Well they sure have been raising rates, though, haven't they? A lot! What I am pointing out to the OP is simply that he is suggesting that we substitute one government subsidy for another.
I tend to agree. Funny anecdote. You mentioned technology costs. I was offered a position with a company which builds some sort of machines for the health care industry. The temp agency offered me $11.00/hour. Yeah, I laughed and sent them an email asking what a tech could possibly be doing, with such important equipment, that the responsibility to make sure everything worked, so no humans could possibly be harmed during use, would garner such a small wage. I never got a response. Yeah, like I thought I really would. Edit: I forgot, they had BarryCare, too. Yeah, woopee! I couldn't afford what I would need on that income. This whole country is messed up. Now, if I lived in Mexico, where that kind of income would help me live like a king, it would be more than enough. Oh yeah baby! I'd be rich! Woohoo! And pay no taxes, too? My mouth is watering. Plus, I get free healthcare from the gubmint and food stamps and WIC and even welfare, cause I'm not registerd, haha.......yeah that was an intentional misspelling. ee.
They have always raised rates, but only with DOI approval. Rates rose slower under the ACA than prior. I agree. We should join the rest of the civilized world and adopt the proven superior system of single payer.
Get businesses out of the healthcare business. Let doctors decide what needs done for a patient. Close hospitals all over the country and turn them into hotels with shopping malls and entertainment on the first few floors. Put grocery stores in them on the ground floor. Save a few for folks in recovery or mild care with nurses and some internal medicine specialists. Pay them reasonable wages, but nothing exorbitant. Second line of defense is nurse practitioners and then a few managerial nurses to help out techs who simply report to higher ups with software on ipads connected to wifi. Keep drug companies and technology companies away from hospitals, doctors and insurance companies. Hire some senior managerial healthcare professional who gets bonuses from saving money on technology not needed and barely proven meds which the drug companies push using beautiful women in hot outfits with glasses and a briefcase. Sometimes they use handsome men, but I'm not gay , so I didnm't think of them first. Yes, keep business out of healthcare and you will save lots of money there. All those folks get very high wages and benefits greater than you can imagine for research and development. All of that must be reviewed and changed. Quit focusing on how we can all share the cost of these guys salaries, benefits and perks. Please!! Think folks. Use your heads. Or do you all work for some healthcare business? This does not throw out single payer, but it is a good start that needs done before single payer or anything will be affordable.
I am not anxious to do that. What I have suggested on this forum is that we insure the entire population as follows: Medicaid for the unemployed and the unemployable, Medicare for seniors 65+, Employer-provided health insurance for everyone else, including the employees' dependents. I have had the benefit of employer-provided health insurance all my life, and it has taken care of me and my family very well. This is not some radical idea out of left field. It is merely an expansion of a program that works very well for about 155,000,000 Americans (almost half of the population). It would cost the government nothing. There would be no need for subsidies or additional taxes or an increase in our annual federal deficit. And, it would take the government out of the political debates of what shall and shall not be covered, taxation to pay for it, etc, etc. About 30 million people would no longer need Medicaid. This program works. I know this from a lifetime of personal experience.
If you are being paid that low then you can get covered under Medicare (unless you are over 100% of the poverty level in a Republican state) or with Obamacare subsidies (wait Trump took that away). I guess keep living in Mexico until democrats pass healthcare reform that makes healthcare affordable for all like the rest of the world. Mexico has far cheaper healthcare than the US and has less government spending per capita than the US does like most other countries do. Enjoy your healthcare!
you are clueless how the free market works Insurance companies now will have to compete with more insurance companies Insurance company A charges 1000 per month for a standard policy insurance company B charges 900 insurance company B gets the majority of the insurance business insurance company C enters the market and offers 800 per month premiums to siphon off insurance customer for A and B now A and B lowers their premiums price per month to keep from losing customers Im shocked I have to explain that simple principle of a free market to any one. do they not teach any of that in school anymore ?
I don't live in Mexico. I'm a white U.S. born citizen, who can't get a freakin' decent job to save his life. I'm 55 years old and I'm more than screwed. I've already put my head between my legs a few times, and kissed my arse goodbye. I was told I could not get help to finish classes I took to get a decent job, because I'm white. Yep. I'm white. They used the term, "privileged". Yeah.....no kidding! I had no job and no money and bumped from job to job for years, but I am privileged. uh huh.......... I have an associates and experience in my field and a few others worth more than many machine and building maintenance men today. In fact, about twelve years ago, I tested for a machine maintenance position. The engineer hiring came out and asked if I was cheating, wanting to see what I brought with me. I showed him all of it. I asked if I did something that was considered cheating and he said no. I asked what the problem was and he said I scored higher on the test than the lead man in charge of machine and building maintenance, under him. I smiled and said, when do I start? He said I couldn't because he had to hire two guys who had friends or relatives, I can't remember, but someone was forcing his hand. Hahaha. I got a temp job at that place years later, to do some stupid low wage work, and watched one of these guys who'd been doing the job for years already, try to fix a machine. I knew what was wrong and told one of my buddies there at work. ssshh don't tell them. Let's see what happens. After an hour of working on it. he called another guy who was the other hired at that time. Another half hour and nothing was fixed. Finally after break, lunch I think, the engineer who didn't recognize me, but I did him, came in and looked at it. In twenty minutes he had it running. I asked him what he did to fix it. He told me. I told my buddy. We both had a hearty laugh. FU! ahahahaha. It's a wonderful country we live in. Need a job? You can have one for $10.50/hr, but you have to pay your own benefits. Oh, I've had some university courses, too, but no degree from one. And, I had a few from a local community college. No degree there, either. Bahahahaha Eff Mee!!
Under the plan I have suggested, you and your immediate family would be covered by health insurance if you had that $10.50/hr job ... at no cost to the government. Seth
You don't get it. Those guys were making twice, at least, more than I was. I want to work. I hate working those low paying jobs. I get bored too quickly and hate them. Yes, I want to work a great job that challenges me, but nope. Nice country we have now. It wasn't like this when I started working years ago. It's a great big pile of steaming dookie, now.
I sympathize with you, Chester. I was just addressing the topic of the thread which is health care. Men like you who are good with machines are getting a lot of work in the fracking boom, I hear. Just sayin' ... And btw ... I'm 62 and I actually enjoy working. I big piece of me is not looking forward to full retirement. I'd probably work (some) til I died if I could.
Thanks. I really think we need to address some of these things below, before employers will be willing to go back to the old system which did work well and is similar or the same as your suggestions.
Well, Chester ... That is thinking out of the box! Just imagine ... In Nevada, you could go to the hotel/hospital/casino! And the profits from the hotel business, shows, restaurants, and gaming could go towards offsetting the cost of the medical care! Think of all the "destination spots" in the U.S. like Honolulu, San Francisco, Miami Beach, Las Vegas, New York City - each with a hospital/hotel/entertainment center. Who knows? Ha! What a concept! Seth
The closed hospitals would no longer be used for patients. I'm saying we have too many with too few patients and they are being used for services best provided in specialty buildings with some critical and after surgery care. Too many full RN's are at these and they only need some techs who get paid less. Software designed to ask the proper questions to find out if someone with a higher level of education may easily be used to refer patients and keep track of them. It isn't rocket science. These places are way behind the curve, today. A few hospital only employed internal md's can make the big calls for help from certain doctors when needed, though they will only be used for the worst cases. Nurse Practitioners can handle most needs before the I M md's are called. They don't need that many and with the software, the proper algorithm will send the data to the proper health care worker. If there is a problem knowing how to answer a question, the few nurses can help. Get those drug companies out of doctor's offices. Get those technology companies out of hospitals and clinics. Let doctors do their jobs. Stop businesses that produce medical products from directing healthcare provided and allow doctors to do that. Stop drug companies from making those decisions, too. Get them the hell out of the doctor's business. Get them out of the insurance business. If they have a good product, it will catch on. They should not be allowed to make health care providers, doctors in particular use something because it's the newest thing on the market. Many times it's overrated for the patient's needs. Get business out of healthcare. I like how you misunderstood. That made me laugh. Maybe they can put a bowling alley on the floors between patients? hahahaha You're hilariously goofy.
Then, insurance will be less expensive for everyone. Competition will reign supreme and prices will go down.
Yes, a hospital/hotel/casino/movie theater/bowling alley/skating rink/restaurant/grocery store/department store/real estate sales/used car lot center - all owned by the hospital. Helluva idea! Well OK ... sometimes I just enjoy the lighter side. On a serious note, I have called my doctor's office for a problem I was having, and they have told me I can have an appointment with the doctor on such and such date, or I can see the PA sooner. And they asked me which I wanted. Recently I lacerated my finger and went to a hospital ER. Again, they asked me if I wanted the on-duty physician to sew it up or if I was OK with the PA sewing it up. In both cases I went with the PA. My point being that I think people want that choice, and I don't think Americans want to give that up. I agree with you that doctors should not be under pressure to buy machines or prescribe drugs for purely financial reasons. This is wrong. But, by the same token, we don't want to bite off our nose to spite our face because new technology can be very useful, and it can improve the outcomes for patients. For example, there are surgeries that can be done now using tiny cameras and tiny lasers. My mother-in-law had life-saving heart surgery a few years ago that only entailed poking a small hole into her through her rib cage. The surgeon was able to repair a heart valve without cracking her open. Really amazing stuff. So, you see, the devil is in the details. How you keep the drug and equipment companies from imposing unnecessary crap on medical providers, and yet without preventing useful new medicines or equipment from helping patients, is the hard part. And who decides that? Anyways, glad to give you a laugh. Cheers! Seth
It doesn't work that way in modern America. The CEOs are not willing to take pay cuts to save consumers money.
I thought your point was going to be that you didn't need to go to a hospital, and could have as well as should have gone to a clinic or whatever they call them today.....urgi care facitlity or something? They should be staffed with doctors who do many general things and can sew up a finger or something. Also, they can quickly make a decision to send you on to a hospital and send notice with that ipad algorithm. Who said they had to give that choice up? I'm talking about getting the businesses out of the insurance companies, hospitals, doctors offices, and Washinton, D.C. Why is that confusing? Glad she was able to take advantage of that. Robots can perform surgery with more precision than humans, too. Can you tie this part of your post in with what I said about having some agency look into things that are beneficial and then seeing if they can be afforded and how they can put them into use? Wouldn't a place specializing in that type of thoracic cavity surgery be the best option, rather than ten hospitals doing it? Shouldn't all those surgeons capable of performing the operation with or without a robot be at the same place? We already have boards to review things. Use them. Like I said, this isn't that difficult. It's only difficult because folks are afraid of change, but mostly, afraid of losing money. Some doctors and nurses would be better off on review boards or other areas of health care. Also, keep those suckers out of Washington, D.C. By the way, I love the old army uniforms. They can change the camo for best defense, but those goofy berets they went to sucked from day one. The only folks wearing them should be those guys in special ops. Even their berets should be different from those skull warmers they have today. They deserve better. Thanks for your service.
Aww, thank you. Referencing your username you noticed my post in the other thread. Didn't you? bahahaha Either that, or you don't realize one needs the internet. Who is asking them to take a paycut. Regulations change. Governments change them. Laws change. Easy come. Easy go. Cest live? Someone who knows the French language can forgive me for that and accept my apologies for butchery. com se com sa? Something like that. Geez, I'm a language butcher. Sorry folks. Don't even remember if that is French. That last one, I mean. If you could see me, you'd see my head hanging in shame. Serously............I wouldn't kid a kidder.
