Friday, July 31, 2009
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The One Big Question on Health Reform
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Posted by:
Michael Medved at
4:05 PM
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Any American who’s ever bought insurance will be able to answer the key question about health care reform. What happens to your insurance premiums when the benefits go up—way up? Will you pay more if you suddenly move from a bare-bones, high deductible policy to a new gold-plated policy that covers everything?
This is a key question because the Obama reforms call not only for a new government-sponsored health plan, but also for new regulations on existing policies—requiring that they remove benefit caps, lower deductibles and co-pays, and insure (at no extra cost) even those with dire, pre-existing conditions.
Aside from the huge tax burden to support the government program, crushing new rules on private insurance will force premiums sky high—striking hard at both employers and individuals, and starkly limiting their choices.
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Maybe you would care to discuss the question I pose; what happens in a gov't run health care system to individuals who do not avail themselves of preventive care, and, thereby, cause higher costs?
Maybe if you were to blog about this we would see some responses from Lib's. |
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...is due to the huge taxpayer subsidies the USPS gets. Your 44 cents actually costs you a lot more, which is why the Post Office is perenially in bankruptcy. And Fedex is still limited to package delivery rates, courtesy of the law, whether you mail a two ounce letter or an elephant. As for VA...stop it. You can't sue VA doctors, which substantially lowers their costs. And the VA covers a small, specialized group who have a history of being healthy, all that Army training, you see. And what you DON'T see is a lot of the claims about the VA being so wonderful includes Tricare, the military medical INSURANCE program that is really good for basic services, but really sucks for specialities. |
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I can always count on the tingly feeling i get when reading another retreads' post about the evils of socialism.The monthly check you receive for military service i am sure that isnt covered in your rant,nor the dividend check you receive from a corp. receiving welfare.Health care profits will go down once the public option in place EVERYTHING ELSE IS A LIE!Many forms of socialism in place from which you receive great comfort |
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Without gov't provided health insurance, some believe that "..people would probably only start seeing doctors when something is bleeding or exuding puss".
OK. Then, what will happen if we have gov't provided health insurance and still some people don't go to doctor until "..bleeding or exuding puss"? Do we tell those persons they should have gone to doctor sooner, and then charge them extra for having waited until "..bleeding or exuding puss"? One claim of gov't provided healthcare/insurance advocates is savings because people will take advantage of "preventive" care. Does that mean you pay a financial penalty if you don't avail yourself of "preventive" care??? |
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Apollo writes:
Luna's Wrong\
FEDEX and UPS are forbidden by law to deliver letters. It is illegal for anyone other than the post office to offer a mail delivery service.
Anyone can deliver anything they want. Letters, fliers, packages, newspapers, junk mail, anything you can name can be delivered.
What you cannot do is put it in the mailbox.
3.0 Customer Mail Receptacles
3.1.3 Use for Mail
...no part of a mail receptacle may be used to deliver any matter not bearing postage, including items or matter placed upon, supported by, attached to, hung from, or inserted into a mail receptacle. Any mailable matter not bearing postage and found as described above is subject to the same postage as would be paid if it were carried by mail.
Exceptions are:
* Door slots and
* Nonlockable bins or troughs used with apartment house mailboxes
* Newspaper Receptacles
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Wait until healthcare is "free." |
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"But people would probably only start seeing doctors when something is bleeding or exuding puss"
That's what happens now. Most people don't see a doc unless something is wrong.
If you put a "free" sign on something, no doubt there are plenty of moochers and parasites who'll line up to get their govt cheese, even if they have a fridge full of Velveeta. |
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Luna's Wrong\
FEDEX and UPS are forbidden by law to deliver letters. It is illegal for anyone other than the post office to offer a mail delivery service.
WRONG.. take a #10 business envelope, address it to yourself, or anyone else. Put a couple of pieces of paper in it and take it to FEDex.
They will give you what they call a FedEx Envelope, and a label. Put your envelope into their envelope and seal it, complete their label and attach it to the FedEx Envelope. Hand it to the clerk.
They will tell you it is going to coast $16.81 for FedEx Express Saver service and tell you that your ENVELOPE will be delivered in 5 days.
I receive mail like this in my office all the time from FedEx and UPS. Personally I use the post office.
NEW YORK CITY has what they call bicycle messengers... their job is to deliver packages, mail, blueprints and anything else. They do it in public and they advertise it. Movies have been made about them, documentaries have been made.... it is not illegal.
First class mail by any other name is still first class mail. |
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The economy has been collapsing for three or more years because of the American voters' turn to socialism. This will not turn around in one election cycle. Those in the world capable of starting businesses (a million people who each have more than ten million dollars, many have way more) ususlly bring their excess capital to America where we bring in immigrants and teach them to be good citizens. It has been a great match up and we benefit. The whole process is busted. We are no longer allowed to teach citizenship as it used to be taught. And the people with capital are afraid of the American with his hand out waiting for government to turn on the spicket, and there is no other country able to defend freedom. "Hunker down" is the latest dance. Fear is on the rise. |
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Plumber- "Apollo is correct. Healthcare providers will lower costs if they had to rely on out of pocket purchases of healthcare. You'd also see a big drop in the salaries of those CEO's."
Me- They might. But people would probably only start seeing doctors when something is bleeding or exuding puss... which means you'd have a lot of routine preventive health care being replaced with more expensive emergency treatment health care...
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Apollo is correct. Healthcare providers will lower costs if they had to rely on out of pocket purchases of healthcare. You'd also see a big drop in the salaries of those CEO's.
I'm having trouble finding the complete text of Wiener's amendment. The one I found has only 12 lines, and it says nothing about phasing Medicare out in a responsible fashion, just its elimination.
If the 12-line amendment is the totality of the amendment, then the Republicans were correct in voting against it. It isn't, afterall, like requiring members of Congress to drop their current healthcare coverage (taxpayer-coerced private coverage) and dumping them into the scheme they've got proposed for all of us unwashed rubes.
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They make almost as much as basketball players!
Talentless idiots like Michael Jackson and Madonna made fortunes that dwarf those made by CEOs. Why? Because morons want to waste money!
Gregory Hines could dance rings around Jackson and Sarah Brightman can sing rings around Madonna. Their best paydays were rounding errors for Jackson and Madonna.
The same is true of stockholders. They allow "stars" to become CEOs and tolerate the ridiculous salaries in the belief that anyone that heads a big company deserves big money. There is a huge difference in ability between CEOs. Mulally of Ford is worth ten times what he's paid while Immelt of GE isn't worth a dime.
Take your arguments about pay to the company's stockholders. They're the ones responsible for salaries just as the fans are responsible for Jackson and Madonna's ridiculous pay. |
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They are selling a lie to grab power its clear. Isnt it funny how the INSURANCE COS. are evil yet when they bailed out AIG insurance it was a vital business, yeah right. and when DEMS pass required insurance in the state for auto it was a different story.If you dont believe they are lying you need HELP.And tell me please IS OUR HEALTH CARE SYSTEM BROKEN, really.I had a major heart attack and they SAVED MY LIFE, so exactly WHATS BROKEN, OH I HAVE THE ANSWER. illegals arent covered. and some people REFUSE TO BE COVERED, but most of all.I say this is to cover their rears for mismanaging medicare, and taken money from it for other uses and never REPLACING IT, and they have no way out but to REDO HEALTH care to absorb all those who will PAY FOR MEDICARE and NEVER GET IT because you great congress wasted and raided your future for political paybacks and PORK.DONT BUY THE LIE, contact your congressman and senators and tell the VOTE FOR THIS AND YOUR GONE NEXT ELECTION, see how many do then. |
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Luna, have you heard about the wonderful care available at Walter Reed Hospital?
Walter Reed was once a great hospital, president Eisenhower went there when he had a heart attack. No recent president will go near the place, it is a death trap. It's filthy and has wards where the ceilings leak.
The problem with American health care is the third party payment system. Abolish the tax exemption for employer provided health care, allow non-confiscatory medical savings accounts and let employers put their medical benefit funds directly into the accounts for employees to draw against. Health insurance should be for catastrophes, not vaccinations and checkups.
When people start paying directly for their own medical care the market will right itself and the cost of medical care will plummet. |
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FEDEX and UPS are forbidden by law to deliver letters. It is illegal for anyone other than the post office to offer a mail delivery service.
The Post Office was so fearful of competition that it once had a group of teenagers arrested for providing local mail delivery for businesses. Several high schoolers came up with the idea of picking up mail from businesses before going to school, sorting the mail during their recess and delivering the mail on their way home from school. They offered same day delivery for half of what the post office charged and were making good money before they were arrested.
If the post office offered such a great deal on package delivery there would be no Fedex or UPS. Businesses prefer the private companies because they are responsive to customer needs whereas the post office isn't because they can't go out of business. |
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Do you have a link to the site with the CEO salaries? I'd like to use it where I am arguing on other websties? |
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Last month, testimony in front of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation by a former health insurance insider named Wendell Potter made news even before it occurred: CBS NEWS headlined: "Cigna Whistleblower to Testify." After Potter's testimony the industry scrambled to do damage control: "Insurers defend rescissions, take heat for lack of transparency."
In his first extended television interview since leaving the health insurance industry, Wendell Potter tells Bill Moyers why he left his successful career as the head of Public Relations for CIGNA, one of the nation's largest insurers, and decided to speak out against the industry. "I didn't intend to [speak out], until it became really clear to me that the industry is resorting to the same tactics they've used over the years, and particularly back in the early '90s, when they were leading the effort to kill the Clinton plan."
Potter began his trip from health care spokesperson to reform advocate while back home in Tennessee. Potter attended a "health care expedition," a makeshift health clinic set up at a fairgrounds, and he tells Bill Moyers, "It was absolutely stunning. When I walked through the fairground gates, I saw hundreds of people lined up, in the rain. It was raining that day. Lined up, waiting to get care, in animal stalls. Animal stalls."
Looking back over his long career, Potter sees an industry corrupted by Wall Street expectations and greed. According to Potter, insurers have every incentive to deny coverage — every dollar they don't pay out to a claim is a dollar they can add to their profits, and Wall Street investors demand they pay out less every year. Under these conditions, Potter says, "You don't think about individual people. You think about the numbers, and whether or not you're going to meet Wall Street's expectations."
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07102009/profile.html |
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Krugman
was never right in his theories and predictions
Me- You mean other than when he was saying the rampant speculation in the housing market was goign to crash the economy? He predicted this as early as 2005, and no one listened.
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was never right in his theories and predictions |
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http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/31/opinion/31krugman.html?_r =1&em
Mr. Krugman explains exactly how the health care payment system works in our nation today.
As he notes at the beginning of his piece....
"At a recent town hall meeting, a man stood up and told Representative Bob Inglis to “keep your government hands off my Medicare.” The congressman, a Republican from South Carolina, tried to explain that Medicare is already a government program — but the voter, Mr. Inglis said, “wasn’t having any of it.”
A Republican telling his constituent that Medicare is a government program, but the constituent, one of you folks here at TH no doubt, 'wasn't having any of it'. You are all morons.
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I will tell you want amazes me.
It never fails to amaze me how the people on this site CANNOT stay on topic!
In case you did not notice, the topic is "The One Big Question on Health Reform" - NOT Fannie Mae, NOT what do companies pay CEOs or who is feeding at the public trough... If you want to discuss those topics, I suggest you find them, or maybe start your own blog.
My post, in response to the statement "Where do you think the high premiums we have now come from? CEO yachts and high life standards," is on topic since it added to the perception that high premiums are tied to high salaries.
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The USA needs TORT REFORM, INSURANCE REFORM, NOT HEALTHCARE REFORM.
Tort Law involves more than health care and insurance.
Tort law is a body of law that addresses, and provides remedies for, any civil wrong not arising out of contractual obligations. Generally speaking, tort law defines what constitutes a legal injury and establishes the circumstances under which one person may be held liable for another's injury. Torts cover intentional acts and accidents.
The main remedy against tortious loss is compensation in 'damages' or money.
The key to TORT REFORM is the jury. After all it is the jury that decides if the action was proved and if so, what damages are awarded.
When I am called for jury duty, I am always amazed as I watch at the number of people trying to be relieved of this duty. They claim illness, financial hardship, child care, prejudice and anything else they think will get them off the jury. What is left are the few people take this duty seriously and those who are too stupid to get excused. Mostly it is the stupid who are left.
So of course when the time comes to decide if the action was proved and how much in damages to award... it is the people who look on this as a lottery. The big company did wrong now you hit the jackpot.
YOU can change the system! Serve on a jury.. find for the defendant, or find for the plaintiff, but limit the award to actual expenses and $100. Lawyers will not take cases if they think they are not going to get paid.
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level of abysmal ignorance exhibited by the drooling drones who persist in blogging here.
Luna, dearie, how about Mr Raines, formerly of FannieMae 43Mil, an extra 16Mil in bonuses, all this while the housing market was crashing. Then there is Mr Johnston, 26Mil, about 7.5Mil in bonuses, while we have sweet Jamie Gorelick 18Mil and she is still sucking at the public trough! Please tell me you never took an economics course in college! Yes, I can tell immediately you are an Obumbles supporter because critical thinking is not part of your intellectual package! Continue to believe in fantasy dear, you and eggplant, and, maybe, the tooth fairy will visit you both next week with shiny new quarters. It is obvious Kabonk has already spent the quarter the tooth fairy left! |
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The real problem with this socialist tripe is that it is not reform which Obama seeks. It is control. The USA needs TORT REFORM, INSURANCE REFORM, NOT HEALTHCARE REFORM except to tweak the cost factors which can be done with patience. This 1000 page mess cobbled together by Waxman, Blue Dogs, Liberals and who knows what, is a malange of anti free enterprise ideas which have never ever worked at any time in history. There are other alternative plans like the Heritage Foundations' as well as Bobby Jindal or even ole Mitt . But this mess is a failure to begin with. It is a lie spun by the MSM as well as leftists of a number like 47 million which is not even near the real ball park. The Govt. could not even run cash for clunkers and we expect these wankers to run 1/6 of our economy just because unions, illegals, and socialists cry out for it?? |
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Someone tied high premiums to CEO pay.. just how much do Insurance Company CEOs earn?
* Aetna CEO Ronald A. Williams $18,608,778 in 2008.
* CIGNA CEO H. Edward Hanway $12,276,000 in 2008
* Coventry Health Care Inc. CEO Dale B. Wolf $11,018,797 2008
* UnitedHealth Group Incorporated CEO Stephen J. Hemsley $3,241,042 in 2008
* Prudential CEO John R. Strangfeld $21,584,843 in 2008
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Kaboom you are right, Republicans have been trying to scare Americans away from supporting a public option in health care reform. They claim that “government-run” medicine is akin to socialism and would be disastrous. But the government already runs several successful, well-loved health care programs — most notably, Medicare.
Yesterday, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) decided that it was “put-up or shut-up time for the phonies who deride the so-called ‘public option.’”
He offered an amendment that would eliminate government-run Medicare.
GUESS WHAT?
Not a single member of Congress voted for the amendment. Not one Republican not even the ones who have been telling us how disastrous it is going to be. |
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* Original Medicare
This fee-for-service plan covers many health care services. You can go to any doctor or supplier that is enrolled and accepts Medicare and is accepting new Medicare patients, or to any hospital or other facility.
Then, in addition to Original Medicare came
Medicare Health Plans (like HMOs and PPOs)
These plans are approved by Medicare and run by PRIVATE COMPANIES. When you join one of these plans, you are still in Medicare. Some of these plans require referrals to see specialists. They provide all of your Part A (hospital) and Part B (medical) coverage. They generally offer extra benefits, and many include prescription drug coverage. These plans often have networks, which means you may have to see doctors who belong to the plan or go to certain hospitals to get covered services. In many cases, your costs for services can be lower than in Original Medicare, but it is important to check with the plan because the costs for services will vary.
Medigap (Medicare Supplement Insurance) Policies
These policies help pay some of the health care costs that Original Medicare doesn’t cover. If you are in Original Medicare, you could get a Medigap policy to help cover the extra health care costs. These too are run by PRIVATE COMPANIES. |
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if the neocons are serious about how bad govt care is, then I suggest that we close all VA facilities, and dump medicare. Let these folks, with their pre-existing conditions, fend for themselves in the private insurance market. |
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VA health care is universally touted as the best in the country. After all nothing is too good for our soldiers..
Guess what???? ITS GOVERNMENT RUN
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* Lets start with the Quasi-Govt USPS and go from there.
Cheap coffee costs $1 a cup, $1 menu items are popular at fast food restaurants and Dollar Stores abound.
The post office charges me 44¢ to mail a letter from my front door to any address in the country. What else can you get for 44¢?
Letters are usually delivered in 3 to 4 days. Mail is delivered every day but Sunday. There are drop off boxes all over the place and if you are on a rural route, just put it in the box and put the flag up.
USPS also delivers packages.. a good size one can be sent priority mail (2 days or less) for $5
FEDEX also delivers letters, however they make you put your letter in one of their envelopes, complete their address form (in triplicate) and they charge you $15. If you are lucky it will be delivered in a week. You know what they charge to deliver a package....
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Low Overhead and Govt are Oxymoronic opposites.
Rather than Blather about like Rachel used to, please show me a model of efficiency that is Govt run? Lets start with the Quasi-Govt USPS and go from there. |
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question is irrelevant. Private insurance will cease to exist. We're talking National Health care run by the government. We'll get the same crappy care the Brits get from their NHS. Obama and the left wing Dems are socializing everything else without a peep from the American sheeple. Health care is just next. When over half the population pays NO taxes more benefits will always be voted. |
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