Submitted by Thegreatcornholio459 t3_1267104 in explainlikeimfive
konwiddak t1_je8s0o5 wrote
Reply to comment by BlackEyedSceva in ELI5: What is Universal Healthcare by Thegreatcornholio459
There is a difference in the availability of treatments, but this is difficult to equate to quality. It's just different.
A universal healthcare system should use statistics and costs to find the most effective "package" of treatments to offer to the population. There are plusses and minuses to this. Where it works really well is in screening out dubiously effective treatment and over or unnecessary treatment. For example if someone is old and has cancer, the UK system may steer someone to no treatment:
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Treatment may be unlikely to actually extend someone's life.
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Remaining quality of life may be significantly better without chemo.
Where it works less well is sometimes newer treatments take longer to be adopted by the system, and sometimes more customised care is unavailable. It's worth pointing out that private care does exist in the UK if you want it - but most people chose the NHS.
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