Acknowledging that the costs of medical care in the United States are both prohibitive and shocking is nothing new for most people who live here. In a video posted by the British website JOE, however, English people are asked to guess the costs of necessary medical care in the U.S. Health care costs are particularly relevant in the United Kingdom right now, as their National Health Service is a critical issue in the upcoming election. What would their system look like if it shifted to a U.S. model? As the video shows, people are absolutely shocked at the potential costs.
For example, the host asks a woman how much she thinks an inhaler costs in the U.S. She guesses $100. He tells her no, it’s more. She goes up to $120. He tells her it’s between $250 and $350, and the shock on her face is evident. Then she says, “Man, so if you’re poor, you’re dead.” Which is, unfortunately, pretty accurate. There’s a gap between life expectancy for low-income people and for rich people, which, while attributable to a number of factors, such as overall diet, stress, and environment, can also be attributed to a lack of affordable, accessible, and quality health care.
Low-income people face higher rates of disease, including heart disease and depression. Low-income Americans, statistically, die younger—and while affordable health care wouldn’t solve that structural problem entirely, it would be a huge start.
Twitter users are horrified too.
People frequently discuss the horrors of the health care system in the U.S. on Twitter.
And express gratitude for other systems.
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn also sent this message to Donald Trump on Twitter, which is making waves as Trump visits the U.K.
And here’s that full video.