Sex In The Public Square - Because mastectomy should never be an outpatient procedure! - Comments

women's healthcare on the NHS

tracya — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 23:42:05 -0700

it's weird because they take a much more relaxed attitude here. they call a pap smear, a cervical smear and it is as basic as it sounds. they could have sent me the swab and i could have done it myself, no actual exam, in the US sense and it's only allowed every three years. i am having some heavy bleeding and am going to have an actual exam of my female organs in a few weeks for the first time in over 4 years! while i have had two mamograms in the US in my 40's, they are not allowed here on the NHS until your 50th birthday.

saying all that though, cancer has become a BIG concern with the NHS and any suspicious lump/result will be followed up by a specialist within two weeks. i can say that it does happen because i had a funny fast growing mole on my nose and i was seen in the dermatology clinic within the 2 weeks.

birth control/morning after pill, sexually transmitted disease/HIV clinics and abortion services are freely and widely available from the NHS. although a co worker went to an out of hours NHS clinic on a sunday asking for the morning after pill and was refused because they only provide (free)emergency contraception when another method has failed. however that's only a case of limited resources, they can easily be obtained (for a fee) from a chemist.

i am a huge supporter of nationalized healthcare, even though the NHS is basic and simple, it is free to all people who are here legally at the point of service. there is a misconception that it is "FREE", it is not.... i think i pay more here than i paid for insurance in the US but it does cover everyone and that is a very good thing for a society.

England v. US on women's health care

Elizabeth — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 15:19:54 -0700

TracyA, I'd love to know if you have any other comparisons between the US and England relating specifically to women's health care. You've lived for significant periods of time in each country. Do you feel like your own health is better maintained in one place over the other?

drive thru mastectomy?

tracya — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 11:48:50 -0700

this sounds like a variation of the drive thru delivery laws that were passed a few years ago. i signed the petition and will try to get it out to others...

as a nurse, it's absolutely appalling that any insurance company could possibly think that a mastectomy is a same day/overnight surgery. it's definitely major surgery.

sometimes i am grateful for the NHS...but here it's a matter of getting a diagnosis and date for the surgery in the first place! once you finally get in, you can linger for days....

Thanks Lolita!

Elizabeth — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 02:35:52 -0700

Thanks for sending a letter and for posting your comment. I hope that lots of people take this issue up.

It's interesting to be reminded of how often bills are introduced and then never make it out of committee. In this case the bill has suffered the same fate 4 times in a row and is in the midst of its fifth. I hope some concerted attention can get it out of committee and passed into law.

My letter

Lolita — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 21:09:05 -0700

Very easy. This is what I wrote: Please pass the legislation (HR 758 and S.459) that would mandate insurance companies to pay for at least two nights of hospitalization for women having mastectomies. I don't think that mastectomy should ever be an outpatient or overnight procedure and that insurance companies should not be allowed to override doctors when it comes to providing proper care for a patient. Mastectomy surgery is major surgery. Women need the kind of care that can best be provided by nurses and doctors in the days immediately following a mastectomy.

Because mastectomy should never be an outpatient procedure!

Elizabeth — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 01:00:00 -0700

For at least 10 years Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) has been trying to get legislation passed in Congress that would mandate insurance companies to pay for at least two nights of hospitalization for women having mastectomies. She has introduced her bill, called the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act, five times. Each time it has been consigned to languish in committees.

This year she has agan reintroduced the bill. It is HR 758 this time around, and again it has been assigned to several committees. In fact, here's the list of committees to which it has been referred before action can be taken: