Twitter Thread On American Healthcare Vs Everywhere Else In The World

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mattstaff
Mar 6, 2020 6:00 PM EST

This Twitter thread highlights some of the differences experienced with the American healthcare system vs other places in the world. Not only that, but it maps out how a vacation could potentially be cheaper than a visit to the dentist to fix up those teeth. 

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  • 01
    Text - Kyle McLain Follow @FarmboyinJapan An American client of mine experienced a medical emergency while in Tokyo. I insisted we go to the hospital. However, she was in tears, screaming that she couldn't afford it, and absolutely didn't want to go. The grand total for her uninsured emergency room visit in Tokyo: $33
    via PresidentClef
  • 02
    Text - brandon sheffield @necrosofty Feb 27 I guess I should tell this story about American healthcare vs everywhere else. The crown on one of my teeth broke last year. I went to my local dentist and they said the work would start at $3k, and the best insurance would only cover half - the best insurance is like $150/month. O 195 t7 5.5K 16K
    via PresidentClef
  • 03
    Text - brandon sheffield @necrosofty Feb 27 I happened to be going to Japan the next month, and the pain wasn't excruciating, I could just not chew on that side. I booked an appointment at a nice private clinic in Osaka and went in. They did a full mouth xray, took a cast of the tooth, and asked my availability. 4 23 178 O 5.1K
    via PresidentClef
  • 04
    Text - brandon sheffield @necrosofty Feb 27 Turned out they'd need me to come in at least 3 times that week. They asked when I could come in, I mentioned I was there for work, so the earlier the better. They open at 9:30, but they were like, "oh, if we opened 30 mins early would that be enough?" :0 t7 180 6.2K
    via PresidentClef
  • 05
    Text - brandon sheffield @necrosofty · Feb 27 So they opened early for me, saw me across three+ sessions, did a full mouth xray, cleaning, a 2nd root canal (!), and made me a new crown. Guess how much it cost? They said "since you don't have national insurance, it'll be a bit expensive." It cost me $130 in total. O 24 17 713 11K
    via PresidentClef
  • 06
    Text - brandon sheffield @necrosofty Feb 27 If I had had Japanese national insurance it would've cost half that. Medical care there is subsidized by taxes, and the care was just beyond excellent. It's no wonder people *go to the doctor when they're sick* in Japan. Can you imagine doing that in the US? 11 17 483 10K
    via PresidentClef
  • 07
    Text - brandon sheffield @necrosofty Feb 27 I was there on a business trip, so my accommodations were taken care of - but I determined I could've paid for a flight to Japan, gotten an airbnb for a week and hung out the rest of the time, and still save $1,500 vs what it'd cost at the dentist down the street. O 20 17 661 9.0K
    via PresidentClef
  • 08
    Text - brandon sheffield Follow @necrosofty It is so stupidly, blatantly obvious that we need universal healthcare in this country, and the more I travel the clearer it is. Nobody else walks around sick until they're too ill to move, that's just us. There's no reason for it to be this way but greed.
    via PresidentClef

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