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i believe this is the biggest reason why the OP's surgery cost $25,000.
a brain and spinal surgeon i know who works in a major hospital estimates that only 20% of his patients come in with any intention to pay. a hospital is a business, how in the hell are you supposed to run a business this way?
So, you advocate that poor people should be left to suffer and die?
I DON'T judge, but I don't want to be forced to pay for someone else's healthcare, etc. either. Enough of my salary is taken from me as it is.
When you say that putting money toward health care for the poor and low income is a waste, you ARE judging. You have decided that the money would be a waste because in your mind, maybe even subconsciously, poor and low income people are a waste, so they don't deserve your care or compassion, and therefore do not deserve the same standard of health care you have. It's all connected, and it's not as cut and dry as you try to make it.
Do you not understand that there are underlying ROOT causes for the things we think, and that these root causes can even subconsciously have an affect on our actions? If this isn't true, then why are there counselors and psychologists aplenty? It's not all the time about WHAT somebody says, but the WHY behind it. WHY do you not want to help these less fortunate people? I'm talking about the REAL why.
I'll tell you why. Because subconsciously (or maybe even consciously, although you don't have the guts to be that truthful) you think they are not deserving of your help. You're not poor or low income, so you can't wrap your mind around how other people can be. After all, if they'd done what you did, they wouldn't be poor, right? Well, guess what? Not everybody is as fortunate as you (or even me). The playing field is not level. It's just a fact that some people have a head start on other people, to varying degrees, and that these degrees make a tangible, real-life difference in the outcomes. It is what it is. You don't think the Paris Hilton's of the world were born with a GIGANTIC head start on the rest of us?!
So, YES, when you make a "value-based" statement like you have made here, about funding subsidized health care for the poor and low income being a WASTE, you ARE judging these people. If you valued the basic HUMANITY of these people AT ALL, you would not feel like the funding was a waste, or that you were being forced to help fund this subsidized care. You wouldn't have to be thrilled to see a deduction from your paycheck, but you would think it was a necessary and needed thing to do, and would accept it. Yet, you (and others like you) can't even bring yourself to that point, psychologically.
It is sad, sad, sad, pitiful and shameful when one person is willing to let another person suffer and die just to keep a few extra dollars in their pocket. It's even sadder when that person claims to be a Christian. I don't know if you are one or not, but if not, then that last sentence does not apply to you. If you are, then you have a lot more to be worried about than a few dollars out of your check.
Less fortunate people needn't see themselves as victims - everyone was born with a brain to use... work as many menial jobs as it takes until times improve or a better opportunity comes along. If you have a "poor pitiful me" attitude, you're not going to achieve much.
I am sorry but i have to agree, healthcare is not a right... but poor choices certainly are and seem to walk hand in hand with those who demand free healthcare.
Please read more carefully - I NEVER said what kind of people.... A direct quote: "I don't want to be forced to pay for someone else's healthcare, etc." The money I earn is MY money - that's not selfish, it's the truth. BTW - I've given more to various charities this past year than probably the previous 10 combined..... Not that it's any of your business.
Less fortunate people needn't see themselves as victims - everyone was born with a brain to use. I have a friend at work who lifted himself up from basically nothing. His outlook is that even if he can't find a well-paying job, he sure can find 2 not-so-well-paying jobs, and to feed and clothe his wife & kids, he'll work as many menial jobs as it takes until times improve or a better opportunity comes along. If you have a "poor pitiful me" attitude, you're not going to achieve much.
No, you didn't say what kind of people, but let's use some common sense. Who else besides low income or poor people is universal health care going to help? Isn't that the whole point of subsidized health care, or as some like to call it, Obamacare? I can't believe you just tried to play me for stupid with that lame line. Like, seriously?!
Anyway, I'm not talking about able-bodied LAZY people. I'm talking about the people who genuinely need the help. But, folks like you who have a grudge (a reasonable one, I admit) against able-bodied lazy people end up hurting the genuinely needy. You're throwing the baby out with the bath water out of spite.
You don't have to tell me about lifting oneself up from nothing or achievement. I went from Piedmont Manor/Fieldcrest/Nicholtown to LAW SCHOOL. So, trust me when I say I know about sacrifice, hard work and determination. But, NONE of my hard work, sacrifice, determination, or 130 plus IQ (that was my "head start" over others) kept Lupus from wrecking my body and my life. The point is that unforeseeable things happen that we have no control over, and sometimes extra help is needed. That doesn't make somebody a freeloader.
Personally, it doesn't matter what happens with health care, because I will always be proactive enough to seek out affordable options for self-pay patients like myself. I live within my means just so I can contribute to my own health care costs. I have a terrific primary care doctor in Greenville who only charges self-pay patients $50 for an office visit. I can afford generic drugs, and for those that aren't available by generic, there are foreign pharmacies and/or drug manufacturer's patient assistance programs. So, I'm going to be okay. It's just more work than other people have to do, and it gets rough when I'm really sick.
I'm glad you give to charities. But, charities can't completely fill the needs that are out here. Not enough people give enough, nor do they give regularly enough. Do you really expect someone with a life-threatening illness to depend on a charity to get their life-sustaining medications on a regular basis? What happens when the funds just aren't there that month? Where is the slack being picked up? It isn't. And, that's why something more comprehensive is needed.
I don't have the answers, but I do know that not everyone who is low income and/or uninsured are victims. I think that's a myth some people like to believe to justify their points of view.
Healthcare is not a right. Some people want it to be, including some government officials. But aside from emergency care provided by a hospital emergency room, it is not a right.
I think we all like the idea of everyone having health care. The problem lies in who should pay for it. Nobody wants to see people dying in the streets because they don't have healthcare, but neither do most people want to see their tax dollars used to pay for people who don't do their best to stay healthy. For every pitiful case of someone who is doing their best to make ends meet and can't find health insurance, there are at least several cases of people who trash their bodies because they know they get their healthcare free from the government. We need to find a way to help the people who can't help themselves, while also giving people a reason to do their part in being (and staying) healthy. It's a tough dilemma, but not one that can be solved by the government.
Amen to that, the best post of the whole thread, cant agree more.
I am sorry but i have to agree, healthcare is not a right... but poor choices certainly are and seem to walk hand in hand with those who demand free healthcare.
Who here is talking about FREE health care? The issue is AFFORDABLE health care. Two different things. The only people who get free health care are those whose income is at or below 125% (135% in some locations) of the federal poverty level for their family's size. Everybody else has to pay SOMETHING. Even people on Medicaid have co-pays and stuff now.
Not if Mr. O gets his socialistic dream, then its free but not to those who earn a living. Maybe you havent heard, thats the goal, a free for all health care system. mm mm mm.
but i didnt sign up here to get political, so i'll step aside and let ya'll dook it out but i have to say, it sure is refreshing to read all the common sense posts here. cant wait to move to such a conservative state
I think we should find a way for everybody to be covered. But, I also think everybody should have to pay something and contribute to their own health care costs. If they're able-bodied but unemployed and have no income, they should have to do a meaningful amount of service hours or something (in addition to 25-30 hours a week of job training, schooling, or job hunting), but it should not be free of any type of cost. Nothing in life is free, and you have to pay where you stay. Period.
I think we should find a way for everybody to be covered. But, I also think everybody should have to pay something and contribute to their own health care costs. If they're able-bodied but unemployed and have no income, they should have to do a meaningful amount of service hours or something, but it should not be free of any type of cost. Nothing in life is free, and you have to pay where you stay. Period.
I totally agree with you, especially the community service part, if we tax payers are paying we should get something out of those who are just receiving and that goes for other welfare handouts as well and while were at it those kids who are skate boarding in the parks should have mandatory 2 years public service if they have no plans to do anything else with their time. ok i'll stop now
I totally agree with you, especially the community service part, if we tax payers are paying we should get something out of those who are just receiving and that goes for other welfare handouts as well and while were at it those kids who are skate boarding in the parks should have mandatory 2 years public service if they have no plans to do anything else with their time. ok i'll stop now
Is it really a handout if say, somebody loses their job and has to get food stamps? They've already paid into the food stamp program via taxes. How is it a handout if they're just getting back what they put in, in a temporary (we hope) time of need? And just to be pedantic, food stamps - now called SNAP - are not officially considered welfare. Welfare is TANF, which replaced AFDC, where people get actual money for their kids.
That reminds me, one time I was in a Family Dollar Store in Washington, DC on vacation, and I saw this woman using her TANF debit card to buy DOG FOOD with the rest of the human food and household items in the buggy. I wanted to hit her over the head with a 2x4! I know my blood pressure was high for awhile after that.
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