What Options Come With Single Payer? (Massachusetts, government, state, federal)

[Weichert]

Originally Posted by whogo

The fact is those on Medicare are much more likely to die than those with private insurance.

Thats true but only the oldest and sickest (- those on disability) are enrolled in Medicare.

[PCALMike]

Originally Posted by whogo

States pass laws and impose taxes. They can’t issue money

Can the state pass a law that slaps tariffs on goods and services from out of state? No. Can a state ban all red staters from moving to a blue state? No it can not.

Its silly to compare the federal government with a county or state.

[cdnirene]

Originally Posted by lifeexplorer

Death panels. Government bureaucrats will determine what treatment you have and how.

So private insurance company bureaucrats in the U.S. don’t decide what treatments you can have that would be covered?

[ottomobeale]

Originally Posted by lifeexplorer

Death panels. Government bureaucrats will determine what treatment you have and how.

We have those now in every health insurance company plus the invisible one of the 25-50K people per year who die because of lack of insurance where they cannot or will not go (because of cost) to the doctor.

[illinoisphotographer]

This current issue is see is two fold:

1: There is no checks/balances in the medical industry on costs. It's a well known fact that you'll be charged insane amounts for common things (like $20 for ibuprofen if you're admitted for say surgery) and the stupidity of medical billing -- like a $250 charge for a doctor who came in for 60 seconds to check in on you during aftercare. This combined with price fixing/jacking from the pharmaceutical companies and the number of for-profit clinics popping up is raising prices out of control. Price shopping is pretty hard with medical situations, unless its a pre-planned surgery or event (like a birth of a child), thus they know they have a captive audience and can charge whatever they want.

2: There's no checks/balances on the insurance industry. Almost all of the providers are for-profit, meaning they owe financial responsibility to their shareholders/owners. It is in their best interests to pay out as little as possible and charge as much as possible in order to garner the most profit.

[Weichert]

Originally Posted by whogo

Yes and we wish to keep our employer subsidized insurance

Only a matter of time (and ever increasing premiums) until the employers say forget it. No more.

[PCALMike]

Originally Posted by mikeyyc

Canada is single payer only. No second tier. While it works overall, because the population is small, for the US there definitely needs to be a second tier available for those who want to purchase it.

Plenty of private options in Canada for those who want to pay for that.

And it has nothing to do with population size. Japan and Germany have over 200 million people and their national health care systems work just fine.

[illinoisphotographer]

Originally Posted by whogo

The fact is those on Medicare are much more likely to die than those with private insurance.

Because they're older

Someone who is 65+ is more likely to die than someone who is 0-65. Who would have thought.

[whogo]

Originally Posted by PCALMike

Can the state pass a law that slaps tariffs on goods and services from out of state? No. Can a state ban all red staters from moving to a blue state? No it can not.

Its silly to compare the federal government with a county or state.

How does insurance work in Hawaii and Massachusetts?

[PCALMike]

Originally Posted by illinoisphotographer

This current issue is see is two fold:

1: There is no checks/balances in the medical industry on costs. It's a well known fact that you'll be charged insane amounts for common things (like $20 for ibuprofen if you're admitted for say surgery) and the stupidity of medical billing -- like a $250 charge for a doctor who came in for 60 seconds to check in on you during aftercare. This combined with price fixing/jacking from the pharmaceutical companies and the number of for-profit clinics popping up is raising prices out of control. Price shopping is pretty hard with medical situations, unless its a pre-planned surgery or event (like a birth of a child), thus they know they have a captive audience and can charge whatever they want.

2: There's no checks/balances on the insurance industry. Almost all of the providers are for-profit, meaning they owe financial responsibility to their shareholders/owners. It is in their best interests to pay out as little as possible and charge as much as possible in order to garner the most profit.

You are absolutely right, and all the talk about everything else is just a distraction. The puppets in DC have no interest in changing either of those two issues as long as their big donations come from that industry.