Posted on 06/19/2009 9:01:18 PM PDT by Bill Dupray
It looks like Sen. Kent Conrad (D. ND) has an idea to allow private insurance co-ops to write insurance for their members to compete against traditional insurance companies. The president gave it a veiled thumbs-up, and some Democrats who oppose the public option (and frankly who could kill it) may be on board. The part that some Republicans like is that the government doesn't own them and doesn't run them.
(Excerpt) Read more at patriotroom.com ...
Sounds better than some of the other stuff we’ve heard.
better than the Obama nightmare plan, but what does it solve? There is not a lack of competition. Prices are high due to a variety of reasons. Insurance is not portable. What problems does this solution solve?
Mutual insurance companies are already owned by the policy holders. They are basically a co-op. For example in Ohio Medical Mutual is the largest and oldest medical insurance company in Ohio, They are a MUTUAL company, a cooperative form of insurance.
Here is the classic definition of Mutual Insurance:
Mutual insurance is a type of insurance where those protected by the insurance (policyholders) also have certain “ownership” rights in the organization. These “ownership” rights typically consist of the ability to elect the management of the organization and to participate in a distribution of any net assets or surplus should the organization cease doing business. Historically, insurance began in the USA through a mutual (or cooperative) structure.
The problem with most insurance is that it is not insurance, it is prepaid medical coverage. Most companies spend $600- $1,200 monthly on health insurance policies for family coverage per employee. The insured then has an incentive to spend that kind of money every year in health care. Most people pay a copay of $5 - $25 to see a health care provider. This small payment entices people to go to the Dr. for ,more trivial things.
Also most states MANDATE that insurance companies package all types of coverage that many people do not want. including Chiropractic, psychological, wellness programs, holistic healing options. All of which drive up the cost of Health insurance.
None I'm sure. I was just saying that it isn't as bad as the worst idea. The only way to 'FIX' anything to do with health care is to make it more free market driven, reform provider liability/malpractice costs, and reduce government influence as much as possible. A big part of the problems with costs is government reimbursement from their programs. Providers and hospitals lose money and have to raise the costs on real payers to compensate. The entire system is a mess because of the outside negative forces that have such great influence over it. Remove or lessen those influences, and the system can go along way toward fixing itself.
I'd much rather hear a FreeMarket solution designed to appeal to Republicans designed by Republicans that has marginal appeal to moderate Democrats.
I'm not for accepting what "we can get" in Health Care. I'm for accepting real solutions or better to do nothing!
We have the most effective system in the world - NOW!
It sounds like Romney-care gone national. It’s easy to see how bad that disaster is in Mass.
1) Insurance is often tied to employers: This is the way most working Americans receive their health care coverage. The employer pays a majority of the cost of a policy often between $6,000 - $12,000. per year. The company then get to write this entire cost off as an expense, thereby paying no payroll taxes on this money. Incidentally the employee also gets to pay his part of the premium on a pretax basis. This incentivises the employer and employee to spend more on health care than they would on wages, payroll taxes are assessed on income, and health benefits are not considered income.
Subsequently self employed people are not allowed to pay their Health care premiums on a pretax basis. They pay self employment taxes on them as if they are income.
2) 40% of all health care is Government provided in the form of Medicare and Medicaid. This skews the system. These programs already are too large and have an adverse effect on competition. They set the pay for everything they are willing to pay for. The reimbursement of Medicare and Medicaid averages 71% of the actual cost of most procedures. That is if the patient has a supplemental policy that pays fore the 20% that medicare doesn't pay for.
Medicare Supplement Policies, Medigap insurance, incentivises the patient to go to the Dr. for the most trivial things. Generally there is no co-payment or deductable. This brings the patient to believe that the service is free, or since thy are paying a premium, they had better get what they paid for. This puts a tremendous burdon on the system. For every procedure that A Dr. does for a medicare / medicaid patient he has to find an insurance patient to pay the other 29% so he doesn't go broke.
Medicaid is the same way. They under pay. They can get away wit it because they control so much of the system.
3) Tort costs are out of control in this country. So many Dr.’s are concerned abut the chance of getting sued that they practice defensive medicine. They order massive amounts of unnecessary tests, labs, and screenings that a routine trip to the Dr. for a sore throat can turn into a very expensive visit.
The slip and fall lawyers aided by their accomplices in the Democrat party refuse to allow caps on their awards. Medical Malpractice Insurance rates reflect the objectionable losses that people can face simply by havinfg a patient that has an unhappy outcome, even if the Dr. is not at fault. The patients are more than interested in finding something they can sue for and possibly win a lottery sized victory.
Just look at the compound the philandering ambulance chaser John Edwards has and you get the idea of the type of Money involved in settlements and jury awards. We all pay for this through our premiums.
4) most uninsured people are uninsured because it is not a priority in their lives. Most uninsured are either young and healthy, under 25 and unmarried. These people have little incentive to buy insurance. They are generally in good health and only need medical care in the unlikely event that tyhey have an accident. !2-20 million of the supposed uninsured are illegal aliens and should not qualify for insurance anyway, and most poor people would prefer to spend their money on virtually anything other than health insurance. How many poor have designer hair cuts, weaves, manicured fingernails. the cost f a major medical policy for an individual can be as little as $3 - $5. a day.
Also everybody knows that if you are uninsured and show up at the emergency room, you don't have to pay anything in the first place. You can not be turned away. So if the only reason you need health care is in the event of an accident and if you have an accident you can't be turned away from the emergency room anyway./ Why pay for Insurance.
Remember Insurance is the only thing that you pay for that you hope to God you never have to use. Unless you are required to get it or you have enough self responsibility to get it you will not have it.
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