To be p'd when it is suggested that wealthy pay to see GP?

[prayingforababy]

I am all for a fairer world but why should the higher tax contributors in society only give and never receive? I don't want tax credits or rebates (showing my age)or child benefit whic I think should be means tested, and I don't mind paying higher rate taxes but if we pay taxes can we not at least be allowed to have free health care? Is that not what NI is for so if we pay NI we should be entitled to free health care. Thankfully we've not gone done that root yet but I'm sure it's only a matter of time.

[prayingforababy]

Edit to say the health care is not free as we pay for it!

[PortiaNovmerriment]

GP visits and the whole NHS should be free at the point of use for everybody. Slippery slope otherwise.

[lisad123wantsherquoteinDM]

the thing is even the "rich" can be poor. so no i think its not right the rich should pay for health care. Its a basic need, and tbh i think those that can afford to pay prefer private anyways

[bigstripeytiger]

Who is suggesting that the wealthy should pay to see a GP?

[Salbysea]

only if they got the option to opt out of whatever percentage of their NI payments that goes towards NHS GPS if they pay privately. I think you can do something like this in Ireland (might be wrong?)

why should they pay twice?

[prayingforababy]

That crap programme on CH4 the other day which was a waste of air time!

[SpeedyGonzalez]

praying, I don't have a problem with the healthcare suggestion. You're saying it's a suggestion, not an imposition - so what's wrong with that?

I paid for private healthcare when I could afford it, and it was money well spent. Besides, if you 'give' by paying for private healthcare, you DO 'receive' - a more attentive and, some would say, better level of care. It's hardly on the level of philanthropic giving.

I also agree that child benefit should not be given to the rich, but means testing it would cost money to set up, thus negating the planned savings - which is why freezing the rate makes better economic sense.

[chipmonkey]

er... Sal we have no choice about it in Ireland! Unless you have a medical card ( i.e on the breadline, unemployed) you pay your GP, end of.

Which is why there is rarely any trouble getting a GP appointment in Ireland, a lot of people will think twice about whether they need to see the GP and pay 60 Euro for the privilege.

With the result that a lot of people for years brought their children to A&E instead of their GP. With the result that they now charge 100 Euro to visit an A&E Department over her.

In general, it is better not to be ill over here if you can at all help it!

[MavisEnderby]

CXhipmonkey I didn't realise that,you are in Eire?

Whatever criticisms we have o nhs we should be glad thgat currently it isfree at point o use (mainly,work in oncology and there are arguements over certain drugs).In act it is nearly the only thing i think we can be proud o currently

[IMoveTheStars]

The 'wealthy' already pay for GP appointments. It's called private healthcare.

Everybody else has already paid for it too, but hey ho. There are loads of these threads around at the moment.

but to answer your OP: Paying for a GP appt is a waste of time. The vast majority of people who need them (children under 16/elderly/people on income support/DLA/pensions etc) wouldn't have to pay fpr them anyway, and it would only be people who have to take time off work, that least use a GP surgery anyway, that end up paying for it. Bollocks idea, IMO

[SomeGuy]

the rich do receive, they get a police force, a legal system that safeguards their interests, an education system that will educate them or their staff, roads, parks, bin men, subsidised opera, etc., etc. etc.

health care is very expensive, £20 see the GP wouldn't cover the cost anyway.

[prayingforababy]

Higer rate tax payers (the majority are not rich SomeGuy) tend not to use as many of the services you mention (minus the roads) especially the police but I don't care about that. Opera should not be subsidised!

Even if someone has private health care you still need to see a GP first to be transferred to a private clinic and many only have private health care as a work benefit not because they can afford it.

[Shaz10]

Lots of countries where you have to pay to see the GP have better OTC drugs, including antibiotics. Like Spain.

[whoneedssleepanyway]

i think they could introduce some kind of tax breaks for people who pay for private healthcare, somewhere along the lines of how you can get vouchers to pay for nursery/ childcare that are tax free, may they could make some element of private medical care tax deductible or something....

[LIZS]

The "wealthier " (and bear in mind it is all relative) pay for prescriptions in full (cost me £28 for a chest infection a couple of years back, and then I reacted to the ab's so only took a small proportion), dentist, eye tests and in many areas don't get offered basic meds for kids free either (I had to buy piriton and nurofen when ds had shingles), let alone pay a higher proportion of tax and ni per head. Have also had scenarios when it has been cheaper to buy over the counter than by prescription which is just daft.

[Salbysea]

chipmonkey, I thought you had a choice whether to pay into VHI or another insurer?

[Mingg]

I rarely see my GP but when I was pregnant I was told by one of the doctors to arrange private ante-natal appointments because "it is customary for the middle class to pay for the service"...

[lovechoc]

screw that, paying at point of service for healthcare!! the NHS should stay free for all at the point of use, including GP visits.

[prayingforababy]

I am shocked Mingg!!!

[MrsC2010]

I agree OP. We all pay taxes for a reason.

[EldritchCleavage]

If all the wealthy, and then all the middle class were deprived of free provision and had to pay,the free service would become a sink service that politicians would gladly neglect. And articulate pushy affluent patients are grist in the mill of the system that keeps it running better. Their complaints are less easily ignored (unpalatable but true). The best way to protect at least the fundamental health services is for everyone to have a stake in them.

[azazello]

YANBU. It's wrong as a matter of principle and also unmanageable in practice. How would it be enforced if it didn't apply to pretty much everyone (i.e. having an ID card showing whether you were entitled to it free because on benefits etc).

'Wealthy' people can have serious and ongoing illnesses as well as poor people and it probably is considerably cheaper for them to see the GP than for it to be escalated to a consultant or hospital stay because the patient didn't want to pay for a GP visit.

[MorrisZapp]

I think that GP appts should cost a nominal amount, as should prescriptions. This would only partially offset the real cost, which we all pay for in taxes, but would a) deter timewasters and b) encourage people to actually turn up to appointments.

I believe that people don't appreciate things that come for free. Too often they think that the GP is at their beck and call and owes them a favour. Of course the GP is there to provide us with a service we've paid for, but too many take the utter piss.

[HippyGalore]

The argument of deterring time wasters is the flip side of people putting off appointments until they are really necessary. We already have quite bad (compared to other countries) early detection rates for most cancers and if we charged to see the GP that would get worse. It is more economical to treat most things early, I would be surprised if it would actually make sense financially (forgetting moral element).

These people that take up unnecessary appointments/ benefits etc are really overrepresented in our media and general discourse, I think people that don't go to the doctor when they should are probably the higher proportion.

[Morloth]

The problem with this thinking is the people in the middle are screwed.

The truly rich will look after themselves, the truly poor will be looked after and the people in the middle will be squeezed between the 2.