i don't NEED insurance i NEED healthcare.

seriously -- who needs insurance for healthcare?

if there were to options available on top of basic healthcare needs -- fine -- but really what anyone needs is access to a doctor and treatments if they need them.

and to have those treatments not drive their financial lives.

it's poor economics for your country to have 6% or more of the wealthiest nation on earth driven by -- what is really insurance -- not healthccare.

and if you're the elected leaders of that democracy -- well your doing a piss poor job if you're letting people who are breaking the system -- the economy -- have the most say so.

Same with police and same with public schools.

What's so hard about that to figure out?

and really -- it's getting hard to keep caring.

Two or more brigades would show up when a business was on fire. Sometimes the brigades would argue with each other rather than fight the flames because the team that fought the fire would be paid by the insurance company.

After awhile it became clear that this was a nutty way to provide the service and cities converted to municipal departments. Likewise, our current system of insurance-centric health care delivery is a nutty way to approach health care and it's about time to change it.

Most people pay thousands and thousands of dollars for healthcare they will never use.
All that money goes into the CEO's pockets.

If I have to pay anyway, I'd rather it go to the government who would use it for some one else's health care, or better roads or a some other use that myself or someone else would benefit from.

But no. It all goes to to make private executives horrendously rich.

Good use of our funds?

You talk as if healthcare magically comes for free from down high. In reality, you pay a percentage of your income for "insurance." Healthy people pay into the system which treats sick people -- that's what insurance is.

The current healthcare plan that will probably be enacted (without a public option) also essentially guarantees (through subsidies) that no one pay more than a certain percentage of their income for insurance/care. The only difference is that the insurance will be run by heavily regulated private companies instead of the government.

Switzerland/the Netherlands are both countries that have no public involvement in health insurance at all, yet still manage to have 99%+ of the country insured. People who claim that having a public option/single payer system is the only way to have universal healthcare are being disingenuous.

Than the U.S. ever will.

Nevertheless, I still think basic regulation such as "everyone has to be accepted and at the same rate" would be a good incremental step in the US. Once that happens, and the government guarantees through subsidies that everyone's out of pocket costs are limited to a percentage of one's income, we will revisit the problem of cost control later and can either enact stricter regulation or a public option.

I don't know about you but I haven't started making 12.5% more money lately.

insurance it's difficult to get in to see a doctor. When my dad, who had excellent insurance, needed to see a specialist ASAP, I could not get him an appointment for weeks. He ended up in the emergency room at 5AM. The next few weeks were a nightmare. My family tried our best to get him diagnosed and the ongoing care he needed, but ultimately it was impossible. He went rapidly downhill and passed away within a month.

I agree that all Americans need quality healthcare. Getting it, however, even with insurance, is a crapshoot. Without insurance the ordinary person stands no chance. It's a national disgrace.

Just like living people don't need life insurance.

:dunce:

there is a disconnect for many people, thinking health insurance equates to health care. Two totally separate entities.

:kick:

:hi:

Bettah: :*

:hug: :hug:

The Wiley and Excellent Boy Cat Named Ginger and I happily accept. Or did you mean CMW? :P

:hug: :hug: and a couple more just in case -- :hug: :hug:

If I never had to deal with another insurance company, I'd be more than fine.

over the choice of pharmacies.

they want me to use a mail order pharmacy -- that charges me MORE co-pay than my local pharmacy -- where i know the people and who do an outstanding job of taking care of me.

it's like -- really? -- we have to fight over even little shit like this?

and who pays me for all of this wrangling with insurance companies? -- depending on the severity of what's happening -- it becomes like having another job, damn it!

It's demeaning, it's frustrating, and it's abusive.

for their responses.

and i don't understand a thing they're saying half the time. -- and i'm pretty sure they don't understand it either.

A lot of us have worked incoming calls for telemarketers and know the score. Minimal training, $9 per hour and morons for supervisors. And the call rooms are all contracted so have nothing to do with the insurance companies no doubt. It's one big scam.

i've spoken with supes -- and they seem as clueless as the person who answered the phone -- they ALWAYS have to call me back with an answer or some kind of settlement to the question or conflict i'm having.

whatever my circumstances are -- they can't be unique -- why all the head scratching that serves to make me nuts?

I don't know for sure, but it makes sense that they'd contract out.

pharmacy anymore or any of the other small towns pharmacies that are much closer. I'm waiting to be forced into mail order. My daughter dealt with that for a while and sometimes would not have her medicine on time.

and who pays you for all that extra time spent?

they might be saving money -- but that sure as hell doesn't save me time or money.

what. a. waste.

for one hospital out of the several that my Dr's group goes to...and that hospital is 30 miles away. There are 4 hospitals within 15 miles of here and two others at 20 miles and I have to go to the one that is 30 miles from here. What makes it worse is the Drs only do surgery at that particular hospital once a month, so I've already lost a month due to how they have to book the surgeries. I might be able to get in in mid Sept.

I hate insurance companies.

:thumbsup: