Michael Herman

Public healthcare here in 🇦🇹 Austria has become a joke. All medical facilities subsidised by public healthcare are fully booked multiple months in advance 🏥 My mom has been moderately sick for months and can't get her needed gastroscopy until May. Even after that she needs ongoing investigation that potentially requires further tests. Another multiple months of waiting again? That's just too long to wait when you're ill. Two years ago, my grandma had been fighting with her heart problems for over a year. She had an important appointment with a cardiologist. We lost her 2 months before the appointment was even due. Before anyone suggests 'just go private' – it's not that simple. In Austria, you pay high social security taxes expecting reliable public healthcare. Even private options sometimes have long waits. It's not just about finding a quick fix for one person; it's about fixing a system where everyone, regardless of their ability to go private, gets timely care. Growing up I always thought healthcare in Austria is great. How can it be “free”? Now I’m happy that I left Austria, have a global private health insurence that costs way less than social security tax and know that should I ever get sick and be able to I’d rather book a flight to any major city in Asia. There I’ll very likely get treated better and faster. /Rant over.