Guiliani Annoys Brits With Outdated Prostate Cancer Statistics

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Main Category: Prostate / Prostate Cancer
Also Included In: Public Health;  Urology / Nephrology
Article Date: 03 Nov 2007 - 8:00 PDT

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As Rudy Guiliani quotes outdated prostate cancer survival rates in the United Kingdom, and compares it with up-to-date US figures relevant only to Americans with health care cover, members of the British government have expressed annoyance at these underhand tactics.

Guiliani says the survival rate for prostate cancer is 82%, but this figure does not include the nearly 50 million Americans who have no health care cover at all - 50 million is one sixth of the country's population. He says the UK survival rates for prostate cancer are 44% - but these are crude 2000 figures. Current figures in the UK show that survival rates, for every person in the country (there is universal health care cover in the UK) is over 74.4% and rising fast (Office for National Statistics, UK).

Alan Johnson, UK Health Secretary, said of a recent Guiliani advertising campaign "The British NHS should not become a political football in American presidential politics. Our rate of prostate cancer survival is actually much higher than has been claimed. The latest data shows a survival rate of over 70 per cent - and increasing."

Guiliani is attempting to attack the UK National Health Service (NHS) which provides free health care and treatment to everybody in the country. At the moment, in the USA, as presidential elections loom there is a war of ideals, with the Democrats pushing for universal health care and the Republicans wanting to keep healthcare cover in the private sector.

Some facts

-- The UK spends 7% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on health care, the USA spends 14%.

-- In the UK health care coverage is enjoyed by everybody - this means medical consultations, and treatment are completely free. In the USA there is a combination of private health insurance and public bodies, such as Medicare/Medicaid - approximately 48 million Americans have no health coverage at all, meaning they have to pay for consultations and treatment themselves. There are also tens of millions of Americans who do not have "adequate coverage".

-- In the UK, if you are under 18, aged 65 or over, unemployed, pregnant, or earn less than a certain amount you do not pay anything for your prescription medications. Those who have to pay, pay a maximum of $12.50 for each prescription page. People with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, pay nothing for their medications in the UK.

Health experts have written in to Medical News Today explaining that it is much easier to get accurate national survival rate figures from the UK because they include everybody, while in the USA, as health care cover is patchy and sometimes non-existent, it is extremely difficult.

Written by - Christian Nordqvist
Copyright: Medical News Today
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