All language subtitles for Sicko.2007.PROPER.WEBRip.x264-ION10_English

[bright music]

[crowd applauding and cheering]

[George W. Bush]
We got issue in America.

Too many good docs are
getting out of business.

[crowd applauding and cheering]

Too many ob-gyns aren't
able to practice their love

with women all
across this country.

[crowd applauding and cheering]

[dramatic music]

[Adam] I don't have a job.

I don't wanna have
any more debt out

to anybody else I
already have out there.

I'm flushing the wound.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore]
This is Adam.

[dramatic music]

He had an accident.

[dramatic music]

He's one of nearly
50 million Americans

with no health insurance.

[dramatic music]

But this film isn't about Adam.

[bright music]

[Rick]
So, this is the table saw.

It was spinning that way.

[Michael Moore] This is Rick.

[bright music]

I was gripping a piece of wood,

I grabbed it here
and it hit a knot.

He sawed off the tops
of two of his fingers.

And it was that quick.

[bright music]

His first thought?

I don't have insurance, how
much this is gonna cost.

Am gonna have to
pay cash for this,

$ 2,000, $3,000 or more.

Does that mean we're
not gonna get a car?

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Rick also
doesn't have health coverage.

So, the hospital
gave him a choice.

Reattach the middle
finger for $60,000

or do the ring
finger for 12,000.

[Shatoya] It's an awful
feeling to just try

to put a value on your body.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Being a hopeles
romantic,

Rick chose the ring finger

for the bargain
price of 12 grand.

The top of his middle
finger now enjoys

its new home in an
Oregon landfill.

[dramatic music]

I can do that thing
where the old man used

to pull the finger off.

[Rick laughs]

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] This movie isnt
about Rick either.

Yes, there are nearly
50 million Americans

with no health insurance.

They pray every day
they don't get sick.

Because 18,000 of them
will die this year

simply because
they're uninsured.

[dramatic music]

But this movie isn't about the.

It's about the
250 million of you

who have health insurance.

Those of you who are
living the American Dream.

[dramatic music]

It's moving day for
Larry and Donna Smith.

They've packed everything
they own in these two cars.

And are driving to
Denver, Colorado

to their new home.

- Hi.
- Hello.

[indistinct chatter]

[Michael Moore] In their
daughter's storage room.

This is home, sweet home.

Look at all that stuff.

We'll get everything organized.

Yeah, we will, we will.

What do we do with the computer?

- It stays.
- It stays there.

So, this is where
Heather talked about

we might have to put bunk beds.

I see what she's talking about.

[Michael Moore] It wasn't
supposed to end up like this

for Larry and Donna.

They both had good jobs.

She was a newspaper editor

and he was a union machinist.

They raised six
kids who all went

to fine schools like the
University of Chicago.

But Larry had a heart attack

and then another one
and then another one.

And then Donna got cancer.

And even though they
had health insurance,

the copays and
deductibles soon added up

to the point where they
could no longer afford

to keep their home.

[Donna] If somebody told
me ten years ago

this was gonna happen to
us because of healthcare,

I would have said,
"It's not possible."

Not in the United States.

We wouldn't let that
happen to people."

- Are we gonna quit?
- No.

It's just hard.

[Donna sobs]

[Michael Moore] They were
bankrupt.

So, they moved in
with their daughter.

We'll get it all figured out.

[Heather] We emptied the dresser
so you have a spot.

Nice, very nice.

[Michael Moore] Even their son
Danny popped in

from across town to
welcome them to Denver.

[Danny] What do we do about
people like you, guys?

[Donna] I don't know, that's
a good question.

You're supposed to
pay a deductible

for $9,000, which I understand.

That's part of healthcare.

What about people
like Kathy and I

that have to come up there

and move you every five years,

every two years, every year

because you don't
have enough money

to stay where you're are?

[Larry] That's what Russell
keep says too.

I'm sorry, it's
not what we wanted

to have happen in life.

And we're doing what we
can to make the change.

You don't know what
that feels like inside

at 50-some years old
to have to reach out

to my 20-something-
year-old for help.

It's gonna be hard
for four, five, six,

seven months, it's
gonna be hard.

I have an overwhelming
feeling of you bring problems

with you no matter where you go.

But I don't know what
to do about that.

[kids crying]

[Michael Moore] By sheer
coincidence,

their daughter's husband, Paul

was leaving on a job the
very same day they arrived.

Paul was a contractor.

But there weren't
many jobs lately.

So, he found work out of town.

I'm sure you'll keep a
telephone conversation.

Email you.

[car engine revving]

[Donna] You're gonna be
just fine, lovies.

Weird situation, isn't it?

[Man] Can you tell me
where Daddy's going.

Iraq.

Why is daddy going to Iraq?

To do some plumbing.

[toilet flash]

[Frank] Oh, boy.

This I do early in the morning.

The first thing I
do is I clean here.

[Michael Moore] At age 79,
Frank Cardile

should be kicking back
on a beach somewhere.

But even though he's
insured by Medicare,

it doesn't cover all
the cost of the drugs

that he and his wife need.

Being that I'm an employee here,

my medicine is for free.

So, that's why I gotta
keep working until I die.

There is nothing
wrong with that.

I always gotta keep my ears open

because there's
always spillages.

Sometimes you get a gallon
of milk, tomato sauce,

oh, you're in trouble.

It'll take a half-hour
to clean that up.

And I look up on every aisle

so as everything is clean.

If I see something I pick it up,

whether it's paper or garbage.

One day I had the
keys in my hand

and they went in there.

And I had to climb in
there to get the keys out.

It's a sad situation.

If there are golden
years, I can't find them,

I'll tell you that.

She had a painkiller
for her hip.

The girl said,
"Frank, this is $213.

What, for a painkiller?"

[Fran] I didn't take it.

I backed off, I said,
"I gotta come back."

What's in them?

What's in these new drugs
that they distribute?

I don't believe you need half

of the things they tell you.

I have never taken
medication now,

as I'm getting older.

I don't even like
to take an aspirin.

I do like a little brandy.

[both laughing]

[Laura] I don't really know
how this happened,

but the trunk kind of came
forward into the back seat.

[Michael Moore] Laura Burnham
was 45 mile an hour

head-on collision that
knocked her out cold.

Paramedics got
her out of the car

and into an ambulance for
a trip to the hospital.

I get a bill from my
insurance company telling me

that the ambulance ride
was not gonna be paid for,

because it wasn't pre-approved.

I don't know exactly
when I was supposed

to pre-approve it.

After I gain
consciousness in the car

before I got in the ambulance?

Or I should have grabbed
my cellphone off the street

and called while I
was in the ambulance?

It's just crazy.

[bright music]

[Jason's Mom] I applied for
HealthNet insurance for Jason.

They rejected him because
of his height and weight.

Jason is six feet
tall and 130 pounds.

♪ That's how it's
like to be rejected ♪

[Amanda] I applied for
healthcare through BlueCross
BlueShield

and they told me that my
body mass index was too high.

I'm 5' 1 ", I weigh 175 pounds.

♪ That's how it's
like to be rejected ♪

[Michael Moore] I always thougt
the health insurance companies

were there to help us.

So, I posted a note
on the internet

asking people if they had
had any similar stories

about problems with
their insurance company.

[bright music]

Within 24 hours, I had
over 3,700 responses.

And by the end of the week,

over 25,000 people had sent me

their healthcare horror storie.

[dramatic music]

Some of them decided not to
wait for me to get back to the.

Like Doug Noe who took
matters into his own hands

without my permission.

His daughter, Annette
was nine months old

when they discovered
she was going deaf.

His health insurance
company, CIGNA,

said they'd pay for an implant
in only one of her ears.

According to the
letter they sent,

it's experimental for
her to hear in two ears.

[Doug] If a cochlear implant
is good for one ear,

it doesn't even make any sense

that it wouldn't be
good for the second ear,

especially when a
child is just starting

to learn how to talk,

she has to learn from
both sides of her head.

[Michael Moore]
That's when he sat down

to write CIGNA a letter.

This is to CIGNA.

"Noted filmmaker Michael Moore

is now in the process
of gathering information

for his next film.

I've sent along information
concerning CIGNA's

lack of caring for
its policy holders.

Has your CEO ever been
in a film before?"

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Before he
knew it.

he received a call
on his voice mail

from CIGNA headquarters.

[Phone message]
Tuesday, 8:54 am.

Obviously, all this
worked because Annette

is going to get her
second implant in July.

[Female Voice #1] "Dear Mike, I
work in the industry.

[Female Voice #2]
"I work for an HMO."

[Michael Moore] I started to gt
hundreds of letters

of a different sort from people

who work inside the
healthcare industry.

They'd seen everything

and they were fed up with it.

[Male Voice] "Health insurance
companies suck, flat suck. "

[Michael Moore] Like Becky
Malke,

who was in charge of
keeping sick people away

from one of America's
top insurance companies.

[Becky] I work in a call cente,
so people call in

and they're asking
for insurance quotes.

There are certain
preexisting conditions,

basically industry-wide
that will not be covered.

Diabetes, heart disease,

certain forms of cancer.

That if you have
these conditions,

you're most likely not going
to get your health insurance.

[Michael Moore] How long is
this list of conditions

that will make you ineligible?

It would be a really
long list, a long list.

It could wrap around this house.

[bright music]

Sometimes you know ahead of
time they're gonna be declined

at the end of the application

and they're like...

God, like one time
I had a couple

and they were so happy to get...

I'm gonna cry.

They were so happy
that they were...

I took them through
this application

and the husband
was late for work.

And the wife said to him,

"Don't worry, baby,
it's gonna be okay

because we have
health insurance now."

And when I looked at
the end of application,

I could tell they were
both gonna get declined

because of their
health conditions.

And they were so happy.

And I thought, "God,
they're gonna get

that phone call in a couple
of weeks telling them

that they're not
eligible for insurance."

And I just felt so bad
'cause I just really thought

and I knew and I couldn't
say anything to them.

I just felt like crap.

And that's why I'm such a
bitch on the phone to people,

'cause I don't wanna
get to know them,

I don't wanna know
about their lives,

I just wanna get in and
out and get done with it

'cause I can't take
the stress of it.

[Michael Moore] In spite of
Becky being

a bit of a pain on the phone.

A quarter billion
Americans are still able

to get health insurance.

[Advertisement] Every American
deserves affordable healthcare.

[indistinct]

Let's meet some of these
happy insured customers.

Maria has BlueShield and
Diane, Horizon BlueCross.

BCS insures Laurel and
Caroline has CIGNA.

And it's a good thing that
they're all fully covered.

[Laurel] I ended up being
diagnosed with retroperitoneal
cancer.

[Maria] Brain tumor.

[Caroline] Breast cancer.

[Diane] Brain tumor on the
right temporal lobe.

[Michael Moore] Because they
were insured,

they got the red
-carpet treatment at
the doctor's office.

[Maria] She requested for me
to see a neurologist.

[Diane] The way they were going
treat it was to remove it.

[Laurel] Surgery was scheduled
for December 9.

[Caroline] There is a test
that you can take

that will show whether or not

you actually would
benefit from chemo.

[Michael Moore] They got their
treatment,

but not before battling with
their insurance companies.

They were investigated
whether or not

this was a
preexisting condition.

It's not medically necessary.

They claim that
it's experimental.

We don't consider
that life-threatening.

[Michael Moore] Diane died from
her non life-threatening tumor.

Laurel's cancer is now
spread throughout her body.

Her experimental test proved
that Caroline needed chemo.

While vacationing in Japan,

Maria became ill and got
the MRI that BlueShield

of California had
refused to approve.

The doctors in Japan told her
that she had a brain tumor.

BlueShield had said repeatedly
she didn't have a tumor.

That's when she said,

"Well, I'm pretty
sure I have a lawyer."

[Lawyer] March 13, 2003.

I'm gonna direct your attention

to exhibit one.

Please describe
for me what it is.

[Hollinger] It is a denial
for referral

to an ophthalmologist.

Is it your signature
on document?

Yes.

[Lawyer] I'd like to direct yor
attention to exhibit two.

This is a denial of a
request for referral

for a magnetic
resonance imaging test

of the brain.

[Lawyer] It has your signature?

Yes.

[Lawyer] Dr., directing your
attention to exhibit three.

Please read this document.

This is a denial of a
referral to a neurosurgeon.

[Lawyer] Can you explain
for me how you came

to sign the denial letter?

[Hollinger] This is a standard
signature

that's put on all
denial letters.

[Lawyer] Is it your signature
or a stamp?

That is a stamp.

[Lawyer] Did you ever see a
denial letter

before your signature
was stamped on it?

No, but the denial letters
are fundamentally the same.

The denial letters
that are sent out...

[Lawyer] The answer is no.

No.

[Linda] The very definition of
a good medical director

was somebody who can
save the company money.

[Michael Moore] Dr. Linda Peeno
was a medical reviewer for
Humana.

She left her job
because she didn't like

their way of doing business.

[Linda] I was told when I
started

that I had to keep
a 10% denial.

Then they were giving us
reports on a weekly basis

that would have all
the cases we reviewed,

the percent approved
and the percent denied

and our actual
percentage denial rate.

And then there would
be another report

that compared me to all the
other medical reviewers.

The doctor with the
highest percent of denials

was actually gonna get a bonus.

[Michael Moore] Really?

So you, as a doctor,
working for the HMO,

if you denied more
people healthcare,

you got a bonus?

[Linda] That was the way they
had set the system up.

Any payment for a claim is
referred to as a medical loss.

That's the terminology
the industry uses.

When you don't spend
money on somebody,

you deny their care
or you make a decision

that brings money in and
you don't have to spend it,

it's a savings to the company.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] This is Tarsha
Harris.

BlueCross didn't deny
her her treatment.

And actually approved
her operation.

But then they discovered
that in the distant past,

she had had a yeast infection.

[dramatic music]

Apparently, it's common.

Men, women can get
a yeast infection.

So, I was prescribed the
yeast infection cream,

general cream and it went away.

[Heather] She later applied
for health insurance

and that's what you're supposed

to be disclosing
serious ailments.

The yeast infection
was independent

and it's not a serious ailment.

There was nothing else
she could have done.

It wasn't until
they were gonna have

to spend money that they looked.

If they'd taken five
minutes before hand

and wanted to clear up
the yeast infection,

they could've looked
at her medical records,

they could have
talked to her doctor.

[Michael Moore] Because of the
undisclosed yeast infection,

BlueCross dropped Tarsha Harri.

She thinks she's
put this behind her.

And then BlueCross
changes their mind,

tells the doctors, "We're
taking the money back,

go get the money from Tarsha."

The fact of the matter is

it was a yeast infection,
that's all it was.

I'm still a little bitter

because I don't trust
insurance companies now.

To me, it seems they're
always gonna be looking

for a way out.

What happened to helping
the person that's sick?

Don't make their problems worse.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] This is
Lee Einer.

If they weren't
able to weed you out

in the application process

or deny you the care your
doctor said you needed

and somehow ended up
paying for the operation,

they send in Lee, their hitman.

His job is to get the
company's money back

any way he can.

All he has to do
is find one slip-up

on your application

or a preexisting condition
you didn't know you had.

[Lee] We're gonna go after this
like it's a murder case.

[dramatic music]

And I mean my whole
unit dedicated

to going through
your health history

for the last five years
looking for anything

that would indicate that
you concealed something,

you misrepresented something,

so that they can
cancel the policy

or jack the rates so high
that you can't pay them.

And if we couldn't find anything

you didn't disclose
on the application,

you can still get hit
with a preexisting denial,

because you don't even have

to have sought medical
treatment for it.

In some states,
it's legal to have

what's called a prudent
person preexisting condition.

And that's a mouthful, I know,

but what that says is if prior

to your insurance kicking in,

you had any symptom
which would incline

a normally prudent person
to have sought medical care,

then the condition
of which that symptom

was a symptom is excluded.

I know, it's
labyrinthine, isn't it?

But that's how it works.

They're supposed to be
fair and even-handed,

but with an insurance company,

it's their frigging money!

So, it's not unintentional,

it's not a mistake,
it's not an oversight,

you're not slipping
through the cracks.

Somebody made that crack
and swept you towards it.

And the intent is
to maximize profits.

Looking back, I don't know
that I killed anybody.

Did I do harm in people's lives?

Yeah, hell, yeah.

I haven't worked for
insurance companies

for a long time

and I don't think
that really serves

to atone for my
participation in that mess.

I am glad I'm out of it, though.

[Michael Moore] Julie Pierce
was struggling

to get care for
her husband Tracy

who was suffering
from kidney cancer.

Julie works in the
intensive care unit

at St. Joseph's Medical Center
in Kansas City, Missouri,

which provided her family
with health insurance.

[Julie] Every month, there
was a new drug

that the doctor wanted to try.

My insurance denied it.

One letter might say,
"Not a medical necessity,"

one letter might say,

"It's not for this
particular type of cancer,"

and they denied it.

Then we came up with
the bone marrow.

It has showed to stop it,

sometimes to completely
get rid of it.

[Michael Moore] Tracy's doctors
said that this treatment

had been successfully tried
on many other patients.

If one of Tracy's
brothers turned out

to be a suitable donor,

there were promising
bone marrow treatments

for beating Tracy's cancer.

[Julie] Two weeks later, the
bone marrow nurse at KU called

me and she goes: "We've
got the results back.

His youngest brother is
a perfect donor match."

We were ecstatic.

I think that's the happiest
I had seen him in a while.

So, we submitted it
and they denied it.

Said it was experimental.

So, I found out that there
is a board of trustees

over our medical plan that
actually work at my hospital.

And they are the
final decision-makers

on what gets approved and
what doesn't get approved.

[Michael Moore] Julie and her
husband

and their son, Tracy
Junior demanded a meeting

with the health plan's
board of trustees.

The very people
who had the power

to approve their claim.

They told Julie that they were
sympathetic to her situation.

[Julie] I said, "Your sympathy
does me no good

when I'm burying him next year."

And I told them,
I said if I was...

Bruce van Cleve was our CEO.

I said, "I bet if it was
Bruce van Cleve's wife,

it would get approved."

"No, it's nothing like that,
it's nothing like that."

I said, "Or maybe if
my husband was white."

And I got up and
walked out of the room.

When we got home, I found
him up in the bathroom.

And I knocked on
the door and said,

"What are you doing in there?"

[emotional music]

"Nothing."

And I opened the door
because usually he'll say,

"What do you think
I'm doing in here?"

And he was sitting in
there and he was crying.

And he said, "Why me?

I'm a good person."

And I said, "But we're
not done fighting this.

We're strong, yeah."

And then he said,
"You know," he goes,

"I can see now that
I'm gonna die."

He said that, "I can leave
everything in the world,

but I don't wanna
leave you and Tracy."

[emotional music]

The doctor told me he
would die in three weeks.

And on January 13th,
which was my birthday,

he went to sleep.

[emotional music]

And he died five days
later, here at home.

He was my best friend.

He was my soul mate.

He was my son's father.

[emotional music]

We were to grow old together.

[emotional music]

They took away
everything that matters.

I wanna know why,
why my husband?

Why wasn't he given
the chance to live?

You preach these
vision and values

that we care for the
sick, the dying, the poor,

that we're a healthcare
that leaves no one behind.

You left him behind.

You didn't even
give him a start.

It was as if he was nothing.

And I want them to have
a conscience about it.

And I don't think they do.

I don't think it has fazed
them one bit, at all.

[Michael Moore] There was one
person

in the healthcare industry
who did have a conscience,

Dr. Linda Peeno,

A former medical
reviewer at Humana.

[Linda] My name is Linda Peeno.

I am here today to make
a public confession.

In the spring of
1987, as a physician,

I denied a man a
necessary operation

that would have saved his life

and thus caused his death.

No person and no group has
held me accountable for this,

because, in fact,
what I did was I saved

the company a half a
million dollars for this.

And furthermore,
this particular act

secured my reputation as
a good medical director

and it ensured my
continued advancement

in the healthcare field.

I went from making a few
hundred dollars a week

as a medical reviewer

to an escalating
six-figure income

as a physician executive.

In all my work, I
had one primary duty

and that was to use
my medical expertise

for the financial benefit
of the organization

for which I worked.

And I was told repeatedly
that I was not denying care,

I was simply denying payment.

I know how managed care
maims and kills patients.

So, I'm here to tell you about

the dirty work of managed care.

And I'm haunted by the
thousands of pieces of paper

on which I have written
that deadly word, denied.

Thank you.

[emotional music]

[Michael Moore] How did we get
to the point of doctors

at health insurance companies
actually being responsible

for the deaths of patients?

[emotional music]

Who invented this system?

[emotional music]

How did this all begin?

[emotional music]

Where did the HMO start?

[emotional music]

Thanks to the wonders of
magnetic tape, we know.

[dramatic music]

[Nixon] I am proposing today

a new national health strategy.

The purpose of this
program is simply this,

I want America to have the
finest healthcare in the world

and I want every
American to be able

to have that care
when he needs it.

[Michael Moore] The plan
hatched between Nixon

and Edgar Kaiser worked.

In the ensuing years,

patients were given
less and less care.

[Journalist #1] Bigger logjams
at the nearby hospital

and less quality medical care.

Been here about 18 hours,

since 7:00 this morning.

What looks cramped

and unsightly can
also be dangerous.

[Michael Moore] While health
insurance companies became
wealthy,

the system was broken.

[TV Reporter] 37 million
Americans are without protectin

against catastrophic illness.

[Journalist #2] The losers are
the poor

who may now postpone
urgently needed healthcare

until it's too late.

[Michael Moore] This went on
for years,

until this man rode into town.

Bringing with him
his little lady.

♪ I know a place

♪ I'll take you there

♪ Ain't nobody crying
Sassy.

♪ I'll take you there

Smart

♪ Help me now

♪ I'll take you there

Sexy.

♪ I'll take you there

Some men couldn't handle it.

[Bill Clinton] Today I am
announcing the formation

of the President's Task Force

on National Health Reform,

chaired by the First Lady,
Hillary Rodham Clinton.

[Michael Moore] Hillary Rodham
Clinton decided

to make healthcare for
everyone her top priority.

[Hillary Clinton] Universal
coverage now.

It will not depend upon where
you work, whether you work

or whether you have a
preexisting condition.

Healthcare that can
never be taken away.

[Female Journalist] Some
Republicans complain

Mrs. Clinton is
getting a free ride

because she's the
president's wife.

[Bob Dole] It's fairly risky
business, I believe

what President Clinton did,

to put his wife in charge
of some big policy program.

[Dick Armey] And while I don't
share the chairman's joy

at our holding hearings

on a government-run
healthcare system,

I do share his intention
to make the debate

and the legislative process
as exciting as possible.

[Hillary Clinton] I'm sure you
will do that, Mr. Armey.

[Hillary laughs]

We'll do the best we can.

You and Dr. Kevorkian, I think.

[Armey laughs]

I have been told about
your charm and wit,

and let me say,

reports on your
charm are overstated

and reports on your
wit are understated.

Thank you, thank you very much.

[Michael Moore] She drove
Washington insane.

[Politician] Do you really want
the federal government

to control your healthcare?

[Politician] You won't have
the choice of your own doctors.

[Politician] Less government
mandates.

- Less government.
- [Bob Dole] More government
control.

More government.

And less control for
you and your family.

[Phil Graham] When your mama
gets sick,

she might talk to a bureaucrat
instead of a doctor.

[Newt Gingrich] This is a total
mess and it's about to get
messier.

[Robert Novak] Not this big
bureaucratic,

socialistic plan that they have.

[Pat Buchanan] Socialist
takeover...

[Politician] Socialized
medicine.

[Politician] What really amounts
to a giant social experiment.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Socialized
medicine.

Nothing put more fear in us

than the thought of that.

And the chief fear mongers
against socialized medicine

have always been
the good doctors

of the American
Medical Association.

[Dr. Edward Annis] This would
put the government smack

into your hospital.

Defining services,
setting standards,

establishing committees,

calling for reports,

deciding who gets
in and who gets out.

After all, the
government has to treat

everyone fair and
equal, don't you know?

Take us all the
way down the road

to a new system of
medicine for everybody.

[Michael Moore] Yes, medicine
for everyone.

[dramatic music]

The AMA didn't want that.

And to drive the
point home further,

they held thousands
of coffeeklatsches

all over the country where
they invited their neighbors

to come and listen to a record

made by a well-known actor

on the evils of
socialized medicine.

[Ronald Reagan] My name is
Ronald Reagan.

One of the traditional
methods of imposing

statism or socialism
on a people has been

by way of medicine.

The doctor begins
to lose freedoms.

It's like telling a lie
and one leads to another.

A doctor decides he wants
to practice in one town

and the government
has says to him,

"You can't live in that town.

They already have
enough doctors.

You have to go someplace else."

All of us can see what
happens once you establish

the precedent that the
government can determine

a man's working place
and his working methods.

And behind it will come
other federal programs

that will invade
every area of freedom

as we have known
it in this country.

Until one day, we
will awake to find

that we have socialism.

[dramatic music]

[Protestor] Yeah! Burn baby
burn!

[Connie Chung] The White House
said today it's time

to tone down the
rhetoric reacting

to the burning an effigy
of Hillary Rodham Clinton.

[Michael Moore] The times may
have changed,

but the scare tactics hadn't.

The healthcare industries spent

over a hundred million dollars

to defeat Hillary's
healthcare plan.

And they succeeded.

And I want now to introduce
to you the president,

because he loves
the Easter egg roll.

[Michael Moore] For the next
seven years in the White House,

she wasn't allowed
to bring it up again.

Is anybody here older than two?

[Michael Moore] A decade and a
half went by

and still America had no
universal health plan.

The United States
slipped to number 37

in healthcare around the world.

Just slightly ahead
of Slovenia.

[men speaking in
foreign language]

But that's understandable,

because Congress was
busy with other matters.

[Congressman] Mr. Speaker, today
I rise to offer congratulations

to the confectioners at
Just Born Incorporated,

as they celebrate
the 50th anniversary

of one of their most recognized

and celebrated products,

not to mention my
daughter's favorite,

Marshmallow Peeps.

[Michael Moore] And thus,
the healthcare industry

went unchecked into
the early 21st century.

[Stock Analyst] Humana more
than doubles its fourth quarter
profit,

lifts its earnings outlook
for the year as well.

[Stock Analyst #2] United Health
has tripled its share prices.

[Michael Moore] Making obscene
profits.

Had to beat their estimates.

[News Anchor] ] Better than
expected earnings.

[News Anchor #2] There's a lot
of wealthy shareholders

out there right now,

are they willing to share
some of that wealth?

[Michael Moore] Turning their
CEOs into billionaires.

And skirting the law
whenever they wanted.

[dramatic music]

But their biggest accomplishmet

was buying our United
States Congress.

[Journalist] This is Washington
at work.

Lobbying has become so brazen,

the money is being collected...

With four times as many
healthcare lobbyists

than there are
members of Congress.

They even managed
to buy off old foes.

For her silence,
Hillary was rewarded.

And she became the
second largest recipient

in the Senate of healthcare
industry contributions.

[dramatic music]

[Politician] We've given the
entire healthcare system

over to the insurance industry.

And they have total control.

[Michael Moore] Well,
not total control.

The drug companies like to buy

their members of Congress too.

Here's what it costs
to buy these men

and this woman.

[audience applauding]

This guy and this
guy and him too.

[Loudspeaker] Ladies and
gentlemen,

the President of
the United States.

[Michael Moore] And the biggest
check was saved for last.

[dramatic music]

Why did they hand
out all this cash?

They wanted a bill passed,

a bill to help seniors
with their prescriptions.

[Billy Tauzin] Let there be
no mistake about it.

Republicans love their mothers

and their fathers and
their grandparents

as much as anybody
else on this hill

and we're gonna take care
of them in this country.

[crowd cheering]

[Michael Moore] Of course,
it was really a bill

to hand over 800 billion
of our tax dollars

to the drug and health
insurance industry.

By letting the drug
companies charge

whatever they wanted.

And making the private
health insurance

companies the middleman.

Everybody was going
to get their cut.

And the man they appointed
to get the job done

was congressman Billy Tauzin.

He was the right man for
the job

because he had a secret weapon.

[Billy Tauzin] There's no one in
this house loves their mother

more than I love my mother.

I challenge you on that, sir.

Nobody in this body that
loves their mother any more

or any less than any one of us.

[dramatic music]

I love that woman.

Do you think for a second
you love your moms and dads

any more than we love ours?

Do you think Republicans and
Democrats who will vote...

Do you really believe
that, Mr. Stoddard?

[Stoddard] Yes!

God bless you.

[Michael Moore] Oh, they all
loved their mothers.

It's just that they didn't
love our mothers as much.

[audience applauding]

Now I'm honored
and pleased to sign

this historic piece
of legislation,

the Medicare Prescription
Drug Improvement

and Modernization Act of 2003.

[audience applauding]

[Michael Moore] What they didnt
tell us was

that the elderly could
end up paying more

for their prescriptions
than they did before.

Over two thirds
of senior citizens

could still pay
over $2,000 a year.

And when it was all over,

14 congressional aids
who worked on the bill

quit their jobs on the Hill

and went to work for
the healthcare industry.

As did one congressman.

♪ 'Cause I've got
a golden ticket ♪

Billy Tauzin left Congress
to become the CEO of PhRMA,

the drug industry lobby

for a salary of
$2 million a year.

Oh, It was a happy
day in Washington.

And many Americans knew
they were never going

to see universal healthcare.

And that's why some
of them decided

to look elsewhere for help.

[Adrian] We're driving across
the Detroit river.

Back there is the
Renaissance Center,

you can see the
Renaissance Center,

General Motors' headquarters,

downtown Detroit, the skyline.

You get a really nice view
from driving over the bridge.

[Michael Moore] This is
Adrian Campbell.

A single mother,

who at the age of 22
came down with cancer.

I got cervical cancer

and I was denied through
the insurance company.

They said, "We're
not paying for it

because you're 22
and you don't have...

You shouldn't be
having cervical cancer.

You're too young."

[Michael Moore] Forced into
debt, but now cancer free.

Adrian was fed up

with the American
healthcare system.

She had a new plan.

[Adrian] I have everything reay

before I even hit the border.

I got my passports ready,

I got my money out.

It's $3.25 to get
across one way.

And I got everything
just sitting up here

on my visor just ready to go.

Aurora, be very quiet.

- [Border Guard] Citizenships?
- US.

Where do you live?
I live in Michigan.

- That's not on, right?
- No.

[Michael Moore] She may
live in Michigan,

but ten blocks
across the border,

Adrian becomes a Canadian.

[Clinic Lady] How long have you
been living here?

Three months?

A couple.

But I haven't applied
for the OHIP card yet

'cause I still have mine.

It takes ten minutes.

That's fine, I don't mind.

Okay, thank you.

I put down Kyle's
address at the clinic

and when they ask what
my relationship is,

I put down that I was
his common-law partner.

I don't like to lie
and I don't like liars.

It's little white
lies, but it's...

I'm saving the money.

[Kyle] You don't have to
bring a checkbook

when you go to
the hospital here.

It's provided to us.

It's something you don't
have to worry about,

you don't have to go
out of your way to get.

Stress free.

[dramatic music]

They're calling the cops.

[Michael Moore] The presence of
our camera crew

had alerted the clinic
that something was up.

And I don't think I'm
gonna get seen now.

So, I have another idea.

I'm gonna go down
to the other clinic.

There is a clinic down
one that we passed.

The police showed up over there.

Look.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Yes, what
Adrian was doing was illegal.

But we're Americans.

We go into other
countries when we need to.

It's tricky, but it's allowed.

[dramatic music]

[Kyle] It's kind of
frustrating having...

Just get married and
that'd solve everything,

she'd be covered automatically.

Americans marry Canadians
just for the healthcare!

I'm being used.

[Michael Moore] Sounds like a
good idea.

See if it works.

Start something, start a trend.

[Bill O'Reilly] In Canada they
give everybody free healthcare,

doesn't it work up there?

[Sally Pipes] Well, no,
unfortunately it doesn't.

[Steve forbes] We wait months
to get treatment

you can get in a week
or a few days here.

[Newscaster] In Canada you have
to wait 9 to 10 months

for bypass surgery.

[Newscaster #2] Many
Canadians believe

it's the healthcare system
itself that's truly sick.

[Newscaster #3] They pay
their doctors less.

[Newscaster #4] A surgeon can
only do a certain number

of operations each year.

With only so many expensive
new pieces of equipment.

[John Emling] It's easier for
your cat or dog

to receive an MRI
here in America.

[TV Personality] You die of
cancer waiting for chemo

'cause all of Ottawa
has one chemo machine.

[George Bush Sr.] And if you
think socialized medicine is a

good idea, ask a Canadian.

[Michael Moore] So, I thought
who better to ask

than my Canadian
relatives, Bob and Estelle.

But they wouldn't cross
the border into America.

They wanted me to meet
them at Sears in Canada.

What are you guys doing here?

[Estelle÷} We're buying
insurance,

we're going over to the states.

[Bob] We're going to the
states to see you.

[Michael Moore] That's just
across the river.

- Yeah.
- Yeah.

[Michael Moore] You wouldn't go
over to see us over in Michigan

for a couple of hours
without insurance?

No, we wouldn't.

We're just adamant about it.

We would not do it.

If somebody punches us in
the mouth or something,

something like that...

[Michael Moore] You don't
wanna get caught in the

- American health system thing?
- That's right.

We have nothing against
Americans or America

or anything like that at all.

[Michael Moore] We're a nice
and simple people.

Not very simple, but
certainly very nice.

[Michael Moore] I decided to
explore

their anti-American
views further

over some fine
Canadian cuisine.

We have a friend
who went to Hawaii

and he sustained a head
injury while he was there.

And before he was well
enough to come home,

he had chalked up a
bill of over $600,000.

So, what middle-class
Canadian could absorb that?

[Michael Moore] I guess I feel
bad that you would have

to worry about
something like that.

We're not criticizing
your country,

we're just giving you the facts,

that we could not afford
to be without insurance.

[Michael Moore] Even for a day?

Even for a day.

[Michael Moore] To prove their
point even further,

they sent me over to
a local golf course

to talk to Larry Godfrey

who had a golfing accident
while on vacation in Florida.

[Larry] I could hear a noise
and feel a pain

and the tendon snapped
off this bone here

that holds the bicep in place.

So, this bicep muscle was
released like on an elastic

and it ended up
here on my chest.

The muscle came up
right on your arm

and ended up in your chest?

Ended up right here.

[Michael Moore] Like all good
golfers.

Larry finished his round before
seeking medical attention.

That's when he got the bad new.

I wasn't too worried

because I had out-of-
country insurance,

but when he told me it was
23 or 24,000, then I...

24,000?

Dollars, yes.

So, if you'd stayed
in the United States,

this would have
cost you $ 24,000?

$24,000, yes.

Instead, you went back to Canada

and Canada paid
your total expenses?

Everything.

- Paid for the operation.
- Yes.

- And it cost you?
- Nothing.

- Zero.
- Zero.

Zero.

I'm wondering why you expect
your fellow Canadians,

who don't have your problem,

why should they, through
their tax dollars,

have to pay for a
problem you have?

Because we would do
the same for them.

It's just the way
it's always been

and it's the way we
hope it'll always be.

Right, but if you just had
to pay for your problem

and don't pay for
everybody else's problem,

just take care of yourself?

Well, there are a lot of people

who aren't in a position
to be able to do that.

And somebody has
to look after them.

Are you a member of the
Socialist Party here?

No, no.

Green Party?

No.

Well, actually, I'm a member
of the Conservative Party.

Is that bad?

Well, it's just a
little confusing.

Well, it shouldn't be.

I think that where medical
matters are concerned,

it wouldn't matter in Canada

what party you were
affiliated with, if any.

But, to us, as we look
across the river here,

why don't you think
we don't believe that?

What's wrong on
this issue with us?

I guess the powers that
be don't share our beliefs

that healthcare ought
to be universal.

Canadians didn't until we met up

with a guy named Tommy Douglas,

who pretty much changed
everyone's mind.

One guy?

One guy, yeah.

One guy did it.

Can he come over and visit us?

He's dead, unfortunately.

In fact, he's just most
recently been revered

as Canada's singular
most important person.

We think so much of...

You mean in your history?

- In our history.
- In your whole history?

In our whole history

More than your first
prime minister?

Absolutely, yeah.

Even more than Wayne Gretzky.

- No way!
- Absolutely.

More than Celine Dion?

Great singer, more
than Celine, yeah.

More than Rocky and Bullwinkle?

Maybe.

[Brad] As the blade went
through,

it caught the
glove I was wearing

and it sliced through the
entire group of fingers

and completely taking them off.

And I realized that I
needed help immediately.

[Doctor Richards] Well,
obviously, putting on amputated

fingers or arms or limbs is one
of the more dramatic things

that we can do.

If you're looking
at five fingers,

you're potentially looking
at a 24-hour operation.

There actually
was four surgeons,

as well as all the nurses,

two different
anesthetists to carry out

an operation of that magnitude.

When somebody like
Brad came in,

we didn't have to
worry about whether

or not he could afford it.

He needed help, he needed
a great deal of help

and we could just
concentrate on finding

the best way to
bring him through it.

[Michael Moore] I met this
American,

he'd cut off the ends of two
of his fingers with a saw.

So, when he arrived
at the hospital,

they told him one finger's
gonna cost around $60,000

and the other one
was gonna be $12,000.

He had to choose which
finger he could afford.

Down, bend the long finger down.

We've never told someone

that they couldn't
put a finger back on

because the system
wouldn't allow it.

I'm very glad I
work within a system

that allows me the freedom
to look after people

and not have to make
choices like that.

[Michael Moore] It seems nothig
we were told

about the Canadian
system was true.

Maybe I was just in
the wrong part of town.

So, I went across the city

to a crowded hospital
waiting room.

How long did you have to
wait here to get help?

- 20 minutes.
- 20 minutes.

45 minutes.

I got helped right away.

You can see how crowded this is.

They really do an amazing job.

[Michael Moore] Did you have to
get anyone's permission

to come to this hospital?

No.

- No.
- No.

We can go anywhere we want.

[Michael Moore] You don't have
to get it pre-approved

by your insurance company?

Oh, heavens, no.

[Michael Moore] Can you choose
your own doctor?

Oh, yes.

[Michael Moore] What's your
deductible?

Nothing.

I don't think we have any.

I don't know.

I don't think there's
any as far as I know.

[Michael Moore] So, what did
this cost?

Nothing.

We know in America people
pay for their healthcare,

but I guess we don't
understand that concept,

'cause we don't have
to deal with that.

And we're dealing
with Parkinson's,

stroke, heart attack.

We're very, very
lucky, really we are.

We complain, people
complain about everything.

Right.

[Michael Moore] Right, you're
Canadian.

But on the whole,it's really a
fabulous system

for making sure
that the least of us

and the best of us
are taken care of.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] It turns out
that Canadians

live three years
longer than we do.

[dramatic music]

That's not hard to believe

when you meet fellow
Americans like Erik.

♪ Oh, England, here we go

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Erik Turnbow
of Olympia, Washington

saved up his whole life

so that he could visit the famd

Abbey Road crosswalk in London.

[dramatic music]

But it wasn't enough for
Erik to just walk across

the road like The Beatles did.

He had to do it his
own special way.

[Erik's Friend] Here's Erik,
about to walk

on his hands across Abbey Road.

Ready?

Try it again.

- Are you in pain?
- Yeah.

[Michael Moore] The
British hospital

didn't charge Erik
anything for his stay.

And only about ten bucks

for all the way-cool
drugs they gave him.

[Erik's Friend] You're
all slung up.

I'm gonna be OK.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] I decided to go
to Great Britain

to find out how a hospital
stay could be free

and drugs could cost only $10.

[bright music]

If I come in here and
I have a prescription

and it requires 30
pills, how much is that?

It's £6.65, that's
the standard charge.

£6.65?

So, that's what?

$10 or so?

Yes.

What if I needed 60
pills, how much is it?

Same charge.

120 pills?

£6.65 still.

It doesn't matter
how many pills?

No.

What if it's an HIV
drug or a cancer drug?

It's still £6.65.

If they are under 16 or over 60,

they're automatically exempt.

So, only a working adult

who earns enough
money pays the £6.65?

And everybody else gets
the medication for free?

That's right.

No money being exchanged here?

No, nothing.

There's no money
being exchanged?

I'm over 60, we don't pay.

What's the purpose
of the cash register?

I'm just wondering
where's the bread

and the milk and
the candy in here?

I can't pick up any
laundry detergent here?

No, I haven't been trained
for that many years

to be selling detergents, so no.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] I next went to
a state-run hospital,

operated by the
National Health Service.

[Holly] I'm due in seven weeks

and I get six months off, paid.

And then I can have six
months off unpaid as well,

so I'm actually taking a year.

[Michael Moore] Well, that
sounds like a luxury where I'm
from.

Oh, really, it's not
like that in the US?

No, not at all, no?

[Michael Moore] So, what do you
pay for a stay here?

No one pays.

[laughs]

They were asking
how do people pay

and I said, "Well, there isn't,

- You don't, you just leave."
- It's national insurance.

There's no bill at the
end of it, as it were.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Even with
insurance there's bound

to be a bill somewhere.

So, where's the
billing department?

[Holly] There isn't a
billing department.

No, there's no such
thing as billing...

[Michael Moore] What did they
charge for that baby?

Sorry?

You gotta pay before
you can get out?

- No.
- No, no,

- everything is on NHS.
- This is NHS.

- No, you don't.
- It's not America.

[both laughing]

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] Maybe I'd
have better luck

in the part of the hospital

where things can get
seriously expensive.

[bright music]

This guy broke his ankle.

How much will this cost him?

[X-Ray Tech.] Sorry?

[Michael Moore] The emergency
room visit.

He'll have some huge bill
when he's done, right?

[X-Rat Tech.] Here, NHS,
everything is free.

I'm asking about
hospital charges

and you're laughing at me.

Because I was never
asked this question

in the emergency
department, that's why.

[dramatic music]

I was starting to fall

for this everything is free bit

and then I discovered this.

So, this is where people
come to pay their bill

when they're done
staying in the hospital?

[Cashier] No, this is the
NHS hospital,

so you don't pay the bill.

You get to just go home?

Why does it say cashier here

if people don't
have to pay a bill?

[bright music]

[Holly] What we have is a litte
man

who stands behind a counter

and he gives people money

if they've had to
pay for transport.

[Hospital Employee] Those who
have reduced means

get their travel
expenses reimbursed.

Thank you.

[Michael Moore] So, in British
hospitals,

instead of money going
into the cashier's window,

money comes out.

The criteria for letting you out

of the hospital are not...

If you've paid your
bill, the criteria are,

are you fit to go and are
you going somewhere safe?

[Moore V.O.] ] Clearly, I was
just the butt of a joke here.

[laughs]

[dramatic music]

What I needed was a good
old-fashioned American

who would have
some understanding.

[American Mom] When I first
came to London in 1992.

And we just ended up staying

and we had three children here.

Well, I had them all on the NHS,

which is the British
National Health Service.

I think like a lot of Americans,

assumed that a
socialized medicine

was just bottom of
the rung treatment,

that's the only possible way
would be dingy and horrible

and it would be like
the Soviet Union.

That's kind of how...

And it's terrible that
that's what I thought.

[Michael Moore] That's what I
thought too.

After having a baby,

it's right back to
the wheat fields.

[singing in foreign language]

And then it occurred to me
that back home in America,

we've socialized
a lot of things.

[singing in foreign language]

I kind of like having
a police department

and fire department
and the library.

And I got to wondering,

why don't we have more of
these free socialized things,

like healthcare?

When did this whole idea
that every British citizen

should have a right
to healthcare?

[Tony Benn] Well, if you go
back, it all began with
democracy.

Before we had the vote,

all the power was in the
hands of rich people.

If you had money, you could
get healthcare, education,

look after yourself
when you were old.

And what democracy did was
to give the poor the vote.

And it moved power
from the marketplace

to the polling station,

from the wallet to the ballot.

And what people said
was very simple.

They said, "In the 1930s,
we had mass unemployment.

But we don't have
unemployment during the war.

If you can have full
employment by killing Germans,

why can't we have
full employment

by building hospitals,
building schools,

recruiting nurses,
recruiting teachers?"

If you can find
money to kill people,

you can find money
to help people.

Right.

This leaflet that was issued,

very, very straightforward.

- What year was this?
- This was 1948.

"Your new National
Health Service

begins on the 5th of July."

What is it?

How do you get it?

"It will provide you
with all medical,

dental and nursing care.

Everyone, rich or poor,
man, woman or child,

can use it or any part of it.

There are no charges,

except for a few special items.

There is no insurance
qualifications,

but it is not a charity.

You are paying for it
mainly as taxpayers

and it will relieve
your money worries

in times of illness."

Now, somehow, the few words
sum the whole thing up.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] I was amazed
when he said

this all started in 1948.

The British had just
come out of a devastating

experience through
World War II.

The country was destroyed
and nearly bankrupt.

They had nothing.

In just one eight-month period,

over 42,000 civilians
lost their lives.

What we went through
in two hours on 911,

they went through
nearly every single day.

Remember how we
all felt after 911?

All of us pulling together?

I guess that's how they felt.

And the first way
that they decided

to pull together after the war

was to provide free
medical care for everyone.

[Tony Benn] Even Mrs. Thatcher
said,

"The National Health Service
is safe in our hands."

It's as non-controversial
as votes for women.

Nobody could come along and sa,

"Why should women
have the vote?"

Now because people
wouldn't have it

and they wouldn't in Britain.

They wouldn't accept
the deterioration

or destruction of the
National Health Service.

[Michael Moore] If Thatcher or
Blair said,

"I'm going to dismantle
national healthcare..."

There would have
been a revolution.

[bright music]

♪ Everywhere I hear the
sound of marching, ♪

♪ Charging feet, boy

[Charles Sabine] A report from
the American Medical Associatin

into the health of
55 to 64 year-olds,

says Brits are far
healthier than Americans.

[Sir Michael Marmot] For every
illness that we looked at,

Americans had more
of it than English.

[Charles Sabine] Cancer, heart
disease, hypertension,

strokes, lung disease,

all significantly
higher for Americans.

Even the poorest
people in England

with all the
environmental factors

that give them the worst
health in the country

can expect to live longer

than the wealthiest
people in America.

♪ Hey, think the time is right

♪ For a palace revolution

[Michael Moore] I was
wondering, though,

what's it like for the
doctors here in Britain

who have to live under
this kind of state control?

And you're a family doctor?

[Dr. Tariq Hussain] Yeah, I
suppose we'd call them GPs

or general practitioners here.

Right, so you have
a family practice?

Yeah, it's an NHS practice.

We have nine doctors
within that practice.

You're paid for
by the government?

Paid for by the government.

So, you work

for the government?
Oh, yeah.

You're a government-paid doctor.

Absolutely.
A patient comes to you,

before you treat them,
do you have to call

the government insurance
company before you treat them?

No, I don't deal
with money at all

on an everyday basis.

Have you ever had to say no

to someone who was
sick and needed help?

No, never.

Have you heard of anyone
being in the hospital

and being removed

because they couldn't
pay their bill?

No, never.

And I wouldn't wanna
work in that system.

So, working for the government,

you probably have to
use public transport?

No, I have a car that I use

and I drive to work.
- An old beater?

[dramatic music]

You live in kinda a
rough part of town?

I live in a terrific
part of town.

It's called Greenwich.

[bright music]

It's a lovely house.

It's a three-story house.

How many other families
have to live with you?

There's four bedrooms.

My wife and my son.

It's just the three of us ther.

How much did you pay for that?

£550,000.

So, a million dollars?

Yeah.

You're a government-paid doctor

on a national health
insurance healthcare plan here

and you live in a
million-dollar home?

Yes.

[bright music]

I think probably my friends
think we do quite well.

Really, how well do you do?

I earn around 85,000,
including pension.

- £85,000?
- £85,000 a year.

And that includes pension

that they would pay in to me.

They probably earn just over
£100,000 within my practice.

£100,000, so that's
almost $200,000?

Yes, absolutely.

The money that we earn,

we get paid by what we do.

So, the better we
do for our patients,

then the more we get paid.

What do you mean?

There's a new system.

And in that new system,
if the most number

of your patients have
low blood pressures

or you get most of your
patients to stop smoking

or you get your
patients to have things

like mental health
reviews if they're unwell

or low cholesterol's,
then you get paid more.

This year, if you
get more people

that are your patients
to stop smoking,

you'll get more money,

you'll earn more?

Oh, yeah, absolutely.

So, doctors in America
do not necessarily have

to fear having a
universal healthcare?

No, I think if you want to have

two or three million
dollar homes

and four or five nice cars

and six or seven
nice televisions,

then maybe, yeah, you
need to practice somewhere

where you can earn that.

But I think we live
comfortably here.

London is an expensive city,

but I think we live
very comfortably.

And you're getting by okay
on the million-dollar home,

the Audi and the flat-screen TV?

Yeah, we're coping with those.

[Tony Benn] I think democracy is
the most revolutionary thing

in the world.

Far more revolutionary
than socialist ideas

or anybody else's idea.

Because if you have power,

you use it to meet the needs
of you and your community.

And this idea of choice
which capital talks about,

"You've got to have a choice."

Choice depends on the
freedom to choose.

And if you're
shackled with debt,

you don't have a
freedom to choose.

It seems that it
benefits the system

if the average person
is shackled with debt.

People in debt become hopeless

and hopeless people don't vote.

They will say,
everyone should vote,

but I think if the
poor in Britain

or the United States turned out

and voted for people who
represented their interests,

it would be a real
democratic revolution.

So, they don't
want it to happen.

So, keeping people
hopeless and pessimistic.

See, I think there are two ways

in which people are controlled.

First of all, frighten people

and secondly, demoralize them.

An educated, healthy
and confident nation

is harder to govern.

And I think there's an element

in the thinking of some people,

"We don't want people
to be educated,

healthy and confident,

because they would
get out of control."

The top 1% of the
world's population

own 80% of the world's wealth.

It's incredible that
people put up with it,

but they're poor,

they're demoralized,
they're frightened.

And therefore, they think
perhaps the safest thing

to do is to take orders
and hope for the best.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] And hope for te
best is what we do

right from the
moment we're born.

We've got the worst
infant mortality rate

in the western world.

A baby born in El Salvador has
a better chance of surviving

than a baby born in Detroit.

But it gets better
when we go to school.

[News Reporter] Classrooms with
40 students,

schools with no science labs.

[Michael Moore] No wonder the
majority of our young adults

can't find Britain on a map.

But that's okay,
there's always college

and by the time we graduate,

our ass is so in hock,

we're deep in debt before
we even have our first job.

[Young Man] I'm at about...

We'll say about $35,000 in debt.

And that's for my
third year in college.

[Michael Moore] That way, you'l
be the kind of employee

they're looking for.

One who needs this job.

3,904, 3,905.

And what employer wouldn't want

to employ someone thousands
of dollars in debt

because they won't
cause any trouble?

In addition to having to
pay off your college debt,

you need a job with
health insurance.

It would be horrible to lose
that kind of job, wouldn't it?

[Boss] You can always quit, you
know.

There's no law that says
you have to work here.

[Michael Moore] And if that one
job doesn't pay all the bills,

don't worry, you
can get another one

and another one

[bell rings]

and another one.

[Woman] I work three jobs and I
feel like I contribute.

You work three jobs?

Three jobs, yes.

Uniquely American, isn't it?

That is fantastic that
you're doing that.

[audience applauding]

[beep]

Get any sleep?

[Moore] And if you're not
sleeping, take pharmaceuticals.

[Commercials] You're tired all
the time.

You may feel sad, hopeless,

If you suffer from
excessive worry...

You could be suffering

from generalized
anxiety disorder.

It could be adult ADD.

- Talk to you doctor.
- Ask your doctor.

- Ask your doctor.
- Ask your doctor.

Ask your doctor.

[Michael Moore] Yes, ask your
doctor

and ask him for more drugs.

[bright music]

That should keep you doped up

until it's time to retire.

Did I say retire?

[laughs]

Well, if you do make it to 80,

I'm sure your pension
will still be there.

Unlike the new employees
for these companies,

who'll never see a pension.

But don't worry,

I'm sure our kids
will take care of us

considering the great
life we've given 'em.

And remember, let's defeat
the terrorists over there

so we don't have
to fight them here.

Kaiser Permanente is the
largest HMO in the country.

And Dawnelle Keyes
was fortunate enough

to be fully insured by them.

It's a good thing,

because one night her 18
-month-old daughter, Mychelle,

developed a fever of over 104.

So, like any responsible
mom, she called 911

and the ambulance took Mychelle

to the closest hospital.

The hospital
checked with her HMO

and they were told that Kaiser

would not cover the tests

and the antibiotics
necessary to treat Mychelle.

She would have to take her

to an in-network,
Kaiser-owned hospital.

[Dawnelle] Kaiser said that I
should bring her by car

to the hospital

and that she
shouldn't be treated

at Martin Luther King.

And I just continued to
ask them to treat her

and they refused.

My daughter got worse
and she had a seizure.

[Michael Moore] Dawnelle begged
the doctors to not listen

to Kaiser and to
treat her daughter.

[dramatic music]

I was escorted out
of the hospital

because they felt
that I was a threat.

After hours of delay,

she was transported to Kaiser.

And got there just in time
to go into cardiac arrest.

They worked on her
for about 30 minutes

trying to revive her.

And the doctors came in

and let us know that
she had expired.

I was in a daze, a real daze.

It just didn't seem real.

I just held her.

I held her and I told her

that Mommy tried her
best to help her,

to make sure that
she was gonna get

the treatment she
needed to receive.

And that I was sorry that
I wasn't able to help her.

[indistinct]

[computerized tune]

[Michael Moore] This is Karena
and her daughter Zoe.

Karena is a graduate of
Michigan State University

and a native of my hometown
of Flint, Michigan.

Six months ago, Zoe,

like Dawnelle's baby Mychelle,

came down with a high fever.

[Karena] What happened is she
stopped breathing

for a little while, turned blue

and passed out in my
arms, which was...

It was the most horrible
moment in my life, I think,

just because I thought that
she was either dead or dying.

And I had no clue what to do.

At the hospital, they
gave her some medicine

to bring the fever down

and examined her,
took some blood.

What did they determine
was wrong with her?

It was a throat infection.

But we stayed at the hospital
from Friday to Sunday,

just so they could
keep an eye on her.

[Michael Moore] You stayed
there that long?

Yeah, they just basically
kept an eye on her.

And how much did
all this cost you,

the three-plus days
in the hospital?

Nothing.

Nothing?

Nothing.

Nothing at all.

And that's because?

I live in France [laughs].

You live in France?

Yeah.

[bright music]

Ah, France.

They enjoy their wine.

Their cigarettes and
their fatty foods.

And yet, just like the
Canadians and the Brits,

they live much
longer than we do.

Something about that
seemed grossly unfair.

[bright music]

This is Alexi Cremieux.

He spent his entire
adult life in the US

without health insurance.

[Alexi] I lived in America for
13 years.

I loved my life there.

But then when I discovered
that I had a tumor

and I didn't have
health insurance,

unfortunately, I had
to come back here.

And even though I had
never paid taxes in France

'cause I never worked here.

I left when I was 18,

I didn't even have a
Social Security number.

For them it was,

"He needs treatment,
he has no income,

so we're gonna give him
the treatment he needs."

Michael Moore] How are you doig
now?

I'm healthy now,

but I had three months
of intense chemotherapy.

So, after the three
months, I saw my doctor

and he said, "You
wanna go back to work?"

I said, "No, I
don't feel like it.

Right now, I'm not ready."

He said, "Well, how
much do you need?"

I said, "Well, I don't know."

He said, "Would three
months be okay?"

I said, "I think three
months would be fine."

He said, "OK, so take
three months off."

So, he wrote me a note
that I gave to my employer

so to make sure that I got paid.

[bright music]

So, I went to the
south of France...

[Michael Moore]Wait a minute,
you get three months off with
pay?

Yes, yes.

I get 65% paid by the government

and then the other 35%
is paid by my employer,

so to make sure you get 100%.

[bright music]

So, it was April,
it was spring again.

So, I started right away,
sucking up some sun.

And that really helped me a lot,

to recharge my batteries.

It was like night and day.

In three months, I went
from a 95-year-old man

to a 35-year-old man again.

But that's because
I had that time

to take care of myself.

[bright music]

[Dr. Jacques Milliez] I'm not
really in a position

to make any judgment
concerning the American system.

I think the United States
is a great, great country.

Americans are great people.

I really love them.

But as a doctor first,
as a citizen second

and eventually, as
a patient third,

I'm very glad to be in France.

It's kind of a luxury here.

You are sick, you
step in a hospital,

you get the care you need.

It doesn't depend
on your premiums.

It depends on what you need.

One of the principles
is solidarity.

People who are better off pay

for those who are worse off.

You pay according to your means

and you receive
according to your needs.

[Michael Moore] Do you think
that will ever work in America?

No.

He could barely contain

his seething anti-Americanism.

And I just didn't wanna
listen to any more of it.

[indistinct chatter]

[ Moore V.O.] So, I found a
group of Americans currently
living in Paris

who I know would
tell me the truth.

[indistinct chatter]

[Male Expat] I was diagnosed
five years ago

with Type I diabetes.

I was a bit nervous
to tell them I had...

- There's a place we have...
- To tell the French?

To tell the French.

There's a place we
have to check off

whether or not you have
a chronic condition.

I was nervous that
they were going

to charge me more or something.

And instead, I went
into a hospital

and had round-the-clock care.

And they do an amazing amount
preventative care as well.

So, they asked if you have

a preexisting condition
not to punish you,

but to give you more help?

Yes.

[Male Expat #2] I was in the
hospital for a year.

And as soon as I was in, it was,

"Well, don't worry, just rest."

People said "Rest."

How many sick days
do you get a year?

Three, four?

[Pam] I think it's unlimited.

- Yeah, you're sick.
- Unlimited?

Yes, how can you
limit sick days?

If you're sick, you're sick.

[Female Expat] I've gone to
emergency rooms numerous times

with four boys.

And have never waited
more than an hour, never.

I can call and
have somebody comes

to the house within
half an hour.

No way?

Making a house call?

At your place?

How many of you have had

a house call from a doctor?

No!

Last 3:00am last Friday.

And how much does this cost you?

- Nothing.
- It's reimbursed.

What's this service called?

[phone beep]

[speaking in foreign language]

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Where are we
going?

[speaking in foreign language]

[dramatic music]

[Dr. Leminez] We are going to
see a man

who has abdominal pain.

- Abdominal pain?
- Yeah.

[bright music]

[speaking in foreign language]

Where do we go next?

The next visit?

[speaking in foreign language]

[dramatic music]

[singing in foreign language]

[Female Expat] One thing that I
say to anyone

who asks me why I'm
in this country,

is that I think it's one

of the family's friendliest
countries that I know of.

And talk about family values,

childcare, healthcare...

[Male Expat] We don't pay for
day care.

[Female Expat] The day care
where I send my daughter

and I was a teacher.

The standards are very high.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] So, how much
does it cost you

to have two children
here in day care?

Or how much per hour?

[speaking in foreign language]

Are you happy with
how they're cared for?

[speaking in foreign language]

Here, my kids,
they're sure that they

are gonna get a
certain level of care,

a certain education,

college I don't
have to worry about.

What do you mean?

- It's free.
- You're kidding?

You can get a college
education for free.

- No way.
- Yes.

There's not a sense
of desperation.

[indistinct chatter]

They rest, they enjoy life.

They spend time with their kids,

there's vacations,
there's family time.

So, how many weeks
of paid vacation?

Minimum five weeks.

Five weeks?

- Minimum of five weeks?
- That's the french law.

If you work for a large company,

you get sometimes
eight, ten weeks.

Remember that there
is a 35-hour week.

The productivity
rate is so high here.

I read it was higher
than the United States.

If they're working more
than 35 hours a week,

they'll get extra days off.

There's part-time and full
-time employees as well.

You get five weeks paid vacation

even if you're a
part-time employee?

Of course.

Everybody.

If you get married, the
year you get married,

you get an extra week

or extra seven days
for your honeymoon.

In addition to your five weeks.

You're paid to take
your honeymoon?

Correct.

You got move to France now.

Yeah, if you move.

You mean if you gonna move

from one apartment to another?

[indistinct chatter]

You get a day to move and
they pay you that day?

These are the laws here.

When my daughter was
three months old,

there was this free
service that sent somebody

to your home to give
you tips on what to do

with your child, how
to get them to sleep,

every single day, for free.

[indistinct chatter]

And they'll come to your house

and do your laundry!

[all laughing]

They will, sure!

No, stop, stop!

- When you have a baby.
- When you have a baby.

What are you doing?

[speaking in foreign language]

You from the government?

[speaking in foreign language]

She do anything else?

[Mother] If I want, yes.

She's, of course, taking
care of the children.

And I think if I ask her

to prepare a meal for
tonight, she can do it.

[speaking in foreign language]

No problem.

She's coming twice a
week, four hours a day.

So, I can do everything I want,

for me, for the
house, for my husband,

during four hours.

And it's very precious for me.

You don't have any associations?

Nothing to help like that?

No, nobody from the
government comes

to your home in America

and does your laundry for
you if you're a new mother.

It's difficult.

Yeah.

Something that I
experience a lot of

with my own family is guilt.

Guilt for being here almost

and seeing the advantages

and the benefits I have
at such a young age.

And things that my parents
worked their whole life for,

haven't even come
close to touching.

It's really hard to
know that you're here

in a very privileged position,

not living the high life,

but in comparison, definitely.

And that seems
completely unfair.

One of the things that keeps
everything running here

is that the government
is afraid of the people.

They're afraid of protests,

they're afraid of
reactions from the people.

Whereas in the states,

people are afraid
of the government.

They're afraid of acting up,

they're afraid of protesting,

they're afraid of getting out.

In France, that's
what people do.

[dramatic music]

[singing in foreign language]

[speaking in foreign language]

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] Free college
education,

free medical care,
government-issued nannies,

I began to wonder how do
they pay for all this?

And then I realized
they're drowning in taxes!

I wanted to see what effect

this would have on a
nice French family.

So, I went to find out.

[bright music]

- Hello.
- Hello.

- Thank you.
- Welcome.

[bright music]

This is very nice.

[bright music]

[speaking in foreign language]

- It's the news.
- Yes.

[bright music]

What is your combined income for

the two of you together
for, say one month?

[speaking in foreign language]

All right, you're an engineer

and she's an assistant?

Not bad.

[speaking in foreign language]

And how much do
you pay each month

on your mortgage?

A thousand and two or
three euros a month.

[speaking in foreign language]

How many cars do you own?

- Two.
- Two.

Do you owe money
from medical bills?

[speaking in foreign language]

Is there any other
debt, loans, anything?

[speaking in foreign language]

Only the apartment.

And what are your
other big expenses?

The fish, vegetables.

Vegetables are a big
monthly expense for you.

- Yes and fruit, yogurt.
- Fruit, yogurt.

What are your
other big expenses?

Very important.

[speaking in foreign language]

- Kenya?
- We liked.

Are you happy?

Yes.

[speaking in foreign language]

[both laughing]

[bright music]

[Moore V.O.]
After seeing all this,

I began to wonder.

Was there a reason
our government

and our media wants
us to hate the French?

[bright music]

Are they worried we
might like the French?

[bright music]

Or like their ways
of doing things?

[bright music]

It was enough to make me
put away my freedom fries.

[singing in foreign language]

[indistinct chatter over PA]

Meanwhile, back at home,
hospitals had found a new way

to deal with patients who
didn't have health insurance

and couldn't pay their bill.

[Scott] I was standing against
the wall

and I saw a cab do a U-turn
and pull up to the curb.

And I watched to see
what was happening

'cause I had a feeling
what was gonna occur,

'cause it's not a new thing.

[Andy] They pulled up right here
by this yellow fire hydrant

and dropped Carol off and
immediately pulled away.

And as soon as they pulled away,

she walked out into the
street about up to here.

She then walked all the way down

to the driveway down
here, completely confused,

has no shoes on whatsoever
and just in a hospital gown.

If you've been to a hospital,
those gowns are thin.

And that's when one of
our staff members went out

and asked Carol if
she needed assistance

and found out that she was
confused and disoriented

and didn't know where she was.

[dramatic music]

Kaiser Permanent in
Bellflower Hospital

had put her in a cab

and directed them to bring
her to this drop-off point.

But the names of the hospitals

had been taken off
both bracelets before
she arrived here.

[Rescue Worker] I have seen
others that have come

through our doors who have
IVs still in their arms.

[Michael Moore] They told me
that at their shelter alone,

over 50 patients had been
dumped there by hospitals.

[James Lott] The options are
few.

We either open the front
door and let them out,

which is not the
humane thing to do

or something we don't wanna do

or we try to find
someplace for them to go.

And right now, Skid Row
is the best bed in town.

[Michael Moore] In fact, the
night before we were there,

the county hospital run by

the University of
Southern California,

one of the richest private
schools in the country,

dumped another patient
off on the curb,

a woman unable to pay
her hospital bill.

[Deputy Attorney] Do you know
how you got here?

Patricia] In the cab.

In the cab?

From General Hospital,
they gave him the voucher.

He dropped me off there,

he actually forced
me out of the car.

Ma'am, are you in
pain right now?

Are you in pain right now?

Yeah.

Is there anything we can do?

[Deputy Attorney] She, at this
time, has broken ribs,

broken collarbone and stitches

that are not completely healed

across the top of her head

and on the side of her head.

Now let me ask you, ma'am

before they dropped you off,

did they ask you if you
knew where you were going?

No.

So, they didn't ask
you any questions

about your orientation,

or whether or not you
knew what was going on?

No, they just told me
to take care of myself.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] May I take a
minute to ask a question

that's been on my mind?

Who are we?

Is this what we've become?

A nation that dumps
its own citizens like

so much garbage on
the side of the curb

because they can't pay
their hospital bill?

[dramatic music]

I always thought and
believe to this day

that we're a good
and generous people.

[ Resident] This is what we do
if somebody's in trouble.

Anybody gets sick, we all
get together and help.

[Michael Moore] People with a
good heart.

[Man] You feel like
you're sacrificing,

but then you get a
blessing from doing this

and that's what we all feel.

[Michael Moore]
And a good soul.

[Man] We've got a lot of
community support

and we're gonna
all keep working

until we locate this child.

[Michael Moore] Neighbors who
are quick to lend a helping had

to anyone in their hour
of need.

[Woman] I deliver meals to them,

but my life has been so blessed

that this is just the
least that I can do.

[Michael Moore] They say that
you can judge a society

by how it treats those
who are the worst off.

But is the opposite true?

That you can judge a society

by how it treats its
best, its heroes?

[Dick Cheney] The firefighters
and police,

rescue and recovery workers

have responded
with true heroism.

[crowd cheering]

[Rudy Gulliai] It was their
initial heroism that thwarted

the objectives of
the terrorists.

[John Ashcroft] Without regard,
in many instances,

to their own safety
and security.

[George Pataki] They truly are
heroes.

[crowd cheering]

[Man] We owe them everything!

[crowd cheering]

[Billy Crystal] Here they are
folks, the men and women

who have been on the
front lines for New York

and for all of us in America!

Tonight is dedicated to you!

[crowd cheering]

[Man] Don't forget about

the raffles going on over there,

we got one dollar each.

[Rescue Worker] I spent two and
a half years down there.

I got upper and lower
breathing problems.

I need a double lung transplant,

but was diagnosed with
pulmonary fibrosis.

I haven't slept in a
bed in over five years,

I sleep on a chair
with a blanket,

because if I lay
down I can't breathe.

[Michael Moore] There were
hundreds of rescue workers on

911 who were not city employee.

But rather ran
down to Ground Zero

on their own to help out.

[Man] We need volunteers
for first aid!

[Michael Moore] And many
developed serious respiratory
illnesses.

That's when the government sai,

"They're not our responsibility

because they weren't
on our payroll."

John Graham is an EMT volunteer

from Paramus, New Jersey.

He was in Lower Manhattan
when he heard the planes hit

and rushed over to help.

He worked in the rescue effort

for the next few months.

But then had trouble receiving
benefits for his illness.

[John Graham]] They just deny
you for any reason.

It's just a terrible
waiting game.

I really feel like they're
waiting for you to die.

It's terrible.

I never thought that
we would do this,

that the United
States would do this.

[Michael Moore] William Maher
is a volunteer member

of New Jersey's Fire Service.

He spent two months working ner

The Pile at Ground Zero
recovering bodies or
body parts.

And it deeply affected him.

[Bill Maher] I'm experiencing a
lot of disturbing dreams

or whatever you'd
like to call them,

and it affected what
I was doing at night

and unaware of it
because I was asleep

and I just kept grinding
and grinding my teeth.

The upper fronts are damaged,

practically beyond repair,

because of my constant grinding

over the last three years.

I've been before a
workers' comp board already

for the 9/11 volunteers' fund.

And I've been denied three times

and hopefully, I will go
on my fourth appeal soon,

if I can get the
necessary documentation.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] Of course,
there was a $50 million fund

set up supposedly to help
rescue workers.

[Announcer] Ladies and
gentlemen,

the governor of New
York, George Pataki.

[audience applauding]

[Michael Moore] But the
government,

like the health
insurance companies,

made it very difficult for
people to receive help.

[George Pataki]
You have to have spent

a certain amount of time
here at Ground Zero,

you have to be able
to establish that.

You do have to file an affidavit

within the next year,

relating your work
experiences at Ground Zero.

And then, even with all of
that, it's not automatic.

There is a presumption when
certain illnesses occur,

but that presumption
can be rebutted

by other medical evidence.

So, we think it is
a very fair approach

that protects our heroes.

[coughs]

[Reggie] I'm sorry.

[ Michael Moore] Reggie
Cervantes was

a volunteer emergency
medical technician on 911.

Nothing makes it
go away sometimes.

Not water, not cough
medicine, not anything.

It's just burning in
my throat and irritated

and it just gets me to coughing.

Where sometimes I
have trouble breathing

'cause I can't catch my breath.

[Michael Moore] Reggie spent
her days

at Ground Zero carrying bodies

and treating other
rescue workers.

My airway was totally
burnt that first week

and I had trouble
breathing by then.

But we wanted to see

if we could dig
anybody up alive,

we wanted to see if
we had lost anybody,

if we were still
missing somebody.

I wanted to help.

I was trained for this.

You see somebody who is
in need, you help 'em.

[Michael Moore] Reggie had
difficulty getting treatment.

Too sick to work
and with no income.

She was forced to quit her job

and used her savings
to move her

and her kids out of the city.

It's hard to figure out

how you're supposed to get help.

We're trying to go
about it the right way,

but we're ignored.

[Michael Moore] But not everyoe
after 911

was ignored by the government.

[George Bush] We're now
approaching the five-year

anniversary of the 9/11 attack.

So, I'm announcing today
that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed,

Abu Zubaydah, Ramzi Binalshibh

and 11 other terrorists
in CIA custody

have been transferred to

the United States Naval
Base at Guantanamo Bay.

[dramatic music]

[Bill Frist] On that island,
today are some

of the world's most
hardened enemy combatants.

[Mr. Hunter] These detainees
are deadly

and include the 20th hijacker,

as well as a number of Osama
bin Laden's personal bodyguards

and others who had a direct role

in the September 11 attacks.

[Mr. Rumsfeld] The kind of
people held at Guantanamo

include terrorist
trainers, bomb-makers.

[Female Politician] Many of
them have American blood on

their hands and they're
certainly the elite of Al-Qaeda.

[Dick Cheney] It seems to me we
have an obligation

to treat these individuals
as enemy combatants.

[Michael Moore] And then I
learned

it wasn't all bad news
at Gitmo.

[bright music]

[Mr. Hunter] Detainees
representing a threat

to our national security
are given access

to top-notch medical facilities.

[Bill Frist] They have acute
care 24 hours a day,

in which surgical procedures,

everything can be
performed right there

in the detainee camps.

[Prison Guard] This is the
dental clinic or the health
clinic

slash dental clinic.

[Army Man] We have a physical
therapy department,

we have X-ray capabilities
with digital X-rays,

we have one single
operating room.

Health personnel
to detainee ratio

is one to four, remarkably high.

We do sick call on the
blocks three times per week,

care for them there if they can

or bring that detainee
back to the clinic

to be seen there.

Screening for cancer
has taken place there,

colonoscopy is a procedure which

is performed there
on a routine basis.

[Army Man] We have diabetes,

we have high blood
pressure, high cholesterol.

We do periodically
monitor the weight

and nutrition of the detainees,

so that we can track
those detainees

to make sure we see
them frequently,

monitoring their labs
and their overall health.

[Female Soldier] Their medical
attention...

They get way better
medical treatment

than I've ever had.

[laughs]

[Questioner] Do you think it's
as good

as most as HMOs in the US?

Certainly very similar
and as good, sir.

[Bill Frist] I leave with an
impression

that healthcare there
is clearly better

than they received at home

and as good as many people
receive in the

United States of America.

[Michael Moore] Wow,
so there is actually

one place on American soil

that had free
universal healthcare.

That's all I needed to know.

I went down to Miami, Florida.

[bright music]

Got myself a boat
and loaded up Bill

and Reggie and John.

- John
- Welcome, sir.

And anyone else I
could find who needed

to see a doctor and
couldn't afford one.

So, many people showed up.

I had to get a
couple extra boats.

[bright music]

And I called up Donna
Smith from Denver.

Who is now on nine
different medications.

And I asked her if she'd
like to come along.

I figured she'd like to get out

of her daughter's
basement for a while.

[bright music]

All right, let's Go.

[bright music]

Which way to Guantanamo Bay?

[bright music]

Can we go?

We're not going to Cuba,

we're going to America!

It's American soil!

[bright music]

[bright music]

We made it.

[bright music]

There it is, there's the runway.

That's the prison over there
where the detainees are.

[Reggie] We're very close.

Yeah, we're very close.

[bright music]

The white building is
the hospital, I think.

[bright music]

Okay, let's go.

[bright music]

We commandeered a fishing boat

and sailed into Guantanamo Bay.

As we approached the
line in the water

between the American and
Cuban side of the bay,

we were told to be
careful for mines.

[dramatic music]

Permission to enter.

I have three 9/11
rescue workers,

they need some
medical attention.

These are 9/11 rescue workers!

They just want some
medical attention!

The same kind that
Al-Qaeda is getting.

They don't want any more than

you're giving the
evildoers, just the same!

Hello.

No one in the guard
tower was responding

and then suddenly
we heard a siren.

We figured it was time
to get out of here.

But what was I supposed to
do with all these sick people

and no one to help them?

Here we were stuck

in some godforsaken
Third World country.

And communists, no less.

When I was a kid, these
people wanted to kill us.

What was I supposed to do?

[bright music]

♪ I'm on the way to Cuba

♪ Where all is happy

♪ Cuba, where all is gay

♪ Why don't you plan
a wonderful trip ♪

♪ To Havana hop on a ship

Excuse me, we're
looking for a doctor.

Is there a doctor here in Cuba?

Any doctors?

[speaking in foreign language]

All in this one block?

[speaking in foreign language]

All right, thank you
very much, thank you.

Okay, okay, I know
what you're thinking.

Cuba is where Lucifer lives.

The worse place on Earth.

The most evil
nation ever created.

How do we know that?

'Cause that's what we've
been told for over 45 years.

[John F. Kennedy] A series of
offensive missile sites

can be none other
than to provide

a nuclear strike capability

against the western hemisphere.

[George Bush] I'm not gonna
yield until Fidel Castro

allows freedom on the island.

That's a...

You can count on it.

Put it in the
bank.

[dramatic music]

[Michael Moore] It seems that
what really bugged us about
Castro

was that he overthrew the
dictator that we liked

and replaced him with a guy
we didn't like, himself.

And so, now, after
all these years,

one thing is clear,

the Cuban people have
free universal healthcare.

They've become known
around the world

as having not only one of
the best healthcare systems,

but as being one of the
most generous countries

in providing doctors
and medical equipment

to Third World countries.

In the US, healthcare costs

run nearly $7,000 per person.

But in Cuba, they
spend only $251.

And yet the Cubans are able

to have a lower
infant mortality rate

than the United States,

a longer average life span
than the United States.

They believe in
preventive medicine.

And it seems like there's
a doctor on every block.

Their only sin when it
comes to healthcare,

seems to be that they
don't do it for a profit.

Anybody need medication
right now from the pharmacy?

♪ Why don't you leave behind

Are you the pharmacist?

Do you have this?

Is this one similar to yours?

[Reggie] Yeah.

It's $120 in the US.

This is $120 in the US?

Yes.

[speaking in foreign language]

How much is that in
American dollars?

[Pharmacist] It's like five
cents.

- Five cents?
- Yeah, more or less.

[speaking in foreign language]

Thank you very much.

[speaking in foreign language]

[Reggie] $120 is a lot of money

when you get $1,000 in
social security disability

and need one or two a month.

Five cents here?

It's like the biggest insult.

It just doesn't make any sense.

It doesn't make any sense.

I wanna fill a suitcase up

and go back home with it.

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] I took my group
of sick Americans

to a hospital to see if
they could get some care.

[bright music]

They didn't ask for money
or an insurance card,

[speaking in foreign language]

just their name
and date of birth.

[speaking in foreign language]

That was the entire
intake session.

[speaking in foreign language]

Thank you very much
for doing this.

[Director of Hospital] You are
very welcome.

[bright music]

I asked them to give
us the same exact care

they give their
fellow Cuban citizens.

No more, no less.

And that's what they did.

[Dr. Roque] I'm Dr. Roque, I'm
an internal medicine specialist.

John Graham.

How are you feeling?

My lungs hurt, I have pain.

I get pretty severe
nose bleeds at times.

I get terrible headaches
in the middle of the night,

but I haven't been evaluated

for the sleep apnea
for nine years.

Yeah, I have...

Many medications
for lung problems.

Almost every medication for
lung problems, I've got.

After 9/11, things
have happened,

my teeth started falling out.

Because of certain
conditions, I was grinding.

There's one test that
they recommended I take,

it's about $5,000 to $ 7,000.

The dentist that I talked to,

it's like $15,000 or more.

Now, it's two years I
have no medical coverage,

so I can't go for the
last part of the test.

[speaking in foreign language]

It's okay, everything's
gonna be okay.

Yes, I am so...

It's so hard for me to digest
somebody saying it's free

because 20 years of our lives
have been spent fighting.

So, I am so grateful.

No, you don't need to say that.

Thank you, thank you.

Come on, don't cry,

everything's gonna be okay.

Thank you.

At least what we can do.

[emotional music]

[speaking in foreign language]

[Michael Moore] Reggie was
diagnosed with a series of

pulmonary and bronchial
problems.

The Cuban doctors gave
her a treatment plan

to follow back home
along with some

of those five cent inhalers.

William Maher received a number

of treatments on his
neck and his back.

And having ground down his teeh

for three years straight due

to post-traumatic
stress disorder.

He left Cuba with
a new set of teeth.

[emotional music]

After a series of
tests on his heart,

lungs, blood and stomach,

John now knew what
his ailments were.

He was given a strict
plan to follow,

plus a number of treatments

and was feeling better
than he had in years.

The Cuban doctors were able

to take Donna off five
of her nine medications.

And with a correct diagnosis,

gave her a treatment plan

to help her live a
more normal life.

When the firefighters and
paramedics in Havana heard

that the 911 rescue
workers were in town,

they invited them over to
one of their firehouses.

And so, on our last day
there as we arrived,

they stood at attention

because they said,

they wanted to honor
the heroes of 911.

[speaking in foreign language]

[Reggie] The brothers we lost on
9/11

was felt around the world.

[speaking in foreign language]

[Reggie speaks Spanish]

[bright music]

Don't hesitate to hug a brother.

[bright music]

[John Graham] It's very
important for them to wear

the SCBA so they don't
end up like me.

[overlapping chatter]

[speaking in foreign language]

[bright music]

[Michael Moore] If this is what
can happen

between supposed enemies.

If one enemy can
hold out his hand

and offer to heal,

then what else is possible?

[bright music]

That's when I heard
that the man who runs

the biggest anti-Michael
Moore website on the internet

was going to have
to shut it down.

He could no longer
afford to keep it up

because his wife was ill

and they couldn't afford to pay

for her health insurance.

He was faced with a choice
of either keep attacking me

or pay for his wife's health.

Fortunately, he chose his wife.

But something seemed
wrong about being forced

into such a decision.

Why in a free country
shouldn't he be able

to have health insurance

and exercise his
First Amendment right

to run me into the ground?

So, I wrote a check for
the $12,000 he needed

to keep his wife
insured and in treatment

and sent it to him anonymously.

His wife got better

and his website is
still going strong.

[bright music]

It was hard for me to
acknowledge that in the end,

we truly are all
in the same boat.

And that no matter
what our differences,

we sink or swim together.

That's how it seems
to be everywhere else.

[bright music]

They take care of each other

no matter what
their disagreements.

[bright music]

When we see a good idea

from another
country, we grab it.

If they build a better
car, we drive it.

If they make a better
wine, we drink it.

So, if they've come
up with a better way

to treat the sick,

to teach their kids,

to take care of their babies,

to simply be good
to each other,

then what's our problem?

Why can't we do that?

[bright music]

They live in a
world of we not me.

We'll never fix
anything until we get

that one basic thing right.

And powerful forces
hope that we never do.

And that we remain the only
country in the western world

without free
universal healthcare.

If we ever did remove the
chokehold of medical bills,

college loans, day care
and everything else

that makes us afraid
to step out of line.

[bright music]

Well, watch out, 'cause it'll
be a new day in America.

In the meantime, I'm gonna
go get the government

to do my laundry.

♪ Don't be shy

♪ Just let your
feelings roll on by ♪

♪ Don't wear fear

♪ Or nobody will
know you're there ♪

♪ Just lift your head

♪ And let your
feelings out instead ♪

♪ And don't be shy

♪ Just let your
feelings roll on by ♪

♪ On by, on by, on
by, on by, on by ♪

♪ On by, on by, on by, on by ♪

♪ You know love is
better than a song ♪

♪ Love is where
all of us belong ♪

♪ So don't be shy

♪ Just let your
feelings roll on by ♪

♪ Don't wear fear

♪ Or nobody will
know you're there ♪

♪ That you're there,
you're there ♪

♪ You're there, you're
there, you're there ♪

♪ You're there, you're there,

♪ You're there, you're there

♪ Don't be shy

♪ Just let your
feelings roll on by ♪

♪ And don't wear fear

♪ Or nobody will
know you're there ♪

♪ Just lift your head

♪ And let your
feelings out instead ♪

♪ Now don't be shy

♪ Just let your
feeling roll on by ♪

♪ On by, on by, on
by, on by, on by ♪

♪ On by, on by, on by, on by

[bright music]

♪ Sick of the waiting
and praying and hoping ♪

♪ Sick of the cold whispered
dreams and not knowing ♪

♪ Sick of the strength that
it takes to keep going ♪

♪ Sick as I'm losing this
fight and it's showing ♪

♪ Aah aah unforgivable
but true ♪

♪ Aah aah I'm
alone without you ♪

♪ Sick 'cause I'm stuck on
the wrong side of town ♪

♪ And sick 'cause I'm pulling
but still sinking down ♪

♪ And sick 'cause I can't
turn this whole thing around ♪

♪ And sick 'cause I'm too
weak to hunt somebody down ♪

♪ Aah aah unforgivable
but true ♪

♪ Aah aah I'm
alone without you ♪

[bright music]

[singing in foreign language]