Three Not-so-Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare

Government intervention has messed up the healthcare sector, leading to needlessly high prices and massive inefficiency. Fixing the mess won’t be easy since it would involve addressing several contributing problems, including Medicare, Medicaid, the healthcare exclusion in the tax code, Obamacare, and the mess at the Veterans Administration. But at least we know the right […]

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Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare (but Don’t Tell Krugman)

When I criticize government-run healthcare, I normally focus on programs and interventions that distort and damage the American health sector. So I’ve written a lot on the failures of Medicaid, Medicare, and Obamacare, as well as the counterproductive effects of the tax code’s healthcare exclusion. But if some government is bad for the health sector, […]

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The Trans-Atlantic Version of Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare

When government suppresses the free market and takes over the healthcare sector, you get some really odd results. Consider these stories from Sweden:  A man sewing up his own leg after getting frustrated with a long wait. The government denying a wheelchair to a double amputee because the bureaucrats decided his impairment might not be […]

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This Wins the “Booby Prize” for Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare

I’ve posted some horrifying examples about what happens when you put politicians and bureaucrats in charge of health care. The story that makes every guy wince comes from Sweden, where a man wound up having his penis amputated because of government incompetence. And I’ve shared numerous examples of substandard care from the United Kingdom, in […]

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More Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare

Even though Paul Krugman has told us that horror stories about government-run healthcare in Britain “are false,” we keep getting reports about substandard care and needless deaths (see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here). Well, let’s add another chilling report to the list. Here’s some of what the UK-based Telegraph just […]

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Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare

Somebody sent me this story from the Drudge Report and can’t resist the temptation to share. What really astounds me is not that a Swedish man sewed up his own leg after waiting for a long time in a hospital. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if things like that happened in all nations. The really disturbing […]

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Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare

While it will be nice to say “I told you so” when Obamacare leads to bad results in America, I would much prefer to avoid having stories like this appear in the American press. But in the United Kingdom, where government controls more than 90 percent of the healthcare system (as opposed to my rough […]

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Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare

British healthcare is often criticized for long waiting lines and slovenly conditions, but that’s just part of the story. Here’s a frightening story about a women who actually got treated – and died as a result. To be fair, this presumably is a tragic exception and most people in the United Kingdom surely receive adequate […]

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Another Great Moment in Government-Run Healthcare

Because of misguided government policies, health care in America is expensive and inefficient. But it’s always possible to have a system that is even worse. I have often cited the United Kingdom, which has genuine socialism (government employs the doctors and runs the hospitals). However, as part of an ongoing series about “great moments in […]

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The Continuing Failure of Government-Run Healthcare in the United Kingdom

I’m routinely critical of the many ways that government intervention has created an expensive and inefficient health system in the United States. But there are countries where government causes even greater problems. So when I want to feel good about America’s clunky healthcare system, I look at the mess across the ocean. The United Kingdom […]

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The Deadly Impact of Government-Run Health, Part I

I’m not a fan of the government-distorted health system in the United States. Various laws and programs from Washington have created a massive problem with third-party payer, which makes America’s system very expensive and inefficient. But it’s possible to have a system that is even worse. Americans can look across the ocean at the United […]

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Don’t Copy the United Kingdom’s Government-Run, Single-Payer Health System

I’m on my way back to the United States from England. My election-week coverage (starting here and ending here) is finished, but I’m still in the mood to write about the United Kingdom. Yesterday, I shared some “Great Moments in British Government” and today I want to look at the U.K.’s single-payer health scheme. The […]

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“Medicare for All” Would Copy the Bad Features of the U.K.’s Government-Run System

The so-called Green New Deal is only tangentially related to climate issues. It’s best to think of it as the left’s wish list, and it includes a paid leave entitlement, government jobs, infrastructure boondoggles, and an expansion of the already bankrupt Social Security system. But the most expensive item on the list is “Medicare for […]

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Great Moments in Canadian Law

When I think of over-bearing governments with myopic enforcement of silly rules, I obviously think of the United States, especially the IRS, EEOC, FDA, and EPA. And I also think of Germany, Japan, and other straight-laced societies. But I don’t think of Canada. After all, that’s the home of Dudley Do-Right. Canadians are too nice […]

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Great Moments in British Government

A couple of days ago, citing bizarre government policies in India, Belgium, Malaysia, Romania, and Spain, I wrote about some “great moments in foreign government.” Today, we’re going to give special attention to the United Kingdom. I’m not claiming there’s an above-average level of government stupidity in the United Kingdom (though that’s distinctly possible). Instead, […]

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Great Moments in Foreign Government

Given the routine corruption and reckless spending in Washington, I frequently get asked how I keep my sanity. It’s possible, as some of my friends argue, that I’m not actually sane. That would explain why I try to put my finger in the dyke of big government as more and more new leaks keep developing. […]

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Great Moments in British Government

While much of my analysis focuses on the mess created by Washington, I periodically show my ecumenical nature by sharing “Great Moments in State Government” and “Great Moments in Local Government.” And in keeping with the title of this page, I even occasionally share “Great Moments in Foreign Government.” Today, though we’re going to get […]

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Another Ghoulish and Tyrannical Moment in Government-Run Healthcare

Writing about the sub-par single-payer healthcare system in the United Kingdom, Paul Krugman infamously claimed that,“In Britain, the government itself runs the hospitals and employs the doctors. We’ve all heard scare stories about how that works in practice; these stories are false.” I’ve pointed out that there are plenty of “scare stories” about the National […]

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The U.K.’s Government-Run Healthcare System Is Working Wonderfully…for Bureaucrats

Back in 2013, I got very upset when I learned that senior bureaucrats at the IRS awarded themselves big bonuses, notwithstanding the fact that the agency was deeply tarnished by scandal because of its efforts to help Obama’s reelection campaign. That’s when I decided to put forth my “First Theorem of Government,” which simply states […]

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Another Great Moment in the Annals of Government-Run Healthcare

I wrote last June about an unfortunate British guy who, after his leg was broken by thieves, was told by the government that his injury wasn’t serious enough for an ambulance. The poor chap eventually was driven home by some cops and then had to take an Uber to the hospital. While writing about this […]

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From England, Great Moments in Government-Run Dentistry

In 2009, Paul Krugman assured his readers that government-run healthcare was a good idea, writing that “In Britain, the government itself runs the hospitals and employs the doctors. We’ve all heard scare stories about how that works in practice; these stories are false.” I guess one could argue that the determination of “scare stories,” like […]

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The Wisdom of Bastiat, as Revealed by Great Moments in Federal, State, and Local Government

I’ve periodically cited the great 19th-century French economist, Frederic Bastiat, for his very wise words about the importance of looking at both the seen and the unseen when analyzing public policy. Those that fail to consider secondary or indirect effects of government, such as Paul Krugman, are guilty of the “broken window” fallacy. There are […]

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Another Brutally Disturbing Example of Government-Run Healthcare from the United Kingdom

It’s time to add to our collection of horror stories from the U.K.’s government-run healthcare system (previous examples can be found here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here). What makes today’s story different, though, is that the bureaucracy not only is denying care to a small child, but also seeking to prevent the family […]

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Four Great Moments in Foreign Government Stupidity…and some Embarrassing Political Correctness in America

While I mostly focus on bad government policy in the United States, I also think we can learn lessons from what’s happening in other nations. In some cases, I share positive stories, such as the success of privatized Social Security in Australia, nationwide school choice in Sweden, and genuine spending cuts in the Baltic nations. […]

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Warning: Government-Run Healthcare Is Very Hazardous to Your Health

Back in 2010, I guest-hosted Larry Kudlow’s CNBC program for a couple of days. During one of the segments on my last show, I crossed swords with the other host, Simon Hobbs, as we argued whether patients needlessly died because of the government-run healthcare system in the United Kingdom. Since neither one of us had […]

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Josef Stalin Would Have Admired the U.K.’s Government-Run Healthcare System

One of history’s worst butchers, Josef Stalin, is rumored to have said that, “The death of one man is a tragedy, the death of millions is a statistic.” Sadly, there’s probably some truth in that statement. I’ve shared a bunch of horror stories about the U.K.’s government-run healthcare system (see here, here, here, here, here, […]

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Great Moments in Government Waste

Taxpayers all across America send lots of money to Washington, DC, in part because we’re supposed to believe that redistribution is a legitimate and desirable function of the federal government. But this is a very perverse form of redistribution. All that money going to Washington helps subsidize a network of overpaid bureaucrats, fat-cat lobbyists, corrupt […]

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Which Nation Has the Most Per-Capita Government Spending on Healthcare: France, Italy, the United States, Sweden, Canada, Greece, or the United Kingdom?

What government spends the most on health care? Is it Canada or the United Kingdom, which are famous (or, if these stories are any indication, infamous would be a better description) for single-payer healthcare systems? Is it Sweden, the home of the cradle-to-grave welfare state? Or France, the land of the world’s most statist people? […]

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More Stomach-Turning Horror Stories from the UK Government-Run Healthcare System

During the Obamacare debate, Paul Krugman told us we could ignore stories about what was happening across the ocean, writing that “In Britain, the government itself runs the hospitals and employs the doctors. We’ve all heard scare stories about how that works in practice; these stories are false.” Every so often, I wonder how Krugman […]

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The Sadistic Brutality of England’s Government-Run Healthcare

I’m not easily grossed out or nauseated. Heck, I’m on email lists for a half-dozen softball teams and you can only imagine the strange/filthy/nasty things that guys send to each other. But I read a story about the death panels in the United Kingdom that left me discombobulated. I can’t even begin to describe how […]

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