Heath Care-So what do you think is the problem?
Obviously an issue that has creeping into the news where I live is health care. We currently have about two strikes going on here in So Cal related primarily to health care. (MTA and grocers)
Likewise just anecdotally I know everyone's costs have been giong through the roof more and more year to year. I remember in the early 90's everyone was told going from PPO to HMO would stop the problems. That would appear to have not been true.
I have one friend who's wife works not because they make a large amount of money from her job. He actually makes much more than her as a free lance computer programmer/tech/you name it. However her job offers paid medical at a very inexpensive rate so she has never left it.
My work pays part of our medical costs and my own costs this year will be $8500 for a family of 4 for health insurance. The district pays $3500 and I hand them $5000 out of pocket.
So what is your take on what would solve this. I personally liked medical savings plans proposed a few years ago. I know medicaid and medical costs are still rising even while what they pay for treating their clients is declining. Drug companies have been accused of abusing the patent system and likewise the AMA has been accused of hording job responsibilities to doctors that could be done by nurses.
Give me your two cents...(paypal of course
Nick
Likewise just anecdotally I know everyone's costs have been giong through the roof more and more year to year. I remember in the early 90's everyone was told going from PPO to HMO would stop the problems. That would appear to have not been true.
I have one friend who's wife works not because they make a large amount of money from her job. He actually makes much more than her as a free lance computer programmer/tech/you name it. However her job offers paid medical at a very inexpensive rate so she has never left it.
My work pays part of our medical costs and my own costs this year will be $8500 for a family of 4 for health insurance. The district pays $3500 and I hand them $5000 out of pocket.
So what is your take on what would solve this. I personally liked medical savings plans proposed a few years ago. I know medicaid and medical costs are still rising even while what they pay for treating their clients is declining. Drug companies have been accused of abusing the patent system and likewise the AMA has been accused of hording job responsibilities to doctors that could be done by nurses.
Give me your two cents...(paypal of course
Nick
Comments
Why ? hopefully progress in medecine should lowered the cost due to an higher efficiency. In fact not : because naturally we ask more and more to medecine, and we want a better and perhaps the better health.
Some proofs :
1) a comparison between radiology of 1950 and today :
- in 1950 we have only classic X-Ray photography.
- in 2003 we have : X-Ray with numerisation and scopic control, angiographia numerised, scanner, IRM, pet scan, echographia. The amount of money necessary to have an office of Radiology has considerably raised.
2) drugs : let's compare the number of references of antibiotics in 1950 and now : in the fifties, discovery of the penicilline. Now : more than one hundred of antibiotics avalaible.
3) Cost of surgery :
- 1950 : average surgical instrumentation requiered.
- 2003 : endoscopia, require ten time the cost of the 1950 equipement. Add the prize of specific single usage tools, like endoscopic titanium straps, automatic suture devices or anastomis devices ...
4) cost of the normalisation process. The normalisatio process, who have for goal an increase in quality has a price. It ask huge investissement to complain to the safety rules : fire, bacteriologic cleaness of the ventilation and water ...add time invested for creating folders and writing documents.
5) cost the insurrances : the insurrances cost more and more, at the end it's the patient who paid. I don't know for USA, but in France it has raised by a 1000 % factor in the last twenty years.
The state and local level government in Denmark and US uses almost the same amount of the BNP of healt care. And almost none private money is used here...
Makes you think that the problem with US healt care isn´t as much how much is used on healt care but how it is used.
Originally posted by Defiant
I have no problem with the Heat, it's all warm here.
Another disease in a long line associated with the technological progress Doc described.
First we had the Tv generated fatness, then the SMS thumb and now internet dyslexia. Whats next? Ginger-induce leg weakness? G6 impatience (since everything happens instantly on your computer you expect the same in RL. "WTF? I have to go to school for 12 years???", "I´m gonna carry this child for 9 MONTH???")?
By the way...stupid ass supermarket workers here are striking over a $5 per week or $15 per week decrease in pay to cover some of the rising medical costs (5 if you have no kids, 15 if you do). Stupid unions.
Originally posted by BR
By the way...stupid ass supermarket workers here are striking over a $5 per week or $15 per week decrease in pay to cover some of the rising medical costs (5 if you have no kids, 15 if you do). Stupid unions.
What do you have against the capitalist system?
Originally posted by BR
The problem is that most people like the idea of socialized medicine but hate it when it is put in place. Health care for everyone is a nice easy issue to stand for but the ramifications of socialized healthcare are rarely considered.
Hmm. Please tell me whats wrong with the idea? It looks like its working more or less in some places (Scandinavian countries and Canada) while it have problems in other places (like GB). "Socialized healt care" isn´t bad per se but can be implemented in good or bad ways.
Originally posted by Anders
Hmm. Please tell me whats wrong with the idea? It looks like its working more or less in some places (Scandinavian countries and Canada) while it have problems in other places (like GB). "Socialized healt care" isn´t bad per se but can be implemented in good or bad ways.
Socialism doesn't work when everyone doesn't pay into the system.
Originally posted by Anders
What do you have against the capitalist system?
I have nothing against free market economies. I actually prefer free market economies. I think the supermarket workers are retarded for striking because with the economy the way it is there are plenty of people willing to do the same job for less benefits. With the forecasts of commodity prices increasing as every country attempts to devalue their currency, it's not a good time to fight supermarkets to keep the same benefits they enjoyed during a boom a couple years back the last time it was negotiated.
Originally posted by BR
I have nothing against free market economies. I actually prefer free market economies. I think the supermarket workers are retarded for striking because with the economy the way it is there are plenty of people willing to do the same job for less benefits. With the forecasts of commodity prices increasing as every country attempts to devalue their currency, it's not a good time to fight supermarkets to keep the same benefits they enjoyed during a boom a couple years back the last time it was negotiated.
Supermarked workers are testing their worth on the marked when they strike. They are taking a chance of overestimating it and losing their job.
Originally posted by BR
Socialism doesn't work when everyone doesn't pay into the system.
It has nothing to do with socialism.
Only if the means of production is owned collectively it would be (partly) socialist. State funded health care doesn´t have to include state owned hospitals.
And please expalin what you mean by "not everybody paying to the system"?
Originally posted by Anders
And please expalin what you mean by "not everybody paying to the system"?
There are too many illegal aliens for it to work properly.
Originally posted by groverat
I think women are the problem. And Jews.
Stop blaming everything on my mother.
Originally posted by alcimedes
people in the US are really ****ing fat.
yes, especially the kids. the 6 years olds kids tee shirt size fits to me. and the 9/10 y old looks like it's extra large. seriously. (i'm 5'9")
Originally posted by Anders
[...]First we had the Tv generated fatness, then the SMS thumb and now internet dyslexia. [...]
uh, since when is dyslexia considered a disease? i thought it was just something as a 'other-normal' characheristics like lefthandedness...
Originally posted by Anders
Hmm. Please tell me whats wrong with the idea? It looks like its working more or less in some places (Scandinavian countries and Canada) while it have problems in other places (like GB). "Socialized healt care" isn´t bad per se but can be implemented in good or bad ways.
I had to see a doctor in Scandinavia ... 75 euros for 15 minutes. (none refunded). I'm too scared to see what they charge here, after that 15 minutes I decide as long as I walk I'm not seeing one ////
Originally posted by BR
There are too many illegal aliens for it to work properly.
Illegal aliens play plenty of taxes. They often pay income taxes because they work under a fake SS#, and no matter what they pay a lot of sales taxes and taxes all over the place. People like you vastly underestimate the amout of taxes an illegal pays. If they paid as little as you believe, the government would do something about it.