On top of that, official medical staff wages were crap. People were forced either work for peanuts (IMO nurses and doctors jobs are damn hard and they have to be paid well), take money under table or... emigrate.

Now we have mixed system and it's definitely better than it was before. Doctors gets paid well. Elite doctors tend to work 2-3 days in private clinics and then 2-3 days in public hospitals so you can still get hold of them for free. Those who have an inch for premium services can pay local&legal, so local economy wins.

Anyway… I think both systems are very similar in the end. Rich (or even middle class) gets great service in premium facilities. Average folks get OK service with some downsides, likely paying out of pocket in various ways. The only difference may be poor people coverage which is subsidized by upper tier payers. Who themselves may never use public service and go to premium only.

Also, another major difference may be the big expensive procedures. Aside from the 1%, people would do the procedure in public hospital because it’s crazy expensive otherwise. But everything else leading up to it and recovery after it more likely to happen in premium market since it’s much more affordable.