Crime and the economy

[AngieChick]

Quote:

You said it! Nothing is free. MY main concern with it would be:
1: Its government run..and we all know how that goes here...
2: right now with my insurance that i pay for, we DO have a say in our care..alot of say..more than we know. BUT..with government run care those rights/choices will be mostly gone, BUT we will STILL be paying for insurance..only through taxes or something through the government. So, i'd rather pay myself and have a say in my health care, then pay through taxes and have no say in my health care..

I get what you are saying, and understand the concerns. However, with this particular issue I think we have to step back and look at the bigger picture of how best to serve the citizenry of our nation as a whole - not just those of us fortunate enough to have health insurance coverage at this moment.

There are many more ways to accomplish this than just through a single payer system. Not allowing insurance companies to make a profit and offering a government policy is one. This has been done in other nations successfully. Just because the insurance companies aren't allowed to make a profit doesn't mean that they aren't allowed to grow, those are 2 different things. Their policies are also heavily regulated to avoid some of the issues with pre-existing conditions and denial of doctor recommended treatments. If a person becomes unemployed, the government picks up their insurance as part of their unemployment benefits. These are just some of the ideas floating around.

Solving this problem is going to require some creative thinking and research. I have confidence that we can do this. For pete's sake, we put a man on the moon in the 1960's - we as a nation can deal with our health care issues.

 

[redhen]

Quote:

You said it! Nothing is free. MY main concern with it would be:
1: Its government run..and we all know how that goes here...
2: right now with my insurance that i pay for, we DO have a say in our care..alot of say..more than we know. BUT..with government run care those rights/choices will be mostly gone, BUT we will STILL be paying for insurance..only through taxes or something through the government. So, i'd rather pay myself and have a say in my health care, then pay through taxes and have no say in my health care..

I get what you are saying, and understand the concerns. However, with this particular issue I think we have to step back and look at the bigger picture of how best to serve the citizenry of our nation as a whole - not just those of us fortunate enough to have health insurance coverage at this moment.

There are many ways to accomplish this than just through a single payer system. Not allowing insurance companies to make a profit and offering a government policy is one. This has been done in other nations successfully. Just because the insurance companies aren't allowed to make a profit doesn't mean that they aren't allowed to grow, those are 2 different things. Their policies are also heavily regulated to avoid some of the issues with pre-existing conditions and denial of doctor recommended treatments. If a person becomes unemployed, the government picks up their insurance as part of their unemployment benefits. These are just some of the ideas floating around.

Solving this problem is going to require some creative thinking and research. I have confidence that we can do this. For pete's sake, we put a man on the moon in the 1960's - we as a nation can deal with our health care issues.

I hope we can..i really do! Its been a struggle for us to keep our health insurance also. My husband was laid off for 1 1/2 years (sheet metal worker)..and we were so very lucky to, just this month, lose our health insurance. The union had paid it for us for all the that time. And thank god he, just this week, got called back to work..so he has to work so many hours now, and then we will have health insurance again. I think its like 2 or 3 months he has to work and we'll get insurance again...Keeping fingers crossed that we dont get ill in the mean time..

 

[Lu King]

Unfortunately, Americans pay a lot more for their medicine than any other country in the world. In other words , we are paying for a share of their medicine while we have to either do without...or resort to stealing like the poor guy in the first message. I haven't stolen in order to pay for the medicine of my son who has diabetes and acid reflux, but have done without to pay for it.

 

[beak]

Quote:
No, it's not like Canada. If you are uninsured you will be able to buy insurance at a reduced rate depending on income and family size. There will be a public option which is a bunch of different plans that can be purchased through the gov. It will be portable and will stay with you with the same benefits wherever you move in the US. If you have insurance already you can keep it. Hopefully the price will go down because the gov plans will cost less and have better coverage with lower co-pays and deductibles. All the govt offered plans will have no waiting period for coverage and will have no exclusions for pre-existing conditions.

There is a lot of fear mongering on this. The big health carriers are afraid of the competition and are worried about losing their huge profits. United Health cares CEO has a contract for 1.7 Billion dollars in compensation over the next 10 years. Makes you wonder why health insurance is so expensive.

There is no fear mongering on this. There are people who have seen nationalized health care FAIL miserably in every other country that has it, and they don't want it to happen here. Tell me why people flock to America for surgeries if their national health care is so great. I'm sorry, but you can't hear the stories coming from the horses mouths and tell me we should move into that barn, too.


It amazes me that anyone thinks the government is going to run healthcare better than they run the IRS, and the DMV, and the post office, and I'm sorry but I've BEEN in waiting rooms full of government health care recipients. IT SUCKS!


If you want the government to take care of all of your problems, move to a country where they already do that. You'll be back soon.

I can see you have been listening to the media that presents the fear mongering side. I listen to the other side. I've heard a lot of Canadians on this forum defend the Canadian system. Everything I have heard indicates that for the most part the systems in other countries work quite well. That would be one of the reasons why the US is #37 in health care. The people you are hearing from are presented by those insurance companies with stock holders that need a lot of money and CEO's that make millions f dollars a year. The only way to get a decent plan in the US is to have am employer that has good coverage for you. At the rate insurance is going up, you can expect that fringe benefit to be severely reduced or eliminated in the next 10 years. Then you will be out there with the people that are self employed or working for small employers that can't afford to offer a health plan. Self employed people can expect to pay at least 6-700 a month for a single or 1200-1500 for a family. With that you get 5000 deductibles and 20% co-pays. That's if you are in good health with no pre existing conditions.

This isn't a freebie plan. I have some adopted foster children that are on Medicaid which is govt run. They go to the same doctors and hospitals as kids on Blue Cross. The service is great and they have never been denied coverage for anything. My mother is on Medicare and goes to the same facilities as everyone else. She has never been denied coverage . The govt is very capable of running a health Plan. Give it a few months and you will see.

I would suggest you read or listen to some different media sources to get a more rounded and somewhat less skewed take on what is going on in our great country.

JMO

 

[beak]

Quote:
Yes they are proposing tax hikes of around 1.5% for singles making over 220K per year. Then 3% for those over 1million. It caps out at 5% for real wealthy people. Of course we know how people in higher income brackets hide their income. So it may not work. Don't worry the rich people aren't going to leave the country. Al the civilized nations have much higher income taxes than we do. Maybe they'll move to Pakistan or something.

 

[beak]

Quote:
Why do you think that? You have obviously heard someone say it. Please try to remember. The people putting out that garbage are mouthpieces for the big corporations that don't want any competition. There is also a political component. If the dems can get a health care plan that works and gets the whole nation covered and doesn't cost the average Joe a ton of money. People will remember it and will vote for the party that took care of them instead of the party that just wanted to keep their money. The Republicans are very afraid of that happening. So they will say anything. It's the same old same old from them. Be afraid be very afraid.

By the way the current plan they are talking about includes dental. Not the dental that you get for 15.00 month that gives you one free checkup and a cleaning every year. Real dental that pays for root canals and crowns and stuff that cost a lot that most dental plans have minimal coverage on.

 

[quail newbie]

Quote:
Why do you think that? You have obviously heard someone say it. Please try to remember. The people putting out that garbage are mouthpieces for the big corporations that don't want any competition. There is also a political component. If the dems can get a health care plan that works and gets the whole nation covered and doesn't cost the average Joe a ton of money. People will remember it and will vote for the party that took care of them instead of the party that just wanted to keep their money. The Republicans are very afraid of that happening. So they will say anything. It's the same old same old from them. Be afraid be very afraid.

By the way the current plan they are talking about includes dental. Not the dental that you get for 15.00 month that gives you one free checkup and a cleaning every year. Real dental that pays for root canals and crowns and stuff that cost a lot that most dental plans have minimal coverage on.

but again, I am canadian

 

[redhen]

I also have foster kids on Mass Health...umm..it sucks! It really does, they do not have the same choices for care that i have...and if they DO need certain things..we have to jump through hoops. I know how it is also..i deal with state health ins all the time in my job. Thays why i have the concerns i do..
But, really, i dont know enough about exactly what they are trying to pass..so...i cant really say anything about this bill.

 

[DuckLady]

I don't know if this has been already said and if so, I apologize.

There has got to be a way for a health care plan to work.

My thoughts are to take last years 1040. Look at gross income. Your premium per month is based on that. Then you pay a co pay at the doc's office.

Free health care sounds all good, but one reason it might not work is that free=crowded.
Health care is free? Oh good. Let's go to the doc for every sniffle and ache.

So the offices are crowded with non urgent appointments so if you have something more serious that is not serious enough for an ER, you can't get in. So you have to go to ER. Then ER is crowded. So the true emergency may be delayed or the person who can't get into their doc is made to wait hours. It snowballs and becomes a cycle.

Having people pay something for a co-pay will make them stop and think if they can treat this at home. That can make it easier and faster to get an appt in times of need.

I am all for affordable health care. Not free. Just affordable.

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Good post, Terrie. I agree with you.