UK health system, maligned in United States, draws praise at home

British politicians and citizens are racing to defend the honor of the country's National Health Service against perceived attacks from the Americans. The rush is a response to claims about the alleged inefficiency and poor quality of the U.K. system made by critics of President Barack Obama's proposals on healthcare reform. Opponents of the proposals claim the president intends to nationalize healthcare and point to purported weaknesses in the U.K.'s service as a warning of what could happen in the U.S. Prime Minister Gordon Brown and opposition leader David Cameron each have interrupted their summer holidays to weigh in.