There has been a lot of discussion since Athens about foreign swimmers training in the United States. Most of them attend U.S. Universities, receive athletic scholarships, and compete at NCAA's. Some notable examples include Duje Draganja (Cal), Fred Bousquet and Kirsty Coventry (Auburn), Markus Rogan (Stanford), and the South African sprinters (Arizona). Some train in the U.S., but don't compete for a university (Inge de Bruijn). All of these athletes benefit from U.S. coaching, from training with U.S. swimmers, and in some cases, from financial support provided by U.S. entities (athletic scholarships). They all turn around and then win medals for other countries.
A couple questions: 1) What do you think about this arrangement generally? 2) Is it of benefit or detriment to U.S. swimming to have these foreign athletes training and competing here? 3) Should we be giving athletic scholarships, which are a scarce resource in swimming, to foreign athletes who will represent their own countries internationally instead of U.S.-born swimmers who will represent us internationally?
I'm sure there are other issues, but these come directly to mind.
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Former Member
Originally posted by geochuck
No waiting list in the USA but no one can afford an operation. If everyone who needed an operation were counted the lineups would be very long. I can see my doctor any time I want and don't pay.
Our hospital is a regional medical center serving several counties; patients are admitted and treated regardless of their financial status. Some months a sizable (30%) percentage of our practice's work is not reimbursed (ie we don't get paid for it). Some patients agree to pay $20/month, others never pay at all and their bill is written off as bad debt. These are patients who have undergone lifesaving procedures (angioplasty, bypass surgery, etc.) and received state of the art care. Yes, the system is flawed, but the indigent do receive care--just take a look at our books sometime.
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Former Member
Originally posted by geochuck
No waiting list in the USA but no one can afford an operation. If everyone who needed an operation were counted the lineups would be very long. I can see my doctor any time I want and don't pay.
Our hospital is a regional medical center serving several counties; patients are admitted and treated regardless of their financial status. Some months a sizable (30%) percentage of our practice's work is not reimbursed (ie we don't get paid for it). Some patients agree to pay $20/month, others never pay at all and their bill is written off as bad debt. These are patients who have undergone lifesaving procedures (angioplasty, bypass surgery, etc.) and received state of the art care. Yes, the system is flawed, but the indigent do receive care--just take a look at our books sometime.
