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They thought I was a coward for pursuing an engineering degree instead of enlisting in the Marines and killing the gooks in Viet-Nam as they had done. I thought they were just jealous. My laborer job was temporary, theirs was not.
Hey, they could have voluntarily enlisted and gotten stationed stateside like my father did in 1962 when he went into the Army (he was the son of a WWII vet, and he could see where things in 'Nam were going to end up). He was smart enough to get into Intelligence, and was told by his CO when he was being discharged that he would never have been sent overseas because he was a security risk.
"Often overlooked benefit to single payer: To free up capital for small businesses now paying for employee healthcare insurance and allow companies who don't hire full timers to avoid paying benefits to hire full timers. This would allow small companies who do offer heath care to pay more to train employees or offer other non-heath care benefits.
A small family business, 60 employees, pays in excess of $40K per month for health insurance to cover it's employees, quite a drain on a company's resources. Many businesses can't afford to pay premiums."
It could happen if a Republican suggested it but I'm sure that won't happen, and whenever a Democrat suggests it they are called the worst person on earth since Karl Marx. Truth is that both parties would to the right thing and advocate UHC or single payer if we took the money out of politics but they are all stuck on the teat of pharma and health insurance company waiting for their next 'infusion' of campaign cash
But when it was suggested to eliminate tax deduction for businesses to provide health insurance, which is the natural precursor that would force single payer, those with employer provided health insurance freaked out. Those people are holding up single payer because they will pay more in taxes for single payer then what they are paying for their healthcare currently.
The only way to single payer is forced separation of health coverage and employment.
Ambulance rides do not cost "thousands of dollars". If you code three times on the way to the hospital that is one thing. An epileptic who is transported to a hospital might incur a charge closer to the $180 charged a Canadian. This doesn't mean U.S. Healthcare is the bee's knees, but it does mean that some of us maintain a sense of nuance and proportion even while we argue for change.
Let's get something straight: when your employer pays $40K/yr. to insure their workforce it does not obligate you to offer your firstborn out of gratitude. First off they get a better rate than you could ever manage because they are delivering 1000 heads in a stroke to the accounts receivables. Second, your employer isn't paying for your healthcare, you are. All of it. If your employer didn't have to pay $3k/yr for your healthcare, YOU would have gotten a $3k/yr more generous salary offer at your interview! So stop feeling sorry for your hard done to employer. They con you about your pension, they con you about your health insurance and more than a few of them take out life insurance on their employees with themselves as beneficiary, and they do not disclose this information to the employee.
Ambulance rides do not cost "thousands of dollars". If you code three times on the way to the hospital that is one thing. An epileptic who is transported to a hospital might incur a charge closer to the $180 charged a Canadian. This doesn't mean U.S. Healthcare is the bee's knees, but it does mean that some of us maintain a sense of nuance and proportion even while we argue for change.
Transport to and from a dialysis center 10 miles away by ambulance (because patient is not ambulatory, can't self transfer and has history of pressure ulcers - so is certified for ambulance transport) is $500+ each way.
10 miles.
This is not a patient that requires oxygen, or even monitoring. Simply a person who physically cannot be safely transported other ways.
So yes, going any distance at all, a bill of thousands would not be shocking. Especially if the ambulance crew had to do anything other than *drive*.
Also, $500+ is what the insurance PAYS. What is billed is closer to $800 per trip. (2 trips a day - there and back, 3x per week)
ambulance transport could easily bankrupt someone if it wasn't covered.
Let's get something straight: when your employer pays $40K/yr. to insure their workforce it does not obligate you to offer your firstborn out of gratitude. First off they get a better rate than you could ever manage because they are delivering 1000 heads in a stroke to the accounts receivables. Second, your employer isn't paying for your healthcare, you are. All of it. If your employer didn't have to pay $3k/yr for your healthcare, YOU would have gotten a $3k/yr more generous salary offer at your interview! So stop feeling sorry for your hard done to employer. They con you about your pension, they con you about your health insurance and more than a few of them take out life insurance on their employees with themselves as beneficiary, and they do not disclose this information to the employee.
First, group plans are generally MORE expensive than individual plans. 40K/year would cover maybe 2 employees on a family plan or maybe 6 employees on individual plans....
Second, you REALLY think your employer is going to pass those dollars on to you, keep in mind, they LOSE the tax benefits of offering plans so 1/2 of that $3000 goes to their general taxes then deduct the amount they save on FICA, etc. and maybe you might get a couple hundred IF your employer is that generous.
As for the key employee life insurance plans, yes, many companies do that for key employees, however, you can't take out life insurance on someone without them knowing. MOST key employee plans also come with a cash value that the key employee sees down the road as an intensive to stay with that company.
Let's get something straight: when your employer pays $40K/yr.
It was $40K/month for 60 employees, not $40K/year. And yes, it is part of an entire pay+benefit package. But you missed my point. That $480,000 a year is a big chunk when the net profits for this US manufacturing company fluctuates between showing a loss, breaking even or eking out out a small profit from year to year.
You know the Chinese company(s) that creates cheaper knock offs of the same type of products don't offer those kind of benefits or even pay minimum wage. I would like to know where you can get a pre-insurance $180 ambulance ride not just suppose that you might be able to get one. We pay insurance because the ad for the insurance says that it could cost you $28K for a single trip to the hospital.
If Trump really wants to make America Great Again he would be looking for ways to make Universal Health Care a reality.
But of course, Trump and his Whitehouse plunder monkeys aren't really interested in making anything but money. Taking no government pay is all a ruse. The real money is catering to his Russian oligarch buddies. That is where the real money is.
The U.S. spends about 18% of their GDP for health care. Most European countries with a universal health care system spend "just" about 11-12% of their GDP.
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Originally Posted by Leisesturm
The reason why it is a lot cheaper in most every other country is because it is. Period.
Spending less does not equate to costing less.
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Originally Posted by RMD3819
It's funny no one sees Medicare (or the VA) as a form of UHC.
That's because the VA is Worker's Compensation.
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Originally Posted by RMD3819
Does anyone know of a UHC country trying to convert to the American system?
Many Euro-States like Sweden and Germany are privatizing their healthcare systems.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Natnasci
Qwerty keeps perpetuating the myth that UHC is more restrictive than the US system. We both know it is not.
Let's see what the former German Minister of Health has to say about that:
"In the past 20 years, our overriding philosophy has been that the health system cannot spend more than its income.
Virtual budgets are also set up at the regional levels; these ensure that all participants in the system—including the health insurance funds and providers— know from the beginning of the year onward how much money can be spent."
Source: How Germany is reining in health care costs: An interview with Franz Knieps
When there's not enough money, healthcare is rationed by being diluted, delayed or denied.
"German doctors are not always able to provide patients with the care they need due to financial constraints, according to medical chiefs in the country."
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