American actor and comedian Rob Delaney has written a heartfelt letter about the NHS.

Delaney, who alongside Sharon Horgan wrote and starred in the hit comedy Catastrophe , compares Britain's NHS to the American healthcare system (or systems, as he points out), and says that despite the current 'crisis' , it's still superior.

It's been well documented in recent weeks that the NHS is struggling and under pressure. Government cuts have led to staff shortages and patient overcrowding, leading many to suggest the NHS is at breaking point.

Delaney explains that while he's only lived in Britain for a few years, it's been enough time for him to see that it's something to be proud of.

The NHS is stretched

"I’m in a pretty good position to speak with some degree of clarity on the NHS as it compares to the American healthcare system," the actor writes.

"And here’s the verdict: the NHS is superior. That isn’t to say it’s perfect; no healthcare system is or can be.

"People (myself included) have and will continue to complain about their healthcare, wherever they receive it, because medicine is treating your body, or your loved one’s body."

Delaney notes that the NHS is suffering right now. He also says that he received good care in the US – thanks to having good insurance.

But in America, getting ill costs money. It's a business. It's incomparable to the inclusive NHS, in which care is universal and not dependant on income.

Delaney continues: "How is it better? I will say right away that just like in the UK, my loved ones and I have received generally very good medical care in the US.

"The American doctors and nurses are mostly kind people, working hard, sincerely interested in helping others.

"Unfortunately these doctors and nurses are paid with money the hospital receives from health insurance companies. And health insurance companies are motivated by profit, not by successfully setting your broken shoulder or curing your daughter’s leukemia.

"Those results aren’t discussed in their shareholders’ calls. And insurance companies don’t pay for all your care either.

"My wife and I, who had what’s considered excellent insurance in the US, received bills for about $1,300 after each of our first two kids were born."

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Ultimately, Delaney's point is this: he thinks that the NHS is something to fight for, and British citizens should do more to fight what might arguably be called a demise – the NHS is perhaps in danger of falling completely to be replaced by an alternative.

"Americans forego care and medicine that their physicians prescribe, because of cost," he says.

"They also commit suicide because of medical debt. It’s hard to hold in one’s mind the idea that those things can and do happen in a country as wealthy as the United States...

"...I hesitate to end this piece with a call to action, though I know what I’d do if I were a UK citizen and something as remarkable as the NHS were under threat.

"I pay taxes here too, but I’m not British, so it’s up to you, if you care..."

Delaney finishes by suggesting that the NHS may go the way of the American system. He says the future of British healthcare could be one governed by private insurance companies, and questions whether we want that here.

You can read his letter in full here.