When Is Information Too Personal?
Posted on | September 5, 2008 at 8:03 am | 12 Comments
A blogging friend of mine recently wrote up a long blog entry detailing a chronic medical condition that he’s had for most of his life. His intention was to see if perhaps anyone else had something similar and what they did about it, or he was maybe hoping some doctor would run across it and give some advice he hadn’t heard yet. The condition isn’t embarrassing or life-threatening, but it is annoying and does impact his quality of life in a very real way.
But before he posted the entry, he began to have second thoughts. He thought about the future and wondered what would happen if at some point he applied for insurance and someone at the insurance company decided to google him and found that entry. Would the insurance company (or maybe even a future employer?) turn him down because of this preexisting condition, even though he hadn’t been treated for it, or even mentioned it to a doctor, in over 10 years? At one point, a lot of money was spent by one insurance company trying in vain to diagnose the issue. His current insurance company, which he’s had for over 10 years, doesn’t even know about it, except possibly as a preexisting condition. Would there be any other ramifications from posting about such personal issues in a public forum?
In the end, he decided not to post the entry. Best not to take the chance. But you know, if he was living in a country that had universal healthcare / socialized medicine, he probably would’ve posted about it (assuming the issue hadn’t been diagnosed and fixed by now by the socialized medicine). But since he’s an American… better safe than sorry.
Latre.
Poignant Search Term Of The Day That Led To This Blog: “phobia of peeling stickers”.
Comments
12 Responses to “When Is Information Too Personal?”
September 5th, 2008 @ 10:00 am
When you say “friend” do you mean you?
September 5th, 2008 @ 11:33 am
Paula! Hush!
September 5th, 2008 @ 2:36 pm
But you know, if he was living in a country that had universal healthcare / socialized medicine, he probably would’ve posted about it (assuming the issue hadn’t been diagnosed and fixed by now by the socialized medicine). But since he’s an American… better safe than sorry.
Then he should move to another country right away. Oh, wait, every country that does have socialized medicine has atrocious health care and people coming to the USA for treatment. Hmm… what to do…
September 5th, 2008 @ 6:52 pm
> every country that does have socialized medicine
> has atrocious health care
Wow, whose talking points are YOU reading from? We’re doing just fine down under, thanks for asking.
(Rogj, please delete this comment if I ever need any favors from a lawyer)
I’ve had extensive firsthand experience with the health care system in both the USA and Australia – and even with very good health insurance in the USA (got me a private room at Cedars-Sinai and doctors who were department heads) the differences are dramatic – especially when it comes to paperwork and billing!
It’s reason #1 why we moved here when our child came along. And considering the enormous time/money/effort it requires to get through immigration, not a decision taken lightly either.
Politically, of course, neither side in the US has the answer, because they’re unable to take on both the insurance companies and the tort system at once. Great little two-party system we’re stuck with eh?
September 5th, 2008 @ 7:42 pm
Politically, of course, neither side in the US has the answer, because they’re unable to take on both the insurance companies and the tort system at once. Great little two-party system we’re stuck with eh?
The tort system is certainly a huge problem. The insurance companies, though, by and large seem to just play the hand they’re dealt. The third-party system (where most insurance is paid for by the insured’s employer, essentially eliminating all the possible benefits of marketplace competition) is a big problem. As you say, none of the major parties is willing to make any useful changes.
September 5th, 2008 @ 8:20 pm
Oh, wait, every country that does have socialized medicine has atrocious health care and people coming to the USA for treatment. Hmm… what to do…
My my, such rhetoric! What do you have to back this up? All the statistics I’ve seen ranks the US near the bottom (and certainly below socialized medicine countries) in quality of healthcare and the satisfaction of citizens with healthcare. France, for example, is frequently rated #1 in the world, and they have universal healthcare. InfK gives Australia as an example above. My friend Sue has dual US/Swedish citizenship and has spent a lot of time in Sweden, including all of last month. Sue, are the Swedish people disgusted with their healthcare and do they want to come over here for treatment?
September 5th, 2008 @ 8:36 pm
That’s okay. We WILL have universal single payer health care in twenty years. I hope your friend can wait that long.
September 5th, 2008 @ 11:25 pm
My my, such rhetoric! What do you have to back this up? All the statistics I’ve seen ranks the US near the bottom (and certainly below socialized medicine countries) in quality of healthcare and the satisfaction of citizens with healthcare.
First, you know from long experience that when I say “all” or “every” I mean “not just a majority, but a pretty large majority, and indeed a very very large majority”. But saying “all” or “every” is easier, and the strict definitions of “all” and “every” have, generally speaking, no existence in reality. Same concept for “none” and “no”; I don’t mean literally zero.
Second, I’ll admit I haven’t done extensive research on the health care systems in hundreds of countries (which are constantly changing). However, as you know I am a big proponent of government officials saying “you know, program X in state (or country) Y is working really really well, let’s do exactly that here”. But when people point to examples of socialized health care and say we should adopt that system, and I look into them, they have been poor indeed; certainly not something better than the mess we have currently.
Third, granted I have not complied detailed statistics and am running largely on anecdotes, but I just don’t see reports of people in significant numbers going to countries other than the USA for health care. The only thing that comes close is a recent trend toward low-cost hospitals with US-trained doctors using US-made equipment and FDA-approved procedures/medicines located in countries where US tort law doesn’t apply. If US health care is so bad, why do so many people come here for care, at great personal expense?
September 5th, 2008 @ 11:43 pm
But when people point to examples of socialized health care and say we should adopt that system, and I look into them, they have been poor indeed; certainly not something better than the mess we have currently.
Example?
I just don’t see reports of people in significant numbers going to countries other than the USA for health care.
Maybe that’s because they’re happy with the healthcare they have in their own countries?
The only thing that comes close is a recent trend toward low-cost hospitals with US-trained doctors using US-made equipment and FDA-approved procedures/medicines located in countries where US tort law doesn’t apply.
Are those socialized medicine countries or third world countries? (Or ones that are both?)
If US health care is so bad, why do so many people come here for care, at great personal expense?
What constitutes “so many people”, what countries are they coming from, and what is it that is bad about their countries?
I’m sure there are lots of people having big enough problems with getting good healthcare in their socialized medicine countries that they look to the US or elsewhere. I bet there are just as many in the US who go to other countries because they are not getting good results here – I hear anecdotal evidence on that a lot. But the one thing I keep seeing everywhere I look is that the vast majority of people in those countries are very satisfied with the care they get. Maybe the healthcare systems there have better PR machines and the US health industry better start getting their word out! “We’re more expensive and you have to fight to get covered, but we’re worth it!”
September 5th, 2008 @ 11:51 pm
I know a lot of people in the UK, plus a few Canucks, and you’ll hear them complain about health care. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find them compalining about things Americans don’t even dream to ask, though.
You can find Aussies who complain about the health care system – my wife, a former nurse from a family of nurses, among them. They put it down to 10 years of conservative government budget cuts. I can’t speak for what the system was like here in the 90s, but I’ve had apples-to-apples comparisons between America and Australia over the past several years and I know where I want my loved ones to get treated in the future. When I describe the rigamarole I’ve encountered here – or rather, lack thereof – to other Americans, their eyes bug out.
> I just don’t see reports of people in significant
> numbers going to countries other than the USA for health care.
“Sri Lankan goes to Estonia for Tricky Appendectomy” doesn’t often make page 1 in the local papers – however often it may or may not happen – I’ll grant you that.
But falling into the trap of believing you’re well-informed by the mass media is a common problem. I think Glaxo is working on a skin patch for it, if they can just get those tax exemptions to fund the research….
September 6th, 2008 @ 12:34 am
Example?
England and Canada spring to mind. England purportedly has waiting lists to get on the waiting lists. One nice thing about Canada is a large taxpayer subsidy for prescription drugs. This is not a good thing for Canadians, but it’s great for Americans who buy drugs (often US-made) from Canada!
Maybe that’s because they’re happy with the healthcare they have in their own countries?
Perhaps so. Though people in the UK don’t seem overwhelmingly thrilled. And I have personally met Canadians who were here to get medical treatment, and I’m positive they weren’t happy with Canada. I myself have experienced health care in Mexico, and I’d have to be awfully sick before I’d risk Mexican medical care rather than try to get back to the US. Though I did like certain features of their pharmacy system (which I had to go to because the hospital didn’t supply medicines… or food… nor have running water until I complained).
Are those socialized medicine countries or third world countries? (Or ones that are both?)
I don’t recall the countries off hand, but why would it be relevant? Americans going there for surgery wouldn’t be covered by any socialized plan anyway.
I bet there are just as many in the US who go to other countries because they are not getting good results here – I hear anecdotal evidence on that a lot.
I think we’ll agree that neither of us have much validity with anecdotal evidence. Probably neither of us is willing to do the research required either.
But the one thing I keep seeing everywhere I look is that the vast majority of people in those countries are very satisfied with the care they get.
That’s certainly not the impression I get, so either we’re back to anecdotes or we’re seeing reports from different countries.
Maybe the healthcare systems there have better PR machines and the US health industry better start getting their word out! “We’re more expensive and you have to fight to get covered, but we’re worth it!”
Perhaps. I’m not sure US healthcare is all that expensive though. I’d agree it’s far more expensive than it could be under more ideal circumstances. But I’d argue it’s more along the lines of… I’m at a loss for the proper expression here. Feature creep? Value inflation? Consider the health care you could get, say, 75 years ago. You can get that health care today very inexpensively. Indeed, since emergency rooms are forbidden by law to turn people away, you could probably get it all free. But the health care available today is so far beyond what was available 75 years ago that someone snatched here through time would have trouble even believing it. What would an MRI scan be worth (in today’s dollars) to a very wealthy person in 1935? Would he hesitate to pay $10 million? Probably not. In that context, is an MRI scan expensive today? In other words, even an average Joe in the US today can get medical care that the richest man on the planet couldn’t dream of getting 75 years ago. And without paying the taxes borne by, say, today’s Frenchman.
September 6th, 2008 @ 12:58 pm
That’s certainly not the impression I get, so either we’re back to anecdotes or we’re seeing reports from different countries.
I’m going by the mainstream media stories and the studies from the WHO etc.
And without paying the taxes borne by, say, today’s Frenchman.
I know the French like to protest a lot, but how come I never see them protesting about that? Their taxes may be high, but they don’t seem to be upset about it being used for healthcare.
One thing I will agree with you about is that if the US government ever does totally take over healthcare, I’m sure they’ll find some way to mess it up, no matter what model they use. But eventually they’ll probably get it worked out. I’m sure there were a lot of growing pains in those other countries. I just think almost anything has got to be better than what we have now. My insurance plan changed this year (for the worse), and even though I’m with the same company, it’s a lot more complicated and even the company itself doesn’t seem to know how it works. I’m constantly getting corrections in the mail. Whenever I call and ask for an explanation, they are rarely able to give one.