Thread: Health Insurance in the U.S.

^ Because the government will take over and tell biz what to do?
Perhaps the govt should just take care of the folks who do not have healthcare (and many will not join up), including the 10mil or so illegal immigrants.

I don't know exactly what shape or form the Healthcare system will take in the USA, it appears several details are still being worked out. Certainly, if large amounts of US people are left uninsured then you are not dealing with a national health care system at all- but I doubt this will be the case.

Currently, if you have either a privately or employer sponsored healthcare scheme in the US that is comprehensive you are one of the lucky ones. By comprehensive, I mean :-
- one that is not full of holes & exclusions (so that you cannot be kicked out of the plan if, for example you are diagnosed with diabetes).
- a plan that covers both yourself and your dependants
- a plan that does not lapse if you lose your job

Most Americans, it would appear, are not in this position- which is a remarkable 'Sword of Damocles' for the citizens of arguably the worlds most advanced nation to have hanging over their heads. Bear in mind the citizens of all other advanced nations are born with this entitlement. Not to mention some distinctly unadvanced nations like Cuba.

So anything has got to be an improvement on the current system! The other aspects that are fairly clear are that substantial cost efficiencies can be extracted from the current healthcare system (or lack thereof)- but no one is pretending State healthcare will be free; and that consumers will have the right to choose between a Government Health insurance plan and a private- although, predictably, private health insurers do not want competition from the government. Well bully for them. In other countries, Private health insurance covers the Premium options, government health insurance the basics. It will likely go the same way in the states.

This guy is losing it even faster than we thought! BO's MICHAEL DUKAKIS MOMENT on health care. “If ObamaCare isn’t good enough for Sasha, Malia, or Michelle, then it’s not good enough for America.”

Originally Posted by man with no head

I think children should be entitled to free coverage from birth that terminates upon graduation from high school.

After that, I believe a person should be on their own. No more free universal coverage for seniors, etc.

I think that during the extreme states in man's life, being so young and being so old, he should be taken cared of. They are usually the helpless portion of society. Infants and kids cannot tend to themselves as yet. The seniors have gone through their lot in life and already needs to rest. Better take good care of them both!

^yes!,.there should be some type of safety net.

Other news,……………..

Public health care option should start from day one!

STFU Senator Kerry! Please!

Under the plan floated by Kerry, a public health care option would only be triggered by private insurance companies failing to meet certain criteria after ten years. Known as the "trigger" in legislative lingo, the idea is vociferously opposed by health care advocates who consider it the death of reform.



Link: Campaign Silo » John Kerry, you said what?

Children should also get free insurance. They do not have the income like the 65+ people and parents are also trying hard to get their own in case of medical emergencies.

My position (also),…………….

You're never going to get a decent healthcare bill by pandering to Republicans, and with 76% of Americans in favor of a public option, you're not going to please them and please the public at the same time. Most likely, pleasing Republicans will just get used as an excuse to do what Kay Hagan wants, which is give the insurance industry everything it wants.



We need a public plan that is:

• available nationwide
• on day one
• and accountable to Congress and the voters

So, let's stop trying to please the GOP, and start trying to serve the best interests of the public. If the GOP isn't on board with something that's so broadly popular, let's just admit we can do this with Democrats, and get it done.



F’em, we’ll go it alone

Let's see the cost again?

Originally Posted by Jet Gorgon

Let's see the cost again?

Don't get technical on us now, Jet. It's the aim of these Progressives to have a single-payer i.e. the Government, dictate to us all what is best for us!

Well, Americans are learning their numbers! Million, billion, trillion dollars in debt...soon, they'll know quadrillion, quintillion, sextillion...Oh! That's cool! sex and numbers to help them forget where BO has led them.

Who said Americans can't get good Health insurance for a competitive price?

For the princely sum of $35 per month for your whole family, check this plan out:-

"unlimited doctor's office visits of your choosing; all routine exams, physical therapy, accidents, labs and X-rays are covered, as are unlimited hospital stays, most chronic care and rehab; you'd have full prescription coverage, and unlimited specialist consultations. There would be no deductibles and no co-pays. And that's for you and your entire family."

So how do you get this great plan? Simple. Become a member of Congress.

Health insurance leeches bleeding America dry | Charlotte | News | Boomer with Attitude

Originally Posted by Jet Gorgon

Well, Americans are learning their numbers! Million, billion, trillion dollars in debt...soon, they'll know quadrillion, quintillion, sextillion...Oh! That's cool! sex and numbers to help them forget where BO has led them.

Quite an accomplishment in a mere 5 months for a guy some say is nothing but a do nothing talking suit.

^ C'mon, BO is doing his part, but who's pulling the strings in the WH?

^^ Nice info, SB. Gotta love it.

I have no idea why it has been possible to make the concept of Government healthcare for all citizens such a scary issue for many Americans, the price of healthcare have run amok in the US precisely because it has been totally unregulated, it really is a Godsend when it is working, everybody pay a "little bit" through their taxes and everybody have the right to the same high quality healthcare. In the end it works out much cheaper for the individual compared to have to pay a private insurance, and then you can go to any Doctor or hospital any time anywhere with every kind of problem and be treated for free.

Of cause in the US to get the costs back down to reasonable levels, a lot of cutting away of overinflated prices on medicine, equipment and salary's will have to be done, the ridiculous lawsuit system in that area has to be brought back to earth like realistic levels as well.

Why do you think that if I try to take out a medical insurance and take away coverage in the US the price falls significantly ?

Someone have had success with creating a horror scenario about this and with most Americans never having tried to live a place where this actually works pretty good they have a completely false idea about how good this actually is for everybody and the costs on society.

^ Ask an average Canadian how the system works here, Larv. Most would disagree with you.

^ Yes, lets ask a Canuck. This one has lived in the US for 17 years. Time to debunk some myths.



Myth: Taxes in Canada are extremely high, mostly because of national health care.
In actuality, taxes are nearly equal on both sides of the border. Overall, Canada's taxes are slightly higher than those in the U.S. However, Canadians are afforded many benefits for their tax dollars, even beyond health care (e.g., tax credits, family allowance, cheaper higher education), so the end result is a wash. At the end of the day, the average after-tax income of Canadian workers is equal to about 82 percent of their gross pay. In the U.S., that average is 81.9 percent.
Myth: Canada's health care system is a cumbersome bureaucracy.
The U.S. has the most bureaucratic health care system in the world. More than 31 percent of every dollar spent on health care in the U.S. goes to paperwork, overhead, CEO salaries, profits, etc. The provincial single-payer system in Canada operates with just a 1 percent overhead. Think about it. It is not necessary to spend a huge amount of money to decide who gets care and who doesn't when everybody is covered.
Myth: The Canadian system is significantly more expensive than that of the U.S.Ten percent of Canada's GDP is spent on health care for 100 percent of the population. The U.S. spends 17 percent of its GDP but 15 percent of its population has no coverage whatsoever and millions of others have inadequate coverage.


Myth: Canada's government decides who gets health care and when they get it.While HMOs and other private medical insurers in the U.S. do indeed make such decisions, the only people in Canada to do so are physicians. In Canada, the government has absolutely no say in who gets care or how they get it. Medical decisions are left entirely up to doctors, as they should be.
There are no requirements for pre-authorization whatsoever. If your family doctor says you need an MRI, you get one. In the U.S., if an insurance administrator says you are not getting an MRI, you don't get one no matter what your doctor thinks — unless, of course, you have the money to cover the cost.
Myth: There are long waits for care, which compromise access to care.There are no waits for urgent or primary care in Canada. There are reasonable waits for most specialists' care, and much longer waits for elective surgery.

Myth: Canadians are paying out of pocket to come to the U.S. for medical care.Most patients who come from Canada to the U.S. for health care are those whose costs are covered by the Canadian governments. If a Canadian goes outside of the country to get services that are deemed medically necessary, not experimental, and are not available at home for whatever reason (e.g., shortage or absence of high tech medical equipment; a longer wait for service than is medically prudent; or lack of physician expertise), the provincial government where you live fully funds your care

Myth: Canada is a socialized health care system in which the government runs hospitals and where doctors work for the government.Princeton University health economist Uwe Reinhardt says single-payer systems are not "socialized medicine" but "social insurance" systems because doctors work in the private sector while their pay comes from a public source. Most physicians in Canada are self-employed. They are not employees of the government nor are they accountable to the government.


Myth: There aren't enough doctors in Canada. From a purely statistical standpoint, there are enough physicians in Canada to meet the health care needs of its people. But most doctors practice in large urban areas, leaving rural areas with bona fide shortages. This situation is no different than that being experienced in the U.S. Simply training and employing more doctors is not likely to have any significant impact on this specific problem. Whatever issues there are with having an adequate number of doctors in any one geographical area, they have nothing to do with the single-payer system.

Full article- Debunking Canadian health care myths - The Denver Post

Cant green you, but nice one S.

Originally Posted by sabang

^ Yes, lets ask a Canuck. This one has lived in the US for 17 years.

That answers it all, SB, he's been out of the country for 17 years, he lives in Denver and this a politically driven article.
I don't know where the writer got his stats (but hey, it's in the newspaper so it must be true).
Here's what I know from personal experience here:
Healthcare is run by each provincial/territorial govt. I pay $54 a month, Alberta residents pay $0 (and I'll tell you from family/friends' experience, they get what they pay for).
Prescription costs and stuff like physio or special treatment (like $2,000 eye jabs for macular degeneration) are at the patient's expense.
It is nigh on impossible to get a GP (I was lucky I got on with my Sister's -- but, hey, she died, I'm a replacement patient).
No GP, no an annual checkup -- sure, walk-in clinics are free, but you must have a problem, like your eyeball hanging out or something.
Good luck getting in to see a specialist.
Emergency room wait times. Lemmeesee, took my Sis in at 3pm, we waited in the corridor stuffed with other patients till about 3am; I left her in the ER ward at about 6am.
Sure, it's a safety net, but it's pretty shite. I would agree it's better than the NIS.
Good luck, USA.

^ still better than in the USA

Originally Posted by Jet Gorgon

took my Sis in at 3pm, we waited in the corridor stuffed with other patients till about 3am

A 12 hour wait- thats crappy. Surely thats not normal? Crappy anyway.

^ 12 hours in the corridor; I was trashed and had to leave ER at 6ish -- the doc had just come to look at her. SB, that's pretty much the norm unless you are delivered from a car crash or are a politician (but most of them go to private clinics). Sis had a bad spell after a cancer treatment (mehh, she's gonna die anyway was the attitude).
Better care in Thailand.

The House released its health care reform bill today -- the America's Affordable Health Choices Act -- and will begin three simultaneous committee markups on different provisions later this week.

General Health Care Features:
A. Up to 97 percent of Americans will be covered with federal health care and/or health insurance.

B. Medicaid coverage will be improved and be expanded to allow people up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level. The Feds will pick up the added costs, not states.

C. Uninsured people with incomes above that 133 percent of fed poverty level (FPL) will receive federal credits (subsidies) to help purchase insurance in a new federal insurance Exchange. The feds will build the exchange, but states/regions can take over their regional operations if/when they're ready.

D. A national health insurance plan ("public option") will be one of the plans available in the exchange to individuals and small businesses that don't have insurance.




First Draft

^ No word on taxing healthcare benefits? I guess the unions would not allow that for their lot.