46.3 million Americans without health insurance

tman · Sep 11, 2009

Healthcare inflation got out of control when the when the government intervened in the market by creating Medicare. Sure, if you give something away to part of the population, costs will skyrocket for the rest of the population. You would need food insurance to keep from starving if the government decided to give free food to 1/3 of the country.

Government is not the solution. Allow people to purchase their own health insurance like they purchase their own auto, life and homeowners insurance. Level the playing field by removing the preferential tax treatment employer provided health insurance receives or allow individuals to buy private insurance pre-tax.

GATECHGRAD · Sep 11, 2009

One of the big problems with most healthcare plans is that there is no mechanism for people to make wise healthcare choices. The company that I work for switched last year from a traditional health plan to a "Consumer Driven Health Plan". My premiums stayed the same but there were radical changes in coverage. I used to have a $10 co-pay, I no longer have this ,I am now 100% responsible for the full cost of the visit, unless it is "preventative" such as yearly physicals etc, then it is totally free, thereby encouraging me to go. I also no longer have any prescription coverage, which has forced me to actually shop around for the most cost effective location to buy my prescriptions instead of just rolling down to the local CVS. I do get a $1,000 a year deposit from the company into my HSA (not FSA) to offset any uncovered costs, and my max out of pocket is only like $3,000. At first I was totally opposed to this plan thinking that we would get screwed, but after seeing it in action it really does force people to make wise choices regarding your healthcare, and since I am not a big user of medical benefits (32 and healthy) I actually MAKE money off of this each year. What it boils down to is that people need to have some form of motivation to make good choices about their healthcare, i.e. seeing a primary care physician instead of rolling into the emergency room for every other minor thing that comes up.

Vinny1 · Sep 13, 2009

We have medicare now and that works fine. We need free healthcare for everyone paid for by taxes like in Europe. Companies would be able to pay their workers more, since they wouldn't be paying health insurance premiums to insurance companies for their employees and families.

I called up ehealthinsurance, and they said that you wouldn't be able to get individual insurance if you have cancer, aids, or diabetes. You would have to go into some high risk state plan that costs alot more. The health insurance companies are a racket, where they insure the healthy and don't insure the unhealthy, unless you are in a group plan, but then the company pays a higher rate for all of its employees. I have even heard of cases where they drop your coverage if something major happens to avoid paying for it, which is totally wrong. If that's the case, why buy insurance.

Lethn · Sep 13, 2009

I think it should be the local communities that decide whether they want to provide free healthcare or not, not this retarded blanket government.

The NHS healthcare in the UK here isn't 'bad' in fact it's probably as about as good as any you're going to get. One thing that does bother me though is when I'm sitting and waiting for 5 - 10 minutes with a bleeding foot like out of Monty Python and the holy grail it does make me wonder why the fuck our government is so against private healthcare if it can provide a better service and I can afford it.

The skills the doctors in the NHS use are fine, let me state that clearly, it's the damn wait times and beuracratic crap that needs fixing desperately so the patients don't have to wait so long with whatever they've got.

fkbsuhites · Sep 13, 2009

Democrats are spineless. Keep republicans closed?

lol. I know individuals who would love to do worse to republicans if there were no law and order.

bunch of nonsense unamerican crooks.

Quote from bugscoe:

Lol. This country is already broke!

And pleeeze...the bill the dems keep pushing has nothing to do with health care/insurance reform.

It's nothing but an ideological scorecard push for them. They've offered no serious discussions or debate on the issues, kept republicans closed out since April, and refer to any opposers as racist nazi terrorists.

They've handled this whole thing like teenagers who've discovered booze for the first time.

jamesrkeene · Sep 14, 2009

ba1 · Sep 14, 2009

A lot of medical insurance and medicare goes for treatments that don't work for known groups of people, don't correspond well with medical science, or, are flat dangerous.

Taking care of a parent I now realize just how dangerous medicine under Obama's Medicare will get with fewer choices. Obamacare, promises to be worse by being perfunctory with more limited choices of type of medicine and doctors. I've had to change a regular ADA diet to low carb, eliminate drugs and add lots of supplements to stop nausea and vomiting, reverse somulence, drop blood sugar 45 points, restore extravehicular activity walking, to stop Parkinson's like 3 inch shakes, and to restore intelligible speech.

I do not want conventional care, especially Obamacare. Not because I think I am superman and will live forever, but rather other bilogically based systems do make me physcially well and the regular medicine either ignores important stuff or it makes us very sick starting with incompetent nutrition recommendations of the RDs in hospitals and nursing homes. So, tell me why people like us should pay one cent to such a wrong way system when we have different or opposite needs from what will be offered.

Should we carry a card or a gun?

marine · Sep 14, 2009

I spent 4 years in the USMC and the medical coverage provided by the miltary was pretty good. I was never seriously sick either.

When I got out I didn't have any medical coverage but I was covered by the VA. I did use the VA service at West-Side and thought it was okay. I have also visited some of the local VA clinics in my area. This was when I was going to school and worked part-time.

Once I started ful-time work my companies have always provided medical insurance as part of my package. The only thing I had to pay was a $10 visit charge. The service I received was exceptional so I didn't have any complaints.

I have been living in the UK now for 8 years using the NHS. My company also provides me with private medical coverage in the UK. Having private medical coverage in the UK only means you don't have to wait in line for non-emergency surgeries. You still see the same doctors. Sometimes you even go to the same hospitals / clinics but it depends on what your problem is. You have to pay 40% tax on the private coverage as well.

Now from a comparision POV I would rather have the complete coverage I had in the US instead of the NHS in UK. But I have that only if I am employeed in a good job. I think the US coverage is significantly better than the NHS.

If I was unemployeed or had an average or low paying job I would rather have the NHS.

I have travel insurance so when I visit the US I have medical coverage because the NHS doesn't cover you on vacation in the US. My wife and child had the flu so we had to go to the doctor. Well the doctor made me pay $350 before they would see us. Since they only had a flu they gave us a perscription and they were better in a few days. They ended up only charging me $300 so I got some money back. But I think $300 to tell me what I already know and to just give me a perscription is way to much. Yes, I got all the money back minus the Â£50 deductable but still. If you had a low-income family in the US and a child was sick the family could end up paying all of it's money for the week on a medical bills.

This is what is shit and Obama should be focusing on as a first stage for a NHS in the US. Yes I know they could have went to the emergency room and have been treated instead of going to a doctor but they would still have to pay for it. Maybe not all up front but they would be billed a small amount monthly.

I do believe that basic medical coverage should be provided for free or AT A REASONABLE COST TO EVERYONE IN THE US. I know how ineffiecent governments are so the amount of money that will be wasted on a NHS in the US will be crazy and now is not the right time for the US to be spending more money.

Maverickz · Sep 15, 2009

Quote from marine:

I have travel insurance so when I visit the US I have medical coverage because the NHS doesn't cover you on vacation in the US. My wife and child had the flu so we had to go to the doctor. Well the doctor made me pay $350 before they would see us. Since they only had a flu they gave us a perscription and they were better in a few days. They ended up only charging me $300 so I got some money back. But I think $300 to tell me what I already know and to just give me a perscription is way to much. Yes, I got all the money back minus the Â£50 deductable but still. If you had a low-income family in the US and a child was sick the family could end up paying all of it's money for the week on a medical bills.

That is part of the problem. Too many people go to see a Dr (or to the ER) every time their nose runs. There are OTC drugs already to handle colds and flu symptoms and cost a ton less cash. Now if symptoms persist for longer than normal THEN go to the Dr. The more you depend on medications for every little thing that happens to you, the more you become dependent on them.

IanMacQuaide · Sep 15, 2009

Quote from Maverickz:

That is part of the problem. Too many people go to see a Dr (or to the ER) every time their nose runs. There are OTC drugs already to handle colds and flu symptoms and cost a ton less cash. Now if symptoms persist for longer than normal THEN go to the Dr. The more you depend on medications for every little thing that happens to you, the more you become dependent on them.

Oh now wait a minute...you're talking about common sense.
You'll never get a good job in the FEMA camps talkin' like that!