So Bush wants me to "own" my health insurance???

To me, that means that I will be self insured. Now, that means that I will pay for all my health care out of my own pocket. Hmmmm. Maybe that's a good thing...lets see. I have paid an average of $600 - $700 a month for my health insurance for 15 years. That's, say, about $125,000 over the last 15 years. I had one serious illness during that time and I would guess that cost about $50,000. To me, that means that the health insurance companies made about $70,000 on me. This all sounds good to me until I think...well, I'm 58 and I could get sick again and I'm getting old and I will die at some point. I think of my 90 year old mother...with her health concerns, she would be bankrupt about 4 times over. What is this man suggesting??? Owning my health insurance??? Sounds good for a 20 year old but not, I fear, for me. Maybe the idea is to get rid of us older people faster. What do you think?

Owning Bush's America is like owning shares of Enron just before the bottom fell out.

that's his plan and the repugs don't have a clue to what he is saying

over and over. Included how nice it would be and what a reform to have folks own their own health insurance. Who is he trying to appeal to? Most 'folks' would groan loud and long at this!

this MOFO has to go. We saw that stupid commercial here in Virginia last night during Hardball, and were dumbfounded. Get ready 'Murica, if Bu$h is re-Selected, nothing will be safe from the rape and pillage of these goons!

group plans. That would be fine IF insurers would lower individual plan premiums, but I don't see that happening. He's looking out for the corp AGAIN!

Get this nut out of here!!!

last century. It started with Reagan and it just keeps getting worse.

What all the "self-sufficient" individualists fail to realize is that management wants to treat all workers like slaves and there is only strength in numbers.

Before that I owned a law firm and we paid for everyone's medical insurance. It was top flight coverage and we had no co-pay. It was a ton of $ but we felt a duty to people. The tax laws were such that the parteners had to recognize their insurance premiums as income and we could not take employees insurance as a full deduction. The whole business was bad enough before Bush got his hands on it!

I've been trying to figure out who is really making the killing here. It's not the hospitals, it doesn't seem to be the doctors, it sure isn't the companies paying the premiums, the insurance companies claim it's not them, and the pharmaceutical houses claim it's not them...they spend all their money on research.

Do you have any idea who's lying...or are all of them lying?

It is the insurers (as I worked for them) and also the pharmaceuticals ( I worked for them too). If you don't believe me, check their financial statements. Oh and the medical equipment manufacturers, geez, it is unbelievably profitable. WHy do you think so many MDs are sending you for MRIs where they own and operate the MRI centers? They wanted to get in on the money. Oh and the MDs, are full of crap when they talk about how they are hurting from med mal premiums. They are always whining on some news or before legislatures asking for tort reform when they are cutting off the wrong legs, breasts, etc. They always speak in terms of "my premiums tripled this year" or "my premiums are 100, 000 this year." Yeah , terrific, but do they ever say "I make a million a year." DId you ever notice how they leave out their gross income? Did you ever see a doc riding around in a beat up old car? Okay, I do know one who does and she told me she does it purposely because if she hits someone and they find out she is a MD they will sue her bigtime. But her other two cars are late model jaguars.

As to the poster who can't get medical insurance...this kills me. This group just has to unite, 44 million is a huge group. This same group is paying taxes for others to have medicare, medicaid, etc and can't have anything for themselves. This is a horrible problem in this country and one that is bankrupting thousands every damn year. I personally know several people with this problem and being in the insurance business I have steered them through some hoops and some were able to get cover and others just can't. The ones that can't are just hoping they won't have a catastrophic illness or event before they reach the age where they can get it. I have been pro national health insurance FOREVER, and I mean like 30 years ago, because it literally is the only thing that makes any sense if you have a bone of ethics in your body for your fellow man.

Dude can't tell the difference.

What a loon.

because I have a pre-existing medical conditon that makes me uninsurable at any price.

This is an aspect of the health care crisis that does not get enough attention. Although the cost factor is outrageous and prohibitive, it is not the only disqualifier.

Like many millions of others, I am outside the risk group that insurers will cover. And for those of you who have always had employer-provided health insurance, you would be surprised to learn how very little it takes to be medically disqualified under current, severe underwriting standards.

I feel frustrated by the inability of the Democratic party or any advocacy group to bring together this interest group (i.e., millions of uninsurable Americans)as a voting group. Lip-service is paid, but no action is ever taken to make these voters see that they must vote Democratic, if only for this single issue. There are lots of "single issue" voters out there; this has the potential to be a very large special interest that causes tremendous worry to those affected.

and bring some people in but he needs to do a lot more. People like you have to write to the representatives and make as big a stink as you can about this. The GOP will do NOTHING! Hillary Clinton tried in the early 90s to get something going and the damn repukes cricified her, remember? Kerry/Edwards know of the problem and if the Congress gets enough Dems this coming year, something will be done. There are too many people now, way more in this boat, than there were when Hillary tried to fix the problem. It can just keep getting ignored. I even saw Tom Brokaw talking about it this past week, that this just can't keep going like it is.

and bring some people in but he needs to do a lot more. People like you have to write to the representatives and make as big a stink as you can about this. The GOP will do NOTHING! Hillary Clinton tried in the early 90s to get something going and the damn repukes cricified her, remember? Kerry/Edwards know of the problem and if the Congress gets enough Dems this coming year, something will be done. There are too many people now, way more in this boat, than there were when Hillary tried to fix the problem. It can just keep getting ignored. I even saw Tom Brokaw talking about it this past week, that this just can't keep going like it is.

one "own" their healthcare. lol I'm lucky to own my car.