AIBU to not be remotely bothered that Rishi has private healthcare

[MXVIT]

I'm really not - it's an absolutely ridiculous thing for us to be getting worked up about.

He's the prime minister - of course he has private healthcare. Leaders of the country need to be fit and well and therefore need the best healthcare money can buy - we can all agree the NHS is not that - and thats a separate conversation.

By that logic lets ban all childless babysitters, all dogless dogwalkers.

Honestly as a country I feel we're that addicted to getting ourselves into a frenzy over everything that we're focussing on the wrong things.

The narrative of "the poorest of society don't have this - so NO ONE CAN" is getting more and more common lately.

"The narrative of "the poorest of society don't have this - so NO ONE CAN" is getting more and more common lately."-

That's a strawman that nobody is suggesting.

The opposite argument is the one being put forward - if an excellent universal healthcare service is achievable and affordable (as it is in most European countries, under several different organisational and financial models) why is it that in the UK, this level of service is only available to those who are willing and able to pay, and the vast majority of the population have to make do with second-rate services?

The narrative is actually mind your own business about the rich getting richer. If you do not have enough money, healthcare, good schooling - just work more hours. Your own fault.

It’s not like he’s completely separate to public opinion. You get a vote - and any politician is aware of what swings the electorate.

Whether they queue up at the GP for a prescription is here nor there - not to mention a waste of taxpayer money / time, needing security, and everyone will want to know ‘what’s wrong’ medically.

I wouldn't expect anyone with his wealth not to have PHI but he also needs to be able to empathise with those who have to use the NHS and i don't think he has any empathy at all.

He just seems remarkably out of touch.

Sunak knew there would be extreme pressure on the NHS but because he doesn't use it, its not a priority, the announcements being made today... should have been done months ago.

In the interests of fairness... after listening to Starmer.. i wouldn't hold out too much hope of change.

I think things will change under Labour for the better. Starmer is a centrist so will improve public services but also focus on the economy.

I agree. Who wouldn't, in his position? He can well afford it and he has a challenging busy career so being able to get appointments quickly at a suitable time is v helpful. Some people have no imagination if they seriously think they would do no different in his shoes.

Private healthcare companies are only interested in the lucrative, easy stuff. Anything that is difficult, long-term or that requires expensive resources is of no interest to them and will be left to the NHS to deal with while the private companies cream off the profits

Private companies contribute little towards the training of nurses, doctors and other medics - the taxpayers and individuals pay most of this. They're selling back to you something that you've already paid for once, and making a profit at the same time, while donating to their favoured politicians so that they can continue to ride the gravy train
(just want to spread @Havanananana's words all over this thread)

I‘m not sure any PM hasn’t used private heathcare. Otherwise we’d see news reports of whatever leader queuing at GP

It’s not even a wealth thing, it’s normal for the job

Prime Ministers have used the NHS. It has been in the papers with nurses and Drs reporting being surprised when they saw who they were going to be treating.

I doubt they use the NHS GP to get a prescription

They might end up in NHS like Johnson did though

Why would they not? You used to be able to get a prescription the same day.

People are too invested in hearing about what’s medically wrong with those in public eye so there would be speculation

Plus the time taken and security

All said below

I 100% agree OP even though I don’t like him. I have no issue with people paying for private healthcare or schooling, having a bigger house or nicer car if they can afford them.

I have zero desire to live in a communist society and I’m getting sick of seeing posts on whether we should take away things other people have to make things ‘fairer’. I accept I may not have the Rolls Royce version of everything and am ok with having the Skoda version in many cases. One may have more bells and whistles which is ok as long as they both work.

The focus should be on ensuring the state funded things such as healthcare and schooling are fit for purpose. They are not and thats the issue, not that some people have private. Billions of pounds are used to fund the state, where is the money going?, why is it not working? It needs to be reviewed and reformed for the benefit of the population as it exists today.

Rishi is useless not because he’s out of touch and uses private healthcare, it’s because he’s a poor PM, completely vacuous, not curious or effective.

"The focus should be on ensuring the state funded things such as healthcare and schooling are fit for purpose. They are not and thats the issue, not that some people have private."

The point is that the people making the decisions regarding the level of service to be provided by the NHS, schools etc. are immune from the impact of their decisions and have very little first-hand experience of the services about which they are making crucial decisions.

This is one of the glaringly obvious reasons why UK healthcare and schools are nowhere near the standards found in other similar countries.

There is no such thing as "state funded" healthcare. The taxpayers fund it, be they companies or individuals, and right now they are being short-changed.

‘There is no such thing as "state funded" healthcare. The taxpayers fund it, be they companies or individuals’.

This is a silly statement. It’s quite obvious that I meant taxpayer funded when I said state funded as taxpayers fund the state. Taxpayers enable the state. And yes the point is that the state institutions are not being run properly. This has nothing to do with whether Rishi uses private healthcare or schools.

Even if he used state, they’d be so far removed from bog standard comps they may as well be private. For example, the schools the Blair’s and Cameron kids went to were state but based in areas so exclusive that only the kids of millionaires were in catchment. That’s not representative. In addition PM’s have access to the best doctors. See how quickly and effectively Boris Johnson was sorted when he got Covid?

I’m sure even Clement Attlee, who brought in the NHS had access to superior services than most of the population. However, that didn’t stop him from being empathetic enough to bring better healthcare to the wider population. Rishi lacks empathy but it’s not because he’s rich, it’s because he’s not a good person.

Don’t you think those £900 direct payments show that he generally targets lower incomes with help? They’ve just announced more but not much about it

Agree.

And it’s not only the well of or good earners who have private healthcare.

I have it. It saved my life last year so I am bloody glad I have it.

What I don’t have are holidays, nights out, says out, treats etc. I prioritise that monthly payment for my health, even more so now after what happened to me and how things could’ve been without it.

Absolutely this

What I don’t have are holidays, nights out, says out, treats etc. I prioritise that monthly payment for my health, even more so now after what happened to me and how things could’ve been without it.

You've already paid once - why should you be forced to pay again to get something better than just a second-rate healthcare service? What about those who cannot afford to pay, or those who the insurers refuse to cover - why should their healthcare be left to chance?

If I didn’t have that insurance my life would be very different now - I probably would have still been alive to type this.

I was seen right at the beginnings of the same thing that killed my mother. Only she was fobbed off for years by GPs and it was too late for her. The same has. happed to countless other people, you read about their stories in the press all the time, once they have died . It’s disgusting and no, it shouldn’t be happening.

In fact, I only got that fast open referral from a Private GP who saw me the same day and didn’t have an argument with me about writing an open referral for my insurance - just did it as I was paying. I’ve had friends who have had to fight for a referral from an NHS GP for things that have turned out to be very serious.

I don’t care how I did it, that I’ve paid twice. It shouldn’t happen that I wouldn’t have got the care I did on the NHS, but I am here for my children, unlike my mum who died when I was a child.

And like I said, I go without to find that £140 a month to pay for myself and my children to have private healthcare.

*wouldn't have still been alive, even.

@Mycatisanarsehole

I make no criticism of your choice - but I reiterate the point that in a modern, wealthy country, the 5th/6th/7th wealthiest on the planet, people are still unable to access healthcare of a standard comparable with that found in other similar countries and are forced to use their savings or forego other pleasures in order to get the treatment (in your case life-saving treatment) that they require.

And yet the men who have decided that this is OK - including Sunak and Hunt - are millionaires who not only do not use the NHS, but who want to dismantle it and sell off the lucrative bits to commercial businesses, leaving the population in an even worse state in terms of healthcare provision.

I think the point is not that the poorest can’t get private health care so no one can. The point is that he isn’t doing anything about the over over stretched nhs because he doesn’t need it. He is ensuring his own health otherwise. He’s not pouring enough into the nhs and it’s workers and stealing their rights to protest. When these protests happen and rishi gets sick he is fine. It’s us the general public that suffers so bluntly he doesn’t care. He doesn’t benefit from the nhs But what about the millions that do and pour their taxes into it? He is a liar like the rest of the tories.

David Cameron used the NHS for his son didn't he?

Which does blow a hole in the argument that ministers should use the NHS so they know what its like.

But even when they do use it, they will have 5* service, i can't imagine DC was kept waiting for 2 hours for a 10min appointment, just as Boris bypassed the norms that we would get and went straight to ICU.

All of which i would expect for any one in Govt.

We might be a relatively wealthy country but we are not wealthy enough. We are the only wealthy country with a NHS. Everyone else has hybrids. This is what we need to move to.

We already have higher tax payers paying 30% of all income tax. People not wanting to work to avoid paying tax. Retiring early. They want the NHS though but too few are paying for it. At £165 billion a year, it’s too expensive now we have low productivity and tax take is falling. Those over 65 don’t pay NI yet they use the NHS most. Anyone paying Income tax over age 65 should pay NI. In fact anyone paying income tax should pay NI. It should not be a burden on younger people. We need reform and private health can help.