I agree completely. The VA is a excellent example of a national healthcare system. Talking to veterans who've spent time in the VA, and visiting VA hospitals are a surefire way of convincing people what side to be on for the NHS debate.
The problem with the VA is the quality of care seems to vary greatly by facility, and until maybe 4-5 years ago, the VA was essentially structured to give care to some very aged WW2/Korea veterans (and relatively indigent Vietnam veterans (i.e. not even most of them) who could claim service-related disability.) I'm not sure if that was due to resource constraints or what.
Post Iraq/Afghanistan returnees with service-related disabilities (TBI, amputations, etc.), I think VA has gotten more resources and is now treating a younger/healthier patient population. It also cooperates a lot more with DOD active-duty care than it used to.
