Ireland - Not such a "Free" state.

Ireland – Not such a “Free” state.
Darren (Not real his real name) is unemployed through no fault of his own. He is 23 years old and desperate for a job.
At the beginning of 2010 The Irish government decided to reduce his unemployment benefit from 197 euro pr. week to 150 euro. This affects all unemployed people under 24 years of age living in Ireland.
In February this year he was attacked on his way home. (A common occurrence where we live). An ambulance arrived and he was taken to casualty. Within 10 minutes he was presented with a bill for 100 euro.
A subsequent visit to the doctor cost him 60 euro.
His dentist would not see him unless he agreed to pay for the visit, or unless he could produce a medical card. Since he could not afford to pay, and hadn’t received a medical card yet, he had to postpone an appointment for a chipped tooth.
Eventually he did receive a medical card and rearranged a visit with the dentist.
At this visit he was informed that the enamel on his front teeth was severely eroded due to a problem with acid influx. He could loose these teeth at anytime. The dentist would refer him to a Dental Hospital.
The dentist also advised that Darren needed a gum guard has he appeared to be grinding his teeth whilst asleep.
Six weeks after the initial appointment, and since he hadn’t heard any more from the dentist, he enquired as to when he could expect to hear from the Dental Hospital, and when he would receive the recommended gum guard.
Included in the dentists reply is the following information.
It takes two months for a dental surgeon to approve the gum guard. However due to changes introduced by the government on the 30/04/2010 there is no guarantee this treatment will be approved. If it is refused Darren will have to pay 80 euro to have a gum guard made privately.
The waiting list for the Dental Hospital is approximately 60 months!
This is due to an overloaded health service!
Darren could have the necessary crowns done privately at a cost of 8000 euro approx!
Conclusion:
The poor or those who do not have the means to pay for medical treatment/dentist treatment in Ireland are effectively being excluded from the Irish health care system.
It is my view that regardless of the current economic crisis the least well off in society should, at the very least, be assured the same access to treatment as any other citizen.
This should be a fundamental right of every citizen in any civilised society.
But not in Ireland!

All comments and advice on the above are more than welcome.
Do you live in another European country? How does the healthcare system work where you are?
With the changes introduced to the American Health care system, would we be better off if we lived there?