experience) Same for the doctors. Some just study to have their title. Or some others then go to the metropolis to work, leaving the rural areas without any doctors. Plus the year of exams you have to go through in order to continue studies to become a doctor (they last around 8-10 yrs if I remember correctly) or a dentist (6-8 yrs) is inappropriate. The only thing you need to pass it is an extremely good memory, and it has little to do with medecine. As a result, a lot of the candidates who are still here at the end don't even want to do their future jobs, and the ones who didn't pass would maybe have been more motivated. So no, I don't think expanding their education and studies would be a good thing. It would be wasting more money over nothing.

[@Squiddlezz]

Oh man, next week is gonna be craaaazy.

[@inksplatter1]

Oh why can't my country have systems like this that would actually make me proud of it? Why does the US lead the developed world as a counterexample?

[@zaknefain100]

inksplatter1 We DO lead the developed world..... in the number of incarcerated people....

[@MagpieEpicdude]

zaknefain100 #WarOnDrugs.

[@Zeyev]

There you go again, you and your logical assessment of issues! Merci mille fois.

[@lorepallino]

I don't think that equality for everybody would be the right answer, and that's because we're all different. I think that the most important thing is equity, which means to distribute according to one's needs. And at that, France's system kicks asses.

[@phoenixignitus]

Hi, as many have already mentioned, this is an interesting video to see as a French person. I would add three short points: 1/ One thing which is not mentioned is that the Social Security is not fully funded and ends up missing a few billion Euros a year. See following article (only available in French, but the graphics tell the main point): fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budget_de_la_Sécurité_sociale 2/ The French system, though separated through the different branches mentioned in the video, is basically one big nationalised entity "The Social Security". There is however a European directive opening the healthcare markets, which has been transposed in French Law. A lot of discussion is happening about the monopole of this big nationalised entity and wether people are allowed to enrol and buy healthcare plans by alternativ (private) providers. 3/ This is my personal experience: I'm French and have been working and living in Germany for the past 5 years. Hence I'm in the German Healthcare System (which is presented in another video of this channel). My experience with the German system is way better than with the French one. I have chronic illnesses and I have a way faster access to specialists in Germany (within a week) as in France (a few months). Plus there are several Statutory Healthcare Providers, which means there is a bit of competition between the few of them. You're not happy, you have the right to choose another one. Above approx. 52k€ yearly income you may also choose a private provider. France has a universal single payer system, Germany a universal multi-payer system. - and I think this is an efficient system, which still allows choice.

[@satsumajuice4]

One of the many reasons I want to live in France.

[@mrsabidji]

but then you'd have to suffer the French... and I should know, I'm one of them. seriously, though, you're welcome to visit and stay here. we need more English speakers, I feel lonely. :(

[@oliverjamarie]

mrsabidji With my experience in France, they're not enough anglophones. The ones who speak good English will e in international areas such as Paris or just outside of Geneva. but yes we're lonely

[@OnThaMove]

Non seulement les Français ne sont pas un problème pour moi, j'ai même les préfèrent aux idiots ici aux États-Unis !

[@mela6046]

@@OnThaMove .........lol..........

[@exaforge]

bossmanham man... I live in France, and I can go see the doctor within the next 30 minutes if I want to, there is so many, just walk up there, give your vital card (which is the proof you are covered by global health care) and they take care of you right away, after that just walk to the drug store which is usually near the doctor, and there you go :) I don't know about small cities tho, but I believe they move to your place in the case you live too far.

[@jellevm]

I broke my arm snowboarding in France, so I went to a hospital and was operated upon. One month later, the Dutch doctors told me they'd messed it up and they had to redo it x3

[@vonigner]

Homeopathy in France is covered because it's about "helping the patient go through". It helps them, and it helps their family. Don't worry tho, most of us think it's BS and would rather take the heavy shit. But some eucalyptus and menthol oils in very hot water so you breathe through them, when you have a bad cold, while it doesn't "heal" you, it really eases the pain and helps you breathe so badly :D I want to give a little more detail as a French beneficiary : basically, you have the state part, and "the rest". Social Security (the state thingy paid by taxes and stuff) takes about 66% of all basic expenses (you go to the doctor ? state pays 66%. Dentist ? Same except if you get a fancy crown). Present your card, pay upfront, and get refunded those 66%. Most people take "complement healthcare" (it's like health "insurance", but since it's usually non profit...), they pay a monthly fee, and then that "company" takes up the missing 34% I'm a student, but I have the "poor complementary" thingy, which is third party pays (aka, I never put upfront anymoney to get it refunded ; the state directly gives the money to the doctors and pharmcists. I never pay upfront ANYTHING. EVER. As long as I follow the health path ; if you have a lump, you first have to see your general physician, who will eventually send you out for radio/echography/whatever. There are exceptions of course : I don't need to see the general physician if it's women's issue (gynecologist I can go see directly), nor do I need to see him directly if it's call-in doctors, or if it's ophtalmologist (eye-doctor) to get new glasses. However ! Unless my general physician is absent or unless it's an emergency, I can't just go and see any random doctor : it has to be "my" general physician. If it's not (and if I weren't on "third party pay system") then the complement insurance doesn't refund the full 34%. Certain things are less refunded than others : glasses, for instance. You can get very basic glasses for free under social security, but if you have a very bad eyesight, the glass needs certain treatments. And those can sum up being very expensive. That's the main use of "complement insurance", they give you like "you can spend 350 bucks a year on glasses and eye related stuff (like lenses) and we'll refund that", and even if you take 800 bucks glasses, they'll refund those 150 bucks. In my case, with the "poor complentary thingy", because I have a very very bad eyesight, I can write a letter to the social security, along with optician invoices, to pay for my new glasses as "extra help" because I'm a student and can't afford having barely suitable frames with 3 inches wide glasses. And yes, it does work ^^ (note that most people use their "insurance"'s optician "envelope" to buy sunglasses and resell them on craigslist XD so the system is sometimes abused) I won't lie : I'm French and I love my healthcare. There's no copay, there's no "you pay upfront for five months" whatever. No, we just give our social card, and we get refunded that same amount. Aaaaand.. Diabetic people get free stuff everything (third party pays) for anything related to diabetes. Anything. Needles, insulin, new glucometer, new pen, anticholestherol, preventive care, blood tests, urine analysis, hospital visit, nutritionist visit, feet-doctor visit (homeopathy there, like, pedicures and else), ANYTHING. And you don't even have to be French to benefit from it. And that's basic coverage, not the complementary insurance part. Yes, if you're diabetic, the state gives you a free pedicure twice a year. Because people losing their feet is more expensive, simple ! (this includes a list of illnesses that are called "long term illnesses" ; MS is concerned too, as well as hypertension, parkinson, alzheimer, and other chronic diseases like certain tumors and being paralized and stuff like that) You know what else state pays for (uner whatever circumstances) ? in vitro fecundation and sterility tratment. (as well as like, all hormonal contraceptives). We're pushing that now that same sex mariage is legal, that same sex couples should have the right to access "assisted birth and parenthood" stuff (as well as adoption but that's not healthcare).

[@Chaosdude341]

Could you guys do a video on the Danish system?

[@oafkad]

Pastries for all!

[@DKnarugioh93]

Danmark slår alle, især kødbollerne på den anden side af sundet.

[@CoJau911]

Isles of Scion so i guess i'm moving to Denmark...

[@CoJau911]

Isles of Scion so i guess i'm moving to Denmark...

[@aparthia]

Jan Christian Refsgaard Devaluating their currency is as much cheating as expansive fiscal policies are. Both aim to stimulate growth, and if that's cheating then Denmark is no angel.

[@JohnRhoooodes]

Please cover the NHS/UK healthcare?

[@lovinglaurenx]

You should do Spain!

[@joejones8454]

fuck spain

[@cakeisyummy5755]

@@joejones8454 I found the Catalan Seperatist.

[@vizender]

Okay, as a French, I'll just talk about the main issue in France hospitals : since 2000, almost no public hospitals have really been upgraded, and we are starting to have nurses and doctors scarce in publics sectors. Right now, even tho the system is great for "customers" (but in we are in France, and we prefer to say "patients", we are not here to make money on sick people, lmao US), but it is really hard to actually work in one of the public hospitals. However, in private hospitals and clinics, the situation is much better

[@jpc7118]

Dommages, mais à LIMOGES, le CHU a entièrement été rénové entre 2017 et 2021... Et si on cherche bien, de nombreux CHU l'ont été.

[@vizender]

@@jpc7118 ca reste une minorité, d’où le presque

[@jpc7118]

@@vizender Je viens de vérifier mais dans ma région, 3 autres ont été rénovés à Bourganeuf, à Guéret et La Souterraine entre 2009 et 2017... Quand j'étais posté dans l'eure et loir, celui de Nogent le rottou a été rénové en 2002-2004... j'ai de multiples exemples rien que par les postes que j'ai occupé au cours de ma carrière. Je suis donc surpris de cette assertion "presque". Un majorité, je suis prêt à l'accepter et encore, quand en creuse les 3/4 ont été rénovés dans les 20 dernières années. Je vais demander à ma famille mais je suis sûr qu'en Corrèze, c'est pareil. Ce n'est pas suffisant et c'est lent, je suis d'accord. Mais bon an mal, pour avoir vécu 4 ans en Allemagne en tant qu'assimilé "agent isolé à l'étranger", je préfère le système Français à bon nombre d'autres. Je mettrais le système suédois et danois légèrement au dessus, mais en comparaison des système américain voire britannique, il y a moins d'écart entre les Français et les Nordiques qu'avec US/UK.

[@My.Curiosities]

Well it's a nice surprise to see the French system discussed because we're seem to be forgotten most of the time :) And as for the homeopathy which seems to shock a lot of people I did not know it was reimbursed and when looking at the figures we see it's really little in comparison to other things. It must be said that poor people, and illegal immigrants have more coverage than citizens. And that that sometimes angries a lot of people because "we" do pay for our coverage and are not fully reimbursed when we have to pay for expensive cares like dentist (but yeah when you look at the American figures, you feel pretty lucky to live in France). But other than that I've always liked the French system, not that much when I see the retenue on my salary (because it's a huge pourcentage let me tell you that) but if the general public was not helping how could anything work? The one problem I could mention is the numerus closus: the number of trained doctors that is decided by the government. It's generally really low and foreign doctors have to be called in the villages or the cities because we lack doctors. And that's the stupidiest thing ever considering the number of medical students every year that fail to be in the numerus closus by one or two points.

[@Croz89]

I would like to see you cover the UK system at some point, with the state owned, vertically integrated National Health Service (NHS). I think it would be a good example of the benefits and pitfalls of what many people consider a "socialised" healthcare system.

[@carebonez]

O.k., I like it! Let's get one here in the U.S.A.!

[@callummoran9635]

sure like the 15 trillion dollars of debt is nothing.

[@carebonez]

Yeah but didn't he just say it's cheaper than ours is currently?

[@danycashking]

Cary Cocuzzi yes but when you have a debt you don't go buy a new but cheaper car, it doesn't absolve you of your existing debt

[@InorganicVegan]

Daniel Schoop But it lowers our deficit. -_-

[@danycashking]

Diana Peña yes but then you have the 60.000 grand in debt from the previous car and now 30.000 more on top of it from the new car, although costs less you still made your debt larger, the US already has 1.2 trillion or so in debt that china has taken from their shoulders for now, but just like a bank they have to pay it back ones the time on the agreement with china ends and china comes to take it's money back *with* interests, and the US can't default on their debt like some countries can (which basically means they can just not pay back since they are in so much debt) and that's just china they still owe, albeit less, to other countries as well

[@samoht2401]

I'm french and it's really interseting to hear that. I agree our system may be the best but the "expensive" problem may be reduce. The main problem comes from people using or doing unnecessary thing. Hospitals are a great example. The public hospital funding is manage like an private business. If the hospital doesn't spend "enough" money it will lose staff, bed, equipment and so on. So they try to "optimize" the budget making it grow. If one day in France, if you get at hospital they will try to keep you as long as they can just to fill one bed, every day they will pump your blood to make "analysis" where only quarter of the sample is needed. Obviously it comes with a cost. If only hospital budget wouldn't influence. I think the way to see where you may extend services should be the need and not the "financial need" created by hospital administrator. Also in france it's important to note that the more serious your problem is the less richer you need to be to get covered. For example cancer are well covered for every body with sometimes really expansive but new remedy. That the perfect oposite of USA where the poorer you are the less likely your assurance will cover serious problem. It makes it useless, I think. So the french idea seems better because what's is important is not to be able to see general practitioner for free (I didn't go see one for 2 year) but to be covered when you have a really serious thing like cancer, accident... I really think the system could be adapt elsewhere and it could even be better. As we say to the skeptics in france when they aren't happy to pay : "Health problems aren't a choise, they are the saddest unfairness. So be happy to pay without receiving anything back"

[@happycline]

so that's why french people smoke. they're supporting their healthcare system! lol great video!

[@valeriefernandez6736]

cliché !!!!

[@saikoujikan]

I'd be interested to hear what you make of the NHS in the UK. Especially as there are serious threats to how it operates with the current government making cuts and privatising it incrementally.

[@sophieisawesomeoh]

I thinking the same when he gets to Australia.

[@modestieispurete]

I'm not sure if you've answered this (or alluded to it) before in one of your other videos, but if you could create the ideal American Healthcare system, what would it look like?

[@ReinZ_96]

According to the general population of the US the "ideal" system would be 100% private with no government funding, unless you are a veteran..the people here really seem to love giving everything possible to them for free. Of course I'm being a bit satirical, but I really don't think I'm to far off. Especially based off the people that I live around.

[@rubzlovespancakes]

DiscGolfer947 Americans treat their veterans like dirt, actually...

[@ReinZ_96]

Basically every conservative I know thinks that army vets should be treated like they are a descendant from god. The government doesn't hand them the rest of their life on a silver platter, they get their GI Bill and that is really it, but there are quite a few people who think they should...while at the same time saying we are spending way to much money and need to cut spending. Again, being slightly satirical.

[@clamum]

DiscGolfer947 Sounds like you know some stupid conservatives. They should meet the stupid liberals I know.

[@davidng8732]

Folks at HCT--do you plan to discuss the different ways alternative medicine (especially homeopathy now that you've mentioned it), and experimental drugs are perceived in different countries?

[@Vulcapyro]

China: Everything works! No negative studies ever!

[@davidng8732]

Vulcapyro Homeopathy is practically unknown to the East. I worded the question around perception rather than their claimed workings vs. their merits because the biases for and against each one of them are so strongly entrenched in the different cultures (you hear people in the East would choose totally ineffective herbal treatment against cancer--makes zero sense in the West, but that idea wouldn't be totally dismissed by everyone in parts of the East).

[@hqi1321]

My grandma chose traditional chinese medicine over chemotherapy (im chinese btw), her hair grew back, she looked healthy, but then the cancer spread and she died. I sometimes think what would have happened if she went with the chemo.

[@EthanSanchez]

I wonder if we in America will ever get to see such logical systems put in place. Le sigh.

[@mela6046]

yes we will after mid term elections...

[@andre-stephanegrocholski6511]

Just a quick reaction to your video. I am a french GP. The securite sociale isn't just for health care. The five funds you are talking about in the beginning are actually the five different "branches de la securite sociale" which are maladie ( healthcare), vieillesse ( pensions) famille (maternity leave and child benefit) travail ( worplace related disability) and autonomie (disability). All and all the budget of the securite sociale exceeds the budget of the state ( and yes, the securite sociale is a fiction of an independent institution but that's just the beginning of a byzantine frech administrative mess ) It was instituted by a communist minister after ww2 and is the result of multiple compromise, hence the almost 40 different mostly job related funds concerning healthcare (and pensions as well) for example the oldest fund of all, the sailor's is actually older than the french revolution and was actually funded by colbert under louis xiv! While it's true that the safety net is very wide, there are still quite a lot of inequality in healthcare in france, and quite a lot of lower middle class peopleare found now to postpone healthcare due to money related issues. The other big problem is the oversight in general of the healthcare system, with massives slashes in hospital capacity and a chronic deficit of medical student related to the needs of the population since the last 40 years, leading to a major problem of access to primary and secondary care.