[bullseyebarb]

How do you know what it actually costs in the U.K? The government decides how much it is going to dole out and doctors and hospitals have to try and deliver services as best they can with the amount allotted, regardless of what the reality on the ground may be. People are perfectly happy to shop around, compare prices and quality in every other area of the marketplace - but when it comes to healthcare.....well, for whatever reason, so many think that's a whole different thing. When the consumer is taken out of the mix, there is no competition and things don't work terribly well.