Oct
31
Sweden – The Swedish Health Care System
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Description: Swedens entire population has equal access to health care services. The Swedish health care system is government-funded and heavily decentralized. The health care system in Sweden is financed primarily through taxes levied by county councils and municipalities. Costs for health and medical care amount to approximately 9 percent of Swedens gross domestic product (GDP), a figure that has remained fairly stable since the early 1980s.
25 Comments
October 31st, 2009 at 6:20 am
Oh right, europeans aren’t that rich at all. I mean, Silvio Berlusconi is a poor man and all. I want a source for that statement.
To blame people having better standards of life on capitalism is wrong, in the sense that it’s the only system that has been in effect up to this date. And way to discredit workers unions.
Oh, and what about chinese workers working 14 hour shifts so their boss can get filthy rich? I guess that doesn’t fit in with your whole “capitalism is flawless” way of thinking.
October 31st, 2009 at 6:50 am
It’s quite alright :3 ’tis just hard to tell with replies sometimes. 8D
October 31st, 2009 at 7:04 am
No, im just trying to reach out to americans watching this clip. It frightens me that a country that big can have so many against compassion. Sorry if you felt i aimed it at you ^^
October 31st, 2009 at 7:06 am
1: Not arguing against you or anything
2: Not american.
October 31st, 2009 at 7:10 am
My bad. Sorry, the bill is still 0 though. =)
You’re (yes, you americans) going to pay less for better healthcare with this reform. Accept it, and even if you’re not sick that often you might be at one time. And you still should have compassion for those who are and get sick. Your system as it is now puts a huge financial burden on them as well as shoos them away when they can’t pay.
It’s a good reform long overdue.
October 31st, 2009 at 7:41 am
Actually, the state will compensate you for your travel expenses ;3.
October 31st, 2009 at 8:23 am
America spends almost double what Sweden does on health care. In 2004, a United Nations study reported that the United States spent $4,887 per capita for health care while Sweden spent $2,270 per capita. Its system is uniform and efficient and consequently less expensive than in the United States, where health care is inefficient and very, very expensive. That is because the U.S. “system” is a patchwork involving thousands of different providers and hundreds of different insurance companies
October 31st, 2009 at 9:02 am
and HMOs, each striving to make a profit for its shareholders, often while paying huge executive salaries. This “free market” driven portion of the U.S. “system” costs too much and leaves a lot of people unprotected.
Some Americans pride themselves on not having “socialized medicine,” but today public or socialized expenditures for health care almost equal what Americans spend for private health care.
– The Swedish Secret, page 143, Professor Earl Gustafson
October 31st, 2009 at 9:03 am
Well, on the moral compass thing, lets look at why they may not want to pay government more.
Hurricane Katrina; people were honestly in need, but most of the relief “debit cards” went to luxuries, such as gentlemen’s clubs and (he he) divorce attorneys. Perhaps, instead of being focused on the leaders, we should bring the level of morality back to people. If taxes help, then its stealing. if taxes don’t pay for poor, then you shame the selfish into loosening up, often with greater success.
October 31st, 2009 at 9:55 am
On that, I agree with you 100 percent.
What’s sad to see is these spoiled baby boomers who don’t want to help anyone who doesn’t have health care, even if it will cost the fed government LESS than what it’s paying now.
Capitalism only works well if the leaders have a moral compass, such as the people in Sweden, Norway and France.
Last Sunday I heard only one bank in Iceland didn’t fail. It was run by women.
October 31st, 2009 at 10:16 am
wow, gap is less. and the richest people around the world are… not generally european. American, Arabian, Persian, and Chinese are usually the nationalitits you see there. Maybe, instead of trying to make the rich poorer, we should try to actually help the poor; raise the standard of living without raising the costs. Only capitalism, unabound, has done that much for so many.
October 31st, 2009 at 11:10 am
During the 1980s, the Chinese communist leaders were saying the same thing; they needed to make it easier for people to become rich. What a coincidence.
All working people in industrialized countries pay taxes. And yet, when Americans talk about using some of that tax money to help the most disadvantaged members of their society, a subset of people suddenly start whinging about how that tax money is being spent.
Euro countries don’t have such a vast difference between highest and lowest paid.
October 31st, 2009 at 11:37 am
A system that takes from Paul to give to Peter will always have Peter’s support. But, when Paul leaves because he essentially gets robbed, who’s to help Peter. We don’t need to “punish” the rich; we need to make it easier for one to be rich.
And, a key thing forgotten about the Swedish system is its decentralized, down to the municipalities. That’s the only reason their only half-free system works. You go to someone with a more central structure, you find that it has failed.
October 31st, 2009 at 12:21 pm
name a system that works better. And, the american, do you have a story to back it, or are you just going by a statistic. Because if so, i could claim;
Another Capital Hill Politician received bribe money from a large corporation.
Another person has died in Afghanistan.
Someone in the UK or Canada dies from lack of actual care.
Remember, even if you would gladly pay the taxes, someone, somewhere in America, doesn’t.
October 31st, 2009 at 1:05 pm
Central Ohio was just an example. really, i’d recomend texas, but they are so anti-socialist, you might not of liked it. And, let me ask you; what has the government done correctly? They can’t even protect the Pentagon; the building of defense. And that is something the Constitution did give them power for. And, are we all divided in two groups? Referiing and oversight works well in games of two teams, but when you add all the complicated factors of real life, we find that oversight creates prob
October 31st, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Ohio does not have all the cultural events that The Twin Cities have to offer, and the job market is also dismal there.
I believe people should take care of each other. Football needs a referee. Likewise, banking, education and health care needs a referee. Otherwise the companies charge as much as they can, which they do.
Socialism is just a word the ultra rich use to scare people away from attacking the system that gets them so much $. All you’re saying is you’ve bought the propaganda.
October 31st, 2009 at 2:33 pm
If I were you, i’d move. Central Ohio is a much cheaper cost of living. While I begrudge inviting someone with socialist-leaning values to my area, I feel it better to get the messege across to the rapists taking that much from you. you are, fiscally, on 66 percent free.
October 31st, 2009 at 2:37 pm
I’ll gladly pay the extra taxes.
For-profit insurance is immoral and inefficient.
Another American just died from lack of coverage.
October 31st, 2009 at 3:18 pm
You won’t get designer frames in Sweden either, sorry to say. I have excellent health coverage and still have to pay for those. There’s a lot that isn’t covered, and university is definitely not open to all and definitely not free. You actually have to have top grades and enter a very competitive selection program, no going to the college of your choice, no pursuing the major of your choice. The state decides who studies what and where.
October 31st, 2009 at 3:43 pm
actualy is around 44% of the gdp
October 31st, 2009 at 4:27 pm
I’m tired of hearing people gripe about the taxes in Sweden.
I just read The Swedish Secret and Earl Gustafson said the rate is usually 50%.
In America, I usually lose 33 to 37% in taxes with NO health, NO free university!
I would gladly pay another 13 to 17 percent for health care and free university!
It truly sucks, going through the glasses for low income people program. The clerk gives off this condescending vibe when he sees that’s what I have then he pulls out the tray of cheap frames.
October 31st, 2009 at 5:01 pm
Sarahlovesyaah: Sarah, I have to imagine that your US coverage kicked in and covered the rest of stay. I lived in Sweden for 5 yrs and that is how it worked.
Also, be reminded folks that Sweden has among the highest taxation rates in the world, 60-70% is not unusual.
October 31st, 2009 at 5:35 pm
If you were swedish, it would have come out at around 0 (not covering travel expenses.) Now explain, why don’t you want this?
October 31st, 2009 at 5:46 pm
sweeden is a model WE NEED TO CONSIDER / / OF COURSE THE FAT-CATS DON’T WANT THIS FOR THOSE WHO CANNOT AFFORD IT . .THERE IS A profit TO BE MADE !! hEALTHCARE IS A human right !
October 31st, 2009 at 6:38 pm
That’s awesome. In the United States that’s at least a 10,000$ bill! I’m so happy for you and your family that you were able to benefit from a sensible and compassionate health care system.