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Yet the same liberals who want UHC condemn immigration restrictions as racist. Can you have it both ways? Do you really believe liberal immigration policies does not strain the welfare state?
I have a heart condition, the wife is a diabetic. We are both in our late 50's. My insurance must be outrageous without ACA, right?
No, I get insurance through my work. I pay the same rate a twenty year old at work pays. The fact is Americans have choices. I suspect UHC would end up costing me more and the corporation I work for less.
Lets say you were laid off from work, what would you do? Switch over to COBRA is what you would do, correct?
“It is amazing that people who think we cannot afford to pay for doctors, hospitals, and medication somehow think that we can afford to pay for doctors, hospitals, medication and a government bureaucracy to administer it.”
--Thomas Sowell
Government bureaucracy v insurance companies?
I'd choose the good old USA any day!
Healthcare in this country is a commodity, sold on the free market. Doctors never read the contracts they sign with the managed care, for- profit, payers they are up against. Today's doctors are like whores, doing what they have to do. Ask me about " Granny Dumping" and United Healthcare.
Sooner of later most people need some form of health care. They do not need the cost and interference of a private profit centered insurance company to pay for that care. Eliminating insurance company wages, managements and profits would cut the cost of paying for medical care substantially.
I suggest a government managed payment system much like Medicare for all. This would establish cost controls on providers, hospital owners and pharmaceutical companies. This could be paid for by either applying Social Security to all income from all sources or a similar but more preferable tax system based on All Income from All Sources with a single deductible set at the 90 or 95th percentile.
One of the benefits of this form of taxation is it would eliminate most of the cash available for stock speculation, below cost mortgages and absurd military (F-35) boondoggles. The other benefit would be providing enough money for medical research and high quality care for everyone.
You have enough money for Middle Eastern wars but not enough money for healthcare.
American mentality.
Unfortunately it may be your mentality that's doing more harm.
Maybe look at the numbers before an unfounded, feel good, knee jerk post? We already spend WAY more on health care than defense, adding all Americans would be a huge expense - you'd be adding 170 million new patients! We're the only developed country without some form of universal healthcare, there are dozens of ways to get there.
Until we introduce competition or some mechanism to rein in the underlying high costs in US healthcare, we're going to continue to pay far more than all other developed countries, and cover fewer citizens, while achieving poorer outcomes than most developed countries.
The status quo is denying us healthcare, and unfortunately Obamacare just institutionalized the high cost structure. Not to minimize pre-existing conditions, individual mandates, dependents until 26 - but those things just exacerbated the cost issue which needs has to be addressed. Even AHCA is just moving the furniture around instead of fixing the broken house.
Which is why I want just catastrophic insurance, a tax free HSA and to be allowed to pay for my normal medical needs myself.
This can be done if doctors and hospitals are forced to publish prices and fines for any gouging. Allow catastrophic insurance to be sold across state lines and don't allow pharmaceutical companies to sell medications in the US for a dime more than what they sell them for overseas. Oh, and of course model tort reform after that in Texas. People should receive pain and suffering, real damages for current and future lost income as well as current and future medical costs but all punitive damages go to the state.
If I have to pay for my medical procedures, outside catastrophic, I'm going to be relatively frugal with that money.
How do you feel about government regulation in general?
The current budget makers won't go along with any of these ideas?
Americans pay a thousand dollars a month in insurance premiums but can't even afford to use the insurance when they need it because of the ridiculous five to ten thousand dollar deductible. All your money is going to pay for the huge premiums so you don't have any money left to pay the deductible when you need it. Why not forego the worthless insurance and simply put the thousand dollars in your own bank account every month and it will be there if you need it.
Insurance companies collect huge premiums every month but rarely have to pay out when someone actually needs to use it. What a fantastic racket they got going there, one of the greatest on-going swindles in US history. The mafia would be proud!
Which is why I want just catastrophic insurance, a tax free HSA and to be allowed to pay for my normal medical needs myself.
This can be done if doctors and hospitals are forced to publish prices and fines for any gouging. Allow catastrophic insurance to be sold across state lines and don't allow pharmaceutical companies to sell medications in the US for a dime more than what they sell them for overseas. Oh, and of course model tort reform after that in Texas. People should receive pain and suffering, real damages for current and future lost income as well as current and future medical costs but all punitive damages go to the state.
If I have to pay for my medical procedures, outside catastrophic, I'm going to be relatively frugal with that money.
Sounds like a plan.
How often and how many prices should the providers publish? How detailed would you want us/them to go?
What if one state sells you a catastrophic policy not accepted in your state, or your hospital, as it is a low ball policy and somehow does not pay enough, doesn't think you actually have a catastrophe, or or does not cover your catastrophe?
How do you price drugs within a dime with floating foreign currency exchange rates?
Tort reform would be great for me the doc. But will not lower HC costs. Just look at TX. Make it cheaper for high risk docs to practice in any state, and more high risks docs will move there. Then more high risk stuff gets done. Much in medicine is always left undone. So HC costs will rise.
I don't expect you to answer, just raising questions on the details.
Americans pay a thousand dollars a month in insurance premiums but can't even afford to use the insurance when they need it because of the ridiculous five to ten thousand dollar deductible. All your money is going to pay for the huge premiums so you don't have any money left to pay the deductible when you need it. Why not forego the worthless insurance and simply put the thousand dollars in your own bank account every month and it will be there if you need it.
Insurance companies collect huge premiums every month but rarely have to pay out when someone actually needs to use it. What a fantastic racket they got going there, one of the greatest on-going swindles in US history. The mafia would be proud!
Obamacare does work as a catastrophic. They do pay out when the S really hits the fan. And that is happening more often due to patient mal-selection. And that's why so many complain who have to pay premiums but don't need catastrophic. Also when people need their preventative stuff, they complain less with Obamacare.
Good point. And one major conundrum concerning HC insurance carriers and consumer/patients. That is the vast sea of information asymmetry that exists in medical care. There may be 10,000 medical conditions with 30,000 potential medical treatments that you as a patient may need next year, that you've never heard of, let alone know enough about your future HC needs. Insurance knows all this as it apples to large groups. Of course not to your advantage, as you finally dig up your policy and have your paid JD/MD consultant give you the bad news. 20 years ago this was a huge issue with bone marrow transplants. My former secretary's son is a healthy strapping 19 y/o today, instead of dying at age 5 from a very rare T cell lymphoma.
Wonderful post with factual information. Also great to read of a good outcome of personal experience. Would that every cancer story ended that way.
Why it being so difficult to understand that any entity existing on a business model of providing profits and shareholder dividends would of mandate not have the best interests of those consumers/members with the potential to reduce either of those, is beyond my ability to comprehend.
I'm hoping some "come to Jesus" moment occurs in the U.S. and a movement starts that culminates in a complete overhaul and will admit to an non-altruistic bent. I fantasize as to a system that would serve to cover both our countries, providing a universally designed system with a cost to benefit ratio lusted after by the rest of the world. Think of the unparalleled bargaining power to keep the costs of pharmaceuticals and procedures within reason.
I dream of the continued ability for the U.S. to lead us all with medical research and innovations by the shear might of it's huge economy. I would also add icing to the cake by making it desirable for doctors to obtain their training in either country through a certification process that stipulates accommodation to either countries requirements at the outset.
I'm a pie in the sky guy...
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