Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
well we wouldn't need to have health insurance for medicines and regular doctor visits if the doctor visits only 25 dollars or less, or if you needed allergy medicine for 10 bucks....
But when Doctor visits are 80 dollars or more, and allergy medicine is 200, I needed nasonex CVS soad it cost 125.00...give me a break, people cannot afford that. and this is why we have to have insurance.
My own Docotr siad it was a PITA, that is why Doctors charge so much a visit because of the insurance....
You are paying for the cost of the health insurance one way or another. Even if your employer is paying for 100% of the premium, that is money he could be paying you instead. This is a perfect example of how health insurance increases the cost of healthcare to everyone.
You are paying for the cost of the health insurance one way or another. Even if your employer is paying for 100% of the premium, that is money he could be paying you instead. This is a perfect example of how health insurance increases the cost of healthcare to everyone.
What's your alternative, no insurance? What if you get into an accident; need an operation or get cancer? How are you expected to pay for those expenses out-of-pocket? A normal working person couldn't possibly fund a health care fund that could pay for those expenses -- besides, those catastrophic events could happen at any time.
You are paying for the cost of the health insurance one way or another. Even if your employer is paying for 100% of the premium, that is money he could be paying you instead. This is a perfect example of how health insurance increases the cost of healthcare to everyone.
The only way you can really make that statement is to compare the various costs of different healthcare mechanisms.
You might be shocked but several for profit insurers still have lower expenses (including profit) than government operated platforms. Sometimes they are higher, it just all depends.
Government run programs can get extremely politically entrenched. They won't correct problems because they *can't* go bankrupt so they just run big deficits to buy votes.
Look no further than the ticking timebomb in Florida called Citizens insurance. The admittedly underpriced, woefully underfunded, largest property insurer in the state now....on a risk adjusted basis they an enormous market share.
If you haven't heard of them....wait for the next bad hurricane season and you will.
What's your alternative, no insurance? What if you get into an accident; need an operation or get cancer? How are you expected to pay for those expenses out-of-pocket? A normal working person couldn't possibly fund a health care fund that could pay for those expenses -- besides, those catastrophic events could happen at any time.
Suppose your employer gave you the money he pays for your health insurance premium. You take that money and buy a catastrophic health insurance policy with the highest deductable you can find. You open a HSA and pay all out of pocket expenses from that account.
This is not the perfect solution since our medical establishment is geared to people havi ng health insurance. Some doctors may not accept you as a patient if you don't have insurance.
The only way you can really make that statement is to compare the various costs of different healthcare mechanisms.
You might be shocked but several for profit insurers still have lower expenses (including profit) than government operated platforms. Sometimes they are higher, it just all depends.
Government run programs can get extremely politically entrenched. They won't correct problems because they *can't* go bankrupt so they just run big deficits to buy votes.
Look no further than the ticking timebomb in Florida called Citizens insurance. The admittedly underpriced, woefully underfunded, largest property insurer in the state now....on a risk adjusted basis they an enormous market share.
If you haven't heard of them....wait for the next bad hurricane season and you will.
I don't think we are talking about the same thing. I was responding to nighcrawler's comment. People expect health insurance to cover all of their expenses. That eliminates competition. Look at how costs have come done for Lasik surgery since health insurance is not involved.
Suppose your employer gave you the money he pays for your health insurance premium. You take that money and buy a catastrophic health insurance policy with the highest deductable you can find. You open a HSA and pay all out of pocket expenses from that account.
This is not the perfect solution since our medical establishment is geared to people having health insurance. Some doctors may not accept you as a patient if you don't have insurance.
First, an employer won't give you the full price of the insurance because it's a tax-deduction to them. If they gave you the cash, you'd be subject to income tax and your net on that money would be lest.
Second, if you are trying to buy an individual insurance plan you will be subject to pre-existing condition rules and the cost of that coverage will rise with age. Otherwise, you are trading more out-of-pocket expenses in exchange for lower premiums. It may get to the point that the insurance company won't renew the policy. They love insurance young healthy people -- older people, not so much. Also remember that these policies have high deductables -- in the $10K-$15K range. There are several conditions that might get you excluded from any health insurance policy, but the list of conditions that would make you ineligible for a catastrophic policy is much longer. In addition, many catastrophic policies contain a clause that suspends coverage for maternity care until after a year of membership.
That's why employer provided coverage is attractive.
You might be shocked but several for profit insurers still have lower expenses (including profit) than government operated platforms. Sometimes they are higher, it just all depends.
May be that is because for-profit insurers try not to bother with high risk customers, whereas the government doesn't have a choice (and, as you said, settles for "lower profits" ).
So, you're ok with a health care insurance policy being a license for the insurance company to intrude upon your personal life in a way you would never accept the government intruding? Doing what you suggested would require you to be under constant monitoring by the insurance company -- seeing and approving what you eat, drink and smoke.
Where the hell did I type that?
Any health care funding system based on logic should be encouraging preventative treatment - the "oil changes" in the stupid car insurance simile. It lowers total expenses for the insurer. Which is why (for instance) my insurer is going all-out about covering early scanning and yearly check-ups and whatnot.
Last edited by Dane_in_LA; 04-16-2012 at 10:43 AM..
First, an employer won't give you the full price of the insurance because it's a tax-deduction to them. If they gave you the cash, you'd be subject to income tax and your net on that money would be lest.
Second, if you are trying to buy an individual insurance plan you will be subject to pre-existing condition rules and the cost of that coverage will rise with age. Otherwise, you are trading more out-of-pocket expenses in exchange for lower premiums. It may get to the point that the insurance company won't renew the policy. They love insurance young healthy people -- older people, not so much. Also remember that these policies have high deductables -- in the $10K-$15K range. There are several conditions that might get you excluded from any health insurance policy, but the list of conditions that would make you ineligible for a catastrophic policy is much longer. In addition, many catastrophic policies contain a clause that suspends coverage for maternity care until after a year of membership.
That's why employer provided coverage is attractive.
Only under our distorted system!
Many people are losing employer provided coverage. It discriminates against the self-employed and small businesses. A competitive market would allow everyone to be insurance on an equal basis. A competitive market would give people incentives for spending their money wisely.
Many people are losing employer provided coverage. It discriminates against the self-employed and small businesses. A competitive market would allow everyone to be insurance on an equal basis. A competitive market would give people incentives for spending their money wisely.
What exactly is a competitive market?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
).
