I 1 Opinion eryone loses and the system collapses.

I

1

Opinion

eryone loses and the system collapses.

But we are discussing medicine. In the USSR, the same thing happended to medicine as to agriculture. An ABC TV News series shortly before the USSR collapsed showed the sorry state of medical care there. And Yuri Maltsev, a Peoples’ Deputy in Moscow from 1987-1989, now living in the U.S., provides some informed and informative observations:

“I can attest to the consequences of medical socialism. It sustained a massive government bureaucracy and systemic nepotism. It imposed price controls which led to severe shortages, poor and often deadly service, non-price rationing based on political considerations, and unimaginable levels of corruption. The result was not a healthier society but,...a thoroughly diseased one...

“As with the Clinton plan, the official goal of the Soviet medical socialists was simple; health care services will be provided on an equal basis to the entire population by a state-owned and state-managed industry. ..

“The system had three supposed advantages. It would prevent people from profitting from the sickness of others. It would not overlook anyone, not even the poorest of the poor. And it would eliminate ‘waste’ due to ‘unnecessary duplication and parallelism’ in private medical provision...

“The ‘free’ medical services were appallingly bad. Physicians lacked incentive to care for patients and even humanitarian doctors were hamstrung. Patients had to offer bribes if they expected to receive even a minimal amount of attention from doctors and nurses. They in turn had to offer bribes for medicines and equipment. Although bribery was illegal as in the Clinton plan, it was essential...

“The medical system didn’t provide equally poor services to everyone. Two years after Lenin socialized the system, Communist Party officials realized that egalitarianism was great...however they needed something different. So they developed a two-tiered system—one for the ‘grey masses,’ another for party officials...While workers and peasants died in the state hospitals, the medicines and equipment needed to save their- lives sat idle in the ‘leading officials’ system.”

Americans should think long and hard about the USSR’s experience. Clinton supporters argue that “We are building on the British, Canadian and German plans.” True, these are not yet as bad, but the Russians had a long head start. For a look at them, read “Questions to Ask Your Congressmah about Health Care Reform” in the August ’94 Reader’s Digest. Author Ralph Bennett finds:

1. Rationing.

2. Declining research in drugs and equipment.