In my blog, I often discussed difference of USA and Japan. Maybe, Japanese medical system is one of the most different things from that of USA. Medical system in USA is one of a severe reality for people in USA, the world leading country of medicine.
If you see doctor in Japan, it costs less than a few ten thousand dollars. Even poor people can receive medical services. If you catch cold, you are not necessary to hesitate to go to hospital. I thought that is usual everywhere.
Currently, the time of old stories like "we are so poor that we cannot see a doctor" are considered as fiction now in Japan. However, that is no doubt, reality in USA.
In USA, role of medicine in society seems to be different from Japan. That is much more expensive. The other day, I had simple blood test in a University health center. That was very expensive. It costs $100. Can you imagine how much will it cost if you have appendicitis? How long are you taken to the hospital? In Japan, patients of appendicitis usually enter the hospital for a week. It never costs more than $30000. In USA, it must costs basically more than one hundred dollars. I might be better to go back to Japan when I retired.
The good point of USA society is that it can change by itself. That is sometimes difficult in Japan. Recently, President Obama is advancing health care reform in USA. Unfortunately, health care include a lot of political aspects and it seems not to be solved immediately. I will write this issue later.
