I live in Southern Italy.
Last week I accompanied my wife to see an orthopedic surgeon for a consultation. It only took about a week to get the appointment. However, normal wait-time for an OB/GYN is about three months; unless you are willing to pay.
The appointment was scheduled for 1500, so we arrived about 1430. The doctor offices were in a long corridor of one of the hospital wings. Specialties were listed on removable placards beside each door. The appointments run from 0800-1200 and then again from 1500 – 1800. The office space is shared between doctors, so one group arrives for the morning shift and then the next for the afternoon…hence the changeable nameplates.
There was no waiting room; just the hall and about twenty chairs, which quickly filled, leaving about half the patients standing. There was no central check-in, so people literally crowded near their respective doors, hoping to be the first served. As the plastic seats began to fill, I noticed two distinct groups of people. Those dressed casually like us, and about one quarter in business suits with brief cases.
At around 1500 the doctors and assistants began to file in. However, almost all of them went directly to an unmarked room. You could hear laughter and conversation, accompanied by the smell of fresh brewed espresso every time the door was opened. Two rooms were open for business at around 1515, the others sometime between 1530 and 1545. The first “patients” admitted into the rooms were the guys wearing suits. My wife informed me that they were drug company salesmen. I don’t think I need to elaborate further.
The ortho guy we were waiting for never showed and no one provided any explanation. We depated about 1615.
However, the most astonishing thing for me personally, was observing the attitude of the office assistance and doctors. It wasn’t distain, but damn close. The patients had absolutely no leverage. They basically had three options:
1) Accept it (which all seemed to do)
2) Complain (which amounts to complaining to the choir)
3) Go see and pay the same doctor in his/her private studio. Which will guarantee you a prompt appointment, good service, and treatment.
But if we look at the bright side, the sub-standard visit was at least cheap. Maybe.
The progressive income tax rate in Italy starts at about 23% near the poverty level and goes to 47% for those earning above 75,000 Euro a year.
We pay about 2.35 Euro/Liter, which equals about $8.50 a gallon, depending on the dollar/Euro exchange rate. 70% of the price of gas is tax:
http://www.italiensk.info/Economia/article.php?itemID=241
In addition to State (federal), Region (state), Province (county) and Municipal (city) taxes, there is also a nationwide VAT (sales) tax of about 20%, depending on the product.
Nearly, if not everything is taxed. The best illustration I can think of is the “Beware of Dog” tax.
Several years ago I wanted to get a Beware of Dog sign for our gate. My neighbor informed me that the sign was subject to an annual tax (not kidding). Needless to say, I don’t have the sign.
I am not advocating any medical program. Nor am I making a comparison to any other country that has socialized medicine. I’m only telling what I’ve seen and know firsthand to exist in this socialized model.