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Republican Policy Committee Releases “High Costs of Socialized Medicine”

October 30, 2020

WASHINGTON, DC (October 30, 2020)--The Republican Policy Committee has released apolicy briefdemonstrating the disastrously high cost of socialized medicine for the United States, including studies of rationed care, high wait times, and denied treatment in countries with government-run healthcare.

"Socialized medicine will not merely mean immense taxpayer expense and a bankrupt government: it will cost human lives," said Republican Policy Committee Chairman Gary Palmer. "Whether you call it Medicare For All, Single Payer, or anything else, the schemes pushed by Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and Nancy Pelosi call for less patient choice, heavier burdens on doctors and hospitals, and government bureaucrats deciding who gets which treatment, and when."

Data points highlighted by the brief include:

  • A 2014 report found that between 1993-2009, increased wait times in Canada may be associated with over 44,273 female deaths
  • The Fraser Institute reports Canadian patients in 2019 wait an average of 20.9 weeks from the time their general practitioner refers them to a specialist until they receive treatment
  • Canadians can expect long wait times for diagnostic technologies such as a CT scan (4.8 weeks), an MRI (9.3 weeks), or an ultrasound (3.4 weeks), as of 2019
  • 18% of U.K. patients requiring urgent cancer care do not receive treatment within 2 months of referral
  • In 2019, the Royal College of Surgeons found that over 227,569 U.K. patients waited over 6 months for treatment due to National Health Service (NHS) hospital backlog
  • Local NHS panels similarly ration glucose monitors for diabetes patients, hernia surgery, and hip and knee replacement
  • A British Medical Journal investigation reported a 45% increase in hip or knee surgery denials by local NHS panels between 2017-2018. These requests were submitted by general practitioners on behalf of their patients and denied by bureaucrats – some of whom have no medical background

-Read the full policy brief here-