Health Care

[C L]

Thanks Rob.

[shawn_oneil]

It's not cheap to do this but it is a necessary hurdle to avoid "snake oil."

Its all snake oil.
The current medical field can NOT handle the influx of potentially new patients that would be arriving at the door step of this new found FREE service.
The problem is that we also pay for all of those 12 million illegal (aka undocumented worker) aliens. Go to the hospital ER and see the long lines. It stinks to see a US citizen with or without insurance having to wait to see a doctor because they are attending to some illegal alien that has overdosed on Crack.
What is the tax burden on those counties that offer Universal Health Care? Its enormous as it is also used to fund all those other social programs they offer. They work, as a society, much less than the US. Nobody want to work anymore yet they demand services.

Shawn

[curt]

Lastly, no one is talking about taking anyone's insurance away, everyone is talking about covering the uninsured. The proposed improvements to our health care system are very different than the universal health care provided in Canada.

There are pluses and minuses to the Canadian system. My sister's family is directly involved. Actually it is not one national system, as people think. It is 13 provincial and territorial systems with a certain amount of reciprocity.

Our system puts us at a competitive disadvantage in assigning health care costs directly to exported goods and services. Also, there is less job mobility because people will stay in jobs they hate if there is good health care or if they have some medical condition that will make it difficult for them to join the coverage at a new job.

[shawn_oneil]

I'm not a Human Resources person, but I believe that there is a document that you can obtain from your current insurance provider that indicates your status as insurable. If you were to take on a new job with a different insurance carrier that this letter would require them to take you for coverage regardless of any preexisting conditions.
Shawn

[Rob C]

Congress passed HIPAA in 1996.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) provides rights and protections for participants and beneficiaries in group health plans. HIPAA includes protections for coverage under group health plans that limit exclusions for preexisting conditions; prohibit discrimination against employees and dependents based on their health status; and allow a special opportunity to enroll in a new plan to individuals in certain circumstances. HIPAA may also give you a right to purchase individual coverage if you have no group health plan coverage available, and have exhausted COBRA or other continuation coverage.

[shawn_oneil]

Rob,
Thanks. As soon as I saw the "HIPPA" name then it clicked.
Thanks again,
Shawn

[Rob C]

I found this website to compare the candidates and where they stand on health care.

I don't know how accurate this site is.

[Rob C]

Here is a video summary from Barack Obama's website.

[C L]

U.S. worst in preventable death

Take it with a grain of salt of course

[Rob C]

U.S. worst in preventable death

Take it with a grain of salt of course

Not sure about the grain of salt. We were bad 10 years ago and we have gotten relatively worse. 100,000 preventable deaths in a single year is pretty significant.

[formerlurker]

I don't have insurance right now. I looked into it, but the price was $600 a month and $2000+ deductible per person. I have a primary care physician. When I am sick, which is rare, I am charged less than the person with insurance. Why? Because I go, I pay, and the paperwork is over.

How much would you pay for a year's worth of cancer treatments or physical therapy following an automobile accident? How much would you pay for lifelong services for a disabled loved one?

This BIG problem with our health care system is that we have universal coverage but do not require universal participation in the risk/contribution pool. When you or your child gets sick -- real sick -- you will seek and receive care. You will not pay for it.

You're not alone. Illegals, young earners, and the self employed choose not to buy insurance. The problem is (in my best George Bailey voice) that premiums are not sitting in an account waiting for the insured to get sick. These premiums are treating other people and funding infrastructure.

If everyone was required to buy insurance, the cost per person would go down. If insurance coverage was tiered, people could get basic coverage for a reasonable price. In the worst case, the lowest tier could be subsidized.

Maybe a basic level of service limits ability to seek damages in case of error or puts you in a ward instead of a private room or requires you to go to Walmart for shots, checkups, and minor treatment, or requires you to participate in clinics (mammogram day, vaccinations, hiv screening, prostrate poke, etc.), or sends you to Walmart for $5 prescriptions. Couple this with co payments that affect behavior (high co payment for emergency room visit and elective surgery) and health care becomes less expensive for all.

I don't think health care is a birthright, but I want everyone to have it...and pay for it.

[LM]

I don't have insurance right now. I looked into it, but the price was $600 a month and $2000+ deductible per person. I have a primary care physician. When I am sick, which is rare, I am charged less than the person with insurance. Why? Because I go, I pay, and the paperwork is over.

How much would you pay for a year's worth of cancer treatments or physical therapy following an automobile accident? How much would you pay for lifelong services for a disabled loved one?

This BIG problem with our health care system is that we have universal coverage but do not require universal participation in the risk/contribution pool. When you or your child gets sick -- real sick -- you will seek and receive care. You will not pay for it.

You're not alone. Illegals, young earners, and the self employed choose not to buy insurance. The problem is (in my best George Bailey voice) that premiums are not sitting in an account waiting for the insured to get sick. These premiums are treating other people and funding infrastructure.

If everyone was required to buy insurance, the cost per person would go down. If insurance coverage was tiered, people could get basic coverage for a reasonable price. In the worst case, the lowest tier could be subsidized.

Maybe a basic level of service limits ability to seek damages in case of error or puts you in a ward instead of a private room or requires you to go to Walmart for shots, checkups, and minor treatment, or requires you to participate in clinics (mammogram day, vaccinations, hiv screening, prostrate poke, etc.), or sends you to Walmart for $5 prescriptions. Couple this with co payments that affect behavior (high co payment for emergency room visit and elective surgery) and health care becomes less expensive for all.

I don't think health care is a birthright, but I want everyone to have it...and pay for it.

You're right...we have thought about the "what if" aspect. So far we haven't had to go anywhere except to the regular doctor for minor things, so we pay as we go.

There are some small companies that do not offer insurance, or who have it at very high rates.

I hesitate at letting the government have control of one more thing. A lot of people in government have a hard time keeping control of themselves and actually accomplishing what they set out to accomplish. They're so busy competing to see which party is best that a lot of things are left undone. I wonder if universal healthcare will become about the money and not about the care needed (especially for the elderly or handicapped).

Massachusetts has a new policy where you have to have insurance or you can't get a job. Does anyone know how that's going?

One of the roots of the health care problems here in the US is that we don't live healthy lifestyles. We constantly feed our families foods that are not healthy, that have known carcinogens in them, but they're all over the grocery store shelves so we buy them because they're fairly inexpensive and won't go bad for weeks if we leave them in the pantry.

Check out your child's toothpaste...the one made for kids with the flavors...the warning says if you swallow more than the amount of toothpaste, contact your doctor or poison control center immediately.
Why is that?? Household cleaners...if you breath in too much contact your doctor or poison control center. The new light bulbs that are energy efficient contain mercury, so when they break they will create health issues.

We love the convenience and low price but are ultimately paying the price with our health.

I think most people want everyone to be covered by insurance and contributing, but a lot of people don't think the government can run it properly.