We paid $37B above market?

[eizenstriet]

There is no free lunch.  We pay more taxes to fund our health care; Americans need to pay for their (more advanced but more expensive) health care privately.

There does appear to be a sea change occurring in opinion among Americans as to the health care issue.

My wife and I find it more interesting to stay at bed and breakfasts than at hotels. Conversation with strangers over breakfast is one of the stimulating advantages. Until quite recently, in American locations, when it became known across the table that we were Canadians, we would often be treated to condescending observations on the sad state of our socialized health care system. Before I got too far into a rebuttal, I would feel the kick under the table from my wife to preserve civility.

Lately, the self-assessment from Americans over breakfast is one of significant alarm, accompanied by genuine interest in our system. I am now free to elaborate without injury to my shins. Recently, a soon-to-be-retired and obviously well-to-do professor at an American university was conveying his absolute dread of health care costs when he was outside his employer's coverages. He was desperately eager to hear from us and from the British couple beside us how "the other half lived".

This particular consequence of living and working in America is not to be underestimated. There may be other downsides as well, of course.