That means everything from ambulance rides and emergency room visits to … Here are 10 numbers that tell the true story, Mon 18 Jan 2016 07.00 EST But the respected US Commonwealth Fund health thinktank ranked the UK first in its most recent study of healthcare in 11 rich countries (June 2014). That means everything from ambulance rides and emergency room visits to long hospital stays, complex surgery, radiation and chemotherapy — are all free. In Britain, there's a state-funded system called the National Health Service, or NHS, which guarantees care for all. "The war was barely over. Protesters marched in London on Feb. 3 to demand more money for Britain's National Health Service, as winter conditions are thought to have put a severe strain on the system. By comparison, 14% report experiences of physical violence. Maligned for long waiting times and disrupted by endless reorganisation, the NHS may not sound like an international benchmark. But Britons find it hilarious, he says, that an American would be searching for a cash register, trying to find how to pay for treatment at a doctor's office or hospital. He and his wife Erin McGuigan are both self-employed. ", Amazing, he says, because he didn't have to pay — at least not at the point of service. "You wouldn't find a single leading politician on either the left wing the Labour Party or the right wing in the Conservative Party that would talk about privatizing the NHS," Murray says. And she said, 'You go home!' ". He's just recounting his first experience at a U.K. public hospital. The basic hourly rate of a consultant. NHS may have challenges but I’m proud to be from the country that invented universal coverage - where all get care no matter the size of their bank balance https://t.co/YJsKBAHsw7. The Democrats are pushing for Universal HealthCare while thousands of people are marching in the UK because their U system is going broke and not working. 10 truths about Britain's health service This article is more than 4 years old It is the most scrutinised of institutions, the subject of a love-hate relationship with the nation. It's a foreign concept here, McElroy explains. It prompted Prime Minister Theresa May's office to issue a statement saying the U.K. premier is "proud" of her country's system. "In the U.S., we're much more comfortable with the idea that the market will provide services. In recent months, there have been several "Save the NHS" marches across Britain, where thousands have demonstrated to demand improved care and more funding for the health system. "And in some cases, the hospital is simply full.". She says she has had to wait four to six weeks for a doctor's appointment if it's not something urgent. "I've had excellent care.". Last modified on Wed 20 Sep 2017 18.19 EDT. It costs the NHS more than £24,000 to treat a patient with the most severe level of multiple trauma (physical injuries occurring simultaneously in several parts of the body). The establishment of the Welfare State was one of the great social reforms of British history. The U.K. health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, tweeted back at Trump, saying he may disagree with some of the claims of those attending "Save the NHS" marches, but that "not ONE of them wants to live in a system where 28m people have no cover" — a dig at the uninsured in America. In Britain, there's a state-funded system called the National Health Service, or NHS, which guarantees care for all. Its expenditure on the National Health Service has still grown, but at a slower pace than before. It featured prominently in the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics, with doctors dancing to swing music and hospital beds arranged to spell out the letters N-H-S in aerial views from above. The NHS is facing a remarkable surge in numbers of people with mental illness – at the same time as multimillion-pound government cuts in services. (Private health care also exists in the U.K., paid out-of-pocket or through private insurance coverage, but only a small minority of residents opt for it.). Yui Mok/AP It was founded on July 5, 1948. The National Health Service - or NHS - the public health care system operating in Great Britain - was introduced in 1948, as a pillar of the welfare state, set up by the Labour government after the Second World War. No thanks! Of those who saw their GP, 59% were women. One such march, on Feb. 3 on Downing Street in central London, caught President Trump's attention. 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