Yeah. Its interesting how mass migration and a welfare state doesnt seem to coalign. What
@UncleBuns said was spot on. But we dont have the same degree of freedom as Americans do. Also, our healthcare system has been really close to collapsing, especially during covid. No hate on immigrants, but the hospital waiting rooms are filled with them. Got a heart attack? Perhaps we can find you an appointment within 2-4 weeks. Need a surgical treatment? Yeah maybe 1-4 months.
An interesting fact is, danes have a right to get sent (paid) to a private hospital if a surgical queue is longer than 2 months yet NOONE WILL TELL YOU THIS (unless you had a lawyer). The system will literally prioritize not mentioning your rights in order to save money, even if the surgical procedure is urgent. Absolutely grotesque.
I lived in the UK for a decade, so I think I've got a balanced perspective on this.
Some Americans swoon over the idea of government run healthcare, without understanding the great limitations it imposes in the form of long waits, and lack of access to many procedures and drugs deemed cost ineffective.
I make the point that the UK, like other countries with socialized medicine, has a vast network of private hospitals, doctors, and insurance plans used as an incentive to attract and retain top employees and executives. Why would there be a demand for this expensive parallel system if socialized care were even close to being as good?
Meanwhile, those living under such systems are placated by being fed a steady diet of nonsense horror stories regarding lack of access to care in the US. As if there are those hobbling around unable to get their broken leg set for lack of insurance and financial ruin is common as a result of medical bills.
The fact is 93% of Americans have medical coverage, the remainder are largely young adults who choose not to purchase coverage for a variety of reasons, since if you're employed, you must have insurance or you and your employer pay a significant fine. But even that lack of coverage won't result in not having access to essential medical care.
Consider illegals aliens who give birth en masse in the US, at an average cost of $20,000. They don't have coverage, and certainly don't bring a sack of cash with them, yet they get taken care of because hospitals cannot refuse care by law, and the cost is built into the bills of those who do pay. The same applies to someone in the country illegally with a brain tumor requiring a million dollar operation. No one is denied life saving care.
As for "financial ruin", medical bills are essentially uncollectible at this point. and by law and policy, no longer affect a person's credit.
Yes it's far from a perfect system, standard of care ranges from poor to the best available, but mostly mediocre, and American health at a glance looks poorer by many metrics compared to some other countries, but that's attributable to the epidemic of unhealthy lifestyles more than the care available.
If you're actively involved in your own care, educate and act as an advocate for yourself rather than passively allowing doctors to dictate treatment, you can have world class care with few limitations.