Some family doctors [in the USA] refuse to treat 'welfare' patients at all, because private patients are more lucrative.

Sadly, when I worked in the States, I witnessed that at first hand. If you want to make serious money in the UK, you get into property development. Over there, it's medicine. The family doctors all live in beautiful houses with fabulous cars in the drive, yet most won't issue so much as a prescription for antibiotics, if the patient is on state benefits.

You can get 'high' on practically any prescription drug under the sun from some doctors though (and local residents all know which ones); you can have happy pills, slimming pills, you name it, provided that you have the money to pay their fees.

People, whatever their income, live in fear of developing anything chronic and expensive to treat, because they know their insurance won't cover it. On top of the stress of a life-threatening illness, American families face serious financial worries as well. Just when you've reached the peak of your career, the children are financially independent and there's time to enjoy the fruits of your hard work, one can end up selling one's home to meet the medical bills.

As Michael Moore, the US filmmaker, tweeted after the bill's passage: the British parliament has just passed a bill 'reforming' their universal health service, so it could be more like ours. A sad day 4 Brits.