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Insurance companies may be part of the problem, drug companies may be part of the problem but lawers are the worst of it. These ambulance chasers and the lawsuits they bring drive the cost up terribly. Why didn't Obamacare address the problem of lawyers and litigation? Maybe its the fact that politicians tend to be trial lawyers by trade. They didn't want to shoot the goose laying the golden egg. We pay for that egg everytime we go to the doctor.
That's really a myth - it's the so-called "tort reform" movement. They've put in liability caps in Texas but it hasn't resulted in any diminishing in the rate of health costs going up.
"One difference between the old days and now is people feel medical care is for everyone and that even a tiny baby deserves to live. 70 years ago a premie infant would die, now they can save ones born at 1 pound! However that means the parents of that newborn are saddled with thousands of dollars of medical bills. Should we as society let the baby die next time?, share the cost of saving the baby? Just shrug our shoulders and say "poor unlucky people" and if they end up in the street just say "poor unlucky people" again?"
Horrible thoughts, rotten discussion. Is there a right or wrong answer?
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Do people think the elected officials would give up any benefit they have?
It's senseless to complain about elected officials. We need to concern ourselves with whether we, our loved ones and friends can survive the financial impact of a major illness.
That's really a myth - it's the so-called "tort reform" movement. They've put in liability caps in Texas but it hasn't resulted in any diminishing in the rate of health costs going up.
I've yet to see rates decrease in any state where so-called 'tort reform' has been enacted. It seems to make everyone happy though - everyone but the injured patient.
Obviously this country will never support a completely national healthcare system. But what if we just got rid of health insurance and paid for our healthcare out of pocket? I truly believe the reason healthcare is so expensive is because of the health insurance companies. If we got rid of health insurance, costs would probably drop by like 50 percent.
What about back in the olden days when the doctor would come to your house and then send a bill? Healthcare has just gotten way too complicated since health insurance companies go in the way.
Competition means prices plummet. The only reason healthcare and education costs only go up is because someone else pays for them, thus providing no incentive to rein in costs.
Competition means prices plummet. The only reason healthcare and education costs only go up is because someone else pays for them, thus providing no incentive to rein in costs.
According to that theory we should have declining tuition rates since we subsidize education less now than we did 40 years ago.
Insurance is not a scam. It's a business. Do you not believe in the free market?
Many of us don't agree that a free market is the best approach for achieving the desired result of a better, healthier life for Americans. Until single payer controls expenses such as hospitals and drugs as another poster pointed out, there is little chance of improvement. .…...as an aside, how much money is wasted on advertising...and bribes for that matter? In answer to your given, no, profit should not be part of heathcare, education, prisons and social infrastructures.:
I personally think it's kind of sick that there's a business that's profiting from other's illnesses. Just me.
It's not like insurance companies are making a killing, many are just making a very small amount of profit if any. Insurance companies have to comply with the 85% rule. They have to pay out 85% of premiums paid to them in claims, or they have to rebate the excess premiums back to the policyholders/employers that paid for it. That means they can only use 15% of the premiums paid to cover all administrative costs, premium taxes (yes they pay 1-3% in taxes to the states) and other expenses. If anything is left over, that is their profit. It is probably on the order of 3-5%. I know my company seldom if ever has a profit on our A&H business, but we offer it to compliment our other lines of business and to offer a full line of coverage for our customers.
Also, a lot of large company plans are self insured, where the company basically pays all claims out of pocket for their employees, plus an administrative charge to the insurance company for processing the claims. The insurance company only profits from the admin charge after their processing expenses.
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