Stories of healthcare heartbreak hidden away on Flickr

Wired US has started an inspired regular column asking for Photoshop creatives to compose their visions of the future, starting with a mission to imagine how medical bills will look. If you're British (and not with Bupa) you'll never have had a medical bill, but this is an interesting take on the future implications of President Obama's healthcare reforms. The examples are pretty eye watering: $3,900 for an appendectomy , $1,300 in regular diabetic medication, a cardiology patient whose total medical insurance claim could reach $1,000,000 and a story from a brain-tumour sufferer who was told his credit card had been declined: "With that we are asking that you check out by noon today." 1924, when it cost $46.65 to be born. Photograph: dok1 / Flickr / Some rights reserved Wired also included a sign from an anti-healthcare industry protest and a French medical bill . Flickr is often used as a powerful storytelling tool and, as with the group " Sickofit ", as a campaign vehicle. An insight into the real stories of individuals – in contrast to the often heavy, politicised coverage of the Republican versus Democrat battle – brings into sharp focus quite how remarkable the NHS is. If our personal healthcare costs were itemised for us each quarter, we might not take our national healthcare for granted.