Another Victim of “Single-Payer Health Care”
By David Beito • Wednesday December 31, 2008 12:18 PM PDT • 3 Comments
The British National Health Service has claimed another victim. Despite a phone call and note from a doctor stipulating that a critically ill patient, Stewart Fleming, be given immediate care, the staff of Medway Maritime Hospital in Gillingham, Kent, kept him waiting for six hours. By the time they finally got around to treating him, it was too late.
According to Stewart’s wife Sarah, when they arrived at the hospital “it was full to bursting. I walked to the front with the letter and told them what the GP had said but I was just told to go to the back of the queue.” Representatives of the the National Health Service stated that they were “saddened” by the news but explained that they had particularly long lines this time of year.
Tags: Healthcare 
Re: “Representatives of the the National Health Service stated that they were “saddened” by the news but explained that they had particularly long lines this time of year.”
Reminds me of the movie The Christmas Story. Where the main character Ralphie is standing in line to make sure he sees Santa to get his Red Rider BB Gun. One of the characters from the Wizard of Oz come up to him and he turns to them, “Don’t bother me. I’m...I’m thinking.” Ralphie enjoy the holidays? Enjoy cheer brought by a fictional character? No, they should know better that he has something more important on his mind.
“Yeah...sorry about that...but he should have known better than to get sick around the holidays. He really should have known better than to actually think that his imminent death is more important than the order of the que.” thinks the spokesperson for the National Health Service
Matt C. | Dec 31, 2008 | Reply
Reminds me of my experience at Childrens’ Memorial in Chicago. Honestly, this has nothing to do with single-payer.
Mike | Jan 1, 2009 | Reply
And your point is ... what, exactly? That HMO-delivered health “care” sports no casualties? Please. The difference is merely qualitative. Are you implying that death from denial of service is worse when it results from lines rather than profit-minded adjuster judgment?
anderson | Jan 6, 2009 | Reply