Surely the American health care system is working against modern medicine?

steddyeddy

I'll start by saying I think the refusal of basic treatment to any patient is immoral and I don't respect doctors who contribute to that.

My real concern is from a science point of view. I think the American system is contributing to the rise of the superbugs. If less people with diseases like TB resort to getting treated for fear of bankruptcy (as you know TB treatments can last months/years and your family also needs to be treated) then surely the system is creating human reservoirs for the bacterium. Is the American system heading in the wrong direction?

his_dudeness

Unfortunately,the rise of "superbugs" is not due (entirely) to under treatment but rather to overtreatment with unnecessary antibiotics, fuelled by a bang-for-your-buck culture amongst patients who expect something tangible in return for the money they spend on the consultation fee.

Someone has to pay for the treatment, but more often than not, the treatment is not actually given by doctors but merely prescribed. By way of an example, a surgical procedure is "given" by a doctor but a course of antibiotics is "prescribed". If the doctor also dispenses the medication, then he/she will have had to acquire the drugs from somewhere, no doubt at a cost. And doctors shouldn't have to lose money in order to treat their patients.

The American system, as you targeted in your topic title, is bad for modern medicine in that it's for-profit nature results in over-diagnosis and over-treatment. This further affects the crafting of guidelines for diagnosing and treating conditions that are used in countries of other models of healthcare, pushing up the health care bills of these governments.

steddyeddy

I'll write a full reply in the morning. While I agree over prescription of antibiotics is a problem I also am sure that leaving bacterium untreated is an equally big problem. Both selective pressure and random mutations contribute to resistance IMO.