Doesn't that just kill you?

Captain Ric's comment on the dentist post requires a longer answer than I can really give in a comment.

The question is this: given that I am paying for NHS services through taxation, and am now paying again by virtue of having a private dentist (not to mention having private health insurance through work), doesn't that just kill me?

The answer, of course, is both yes and no.

On the one hand, it is extremely galling having to pay twice for the service. It is especially galling when one considers that I would be right at the bottom of the NHS priority list for allocation to a dentist, being a single man with no dependents. And this despite the fact that I pay the same taxes as everyone else (as a percentage sum), or rather more than the average (as a raw numeric figure), and am a very low user of services (being a single man with no dependents, in full-time employment and in good health). One would have thought that, on principle, in those cases where I do need access to services, they really should be available.

(When it comes to allocation for a GP, I am rather higher on the priority list, working as I do in a high-stress sedentary occupation, being somewhat overweight, and with various elements in my family history that suggest that, statistically speaking, I died three years ago. As I mentioned in a earlier post that only Chris read, it is apparently the case that being married increases a man's life expectancy by some ten years, at the expense of his wife's life expectancy. Which is rather an impressive wedding present from her to him, I must say. Unfortunately, efforts to work this into my chat-up routine have thus far failed to bear fruit; I suspect I'm not phrasing it quite right...)

Anyway, on the other hand...

The NHS does not have an infinite pool of money available to it. With a growing and aging population, the strain on the system is evident, and will only become worse as time goes on. That being the case, a strong argument could be made that those who can afford private healthcare and private dentistry really should spend the money to avail themselves of these things, and thus reduce the burden on the public system.

Which is not to say I support the Tory notion of a few years back, that those who opt for private healthcare should therefore be able to recoup some of the costs from the NHS. This strikes me as rather defeating the purpose. And I dread the day when private health insurance becomes, effectively, a necessity of life, as it is in the US system. Sadly, I think that day is approaching.

(The only other fix I can see to the resourcing problems of the NHS is draconian methods towards those who represent an unreasonable burden on the system. To a certain extent, this already happens, in the form of extreme taxation on cigarettes. However, one could roll out a system whereby everyone has a certain credit in the system, which gets expended whenever you go in for 'preventable' incidents - including anything drug, alcohol, tobacco or obesity-related. Once the individual's credit runs out, they don't get treated. Of course, the problems with such a scheme are fairly obvious with only a slight analysis, and some of the outcomes are too monstrous to contemplate. So, I think I'm going to advocate "those who can afford not to overburden the system should not do so" as my solution of choice.)

Note to self: try not to think about politics; it's too depressing.

Thoughts, anyone?