Free prescription glasses and dentist check-ups: US athletes make full use of Olympic healthcare
From smear tests to dental exams, eye tests to prescription glasses, rugby sevens player Ariana Ramsey is one of many US athletes making full use of the free healthcare services available to them at the Olympics.
“Like, what?”, Ms Ramsey said in her popular TikTok video, where she described the extensive healthcare options she can access for free while in Paris.
In the US, where there is no universal healthcare, these appointments can be extremely expensive, especially without private insurance.
Aside from medical care, athletes are offered an Olympic-edition Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6 phone, worth over £1,000, as well as postage stamps with their picture printed on them.
According to the Paris 2024 organising committee, the Olympic Village offers gynecology, dentistry, ophthalmology, cardiology, orthopedics, physiotherapy, psychology, podiatry and sports medicine. Dermatology is also available to Paralympic athletes.
The Village has offered athletes and their delegates free healthcare since the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
"America needs to do better with their health care system because there’s no way why me, an American girl, should be so amazed by free health care," Ms Ramsey said.
An initial consultation with a doctor in the US can cost between $100-$200 (£80-£160), and specialists could charge $250 (£200) or more.
Healthcare in the US is understood to have cost $4.8 trillion (£3.8 trillion) in 2023, according to recent federal data, outpacing the average GDP. Per person this amounts to around $14,000 (£11,000) in 2023 and is expected to rise to $15,000 (£12,000) in 2024.
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"I’m officially a free healthcare advocate,” Ms Ramsey said after her dentist appointment.
"This is gonna be my new fight for action: free healthcare in America. Period."
Ms Ramsey, who won a bronze medal with the US women’s rugby team last week, said healthcare workers in the Village have been thanking her for her positive messaging about their services.
Healthcare is one of the key issues being debated in the lead up to the US election. The Democrats have taken action to lower prescription drugs costs for the elderly, while the Republican Party has promised to replace the Affordable Care Act with "something better" - though no alternative has been detailed.
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