There are many people on Medicare who are under the age of 65, and we wonder why it's going broke.
It's going broke because like SSDI congress would not leave the funding untouched. Believe it or not many disabled do not run up medicare. My medical cost is several trips to my primary care doctor a year and my three meds the most expensive on I pay out of pocket. For the high cost of my disability I go through V.A. hearing aids and corrective insoles I get from V.A. because Medicare nor Medicaid pay for it. I've been hospitalized once as an adult and only overnight for chest pains.
My wife is another matter though. Her medical cost initially bankrupted us. I'm just glad we went bankrupt long before the so called bankruptcy reform took place. We had several hundred thousand in bills for a six month hospital stay. When they transferred her to rehab good old Blue called it a release and canceled her insurance.
If you want to go into cost though let's try this then. A nursing home cost minimal $100 a day and I am using old figures. That's $52K a year that either Medicaid or Medicare both which are federal funds will pay out just on room & board. My wifes been a quad 27 years. That would have been over $1.4 M basic cost plus more for anything more than room and board had she went into a facility which BTW she medically qualified for.
We chose staying at home. Both of us are former nursing home workers although I wasn't involved in the medical care portion of it like she was. I'm the sole caregiver. In 27 years she has had about a dozen home health nurse visits. I learned skilled nursing. This hit her at 35 and it was in now way shape or form anything she did on her part to cause it.
Most workers in the United States are one catastrophic illness away from financial ruin. Your health insurance if you have it through your employer last 30 days after your last sick day is gone and then it is canceled and you can go on COBRA. COBRA cost are outrageous for the coverage given. You can't go back to private insurance because of preexisting conditions. Most persons who become disabled end up on Medicaid at least until their disability is approved.
In the mean time they can draw SSI. Once disability is approved every cent of the SSI you received comes out of the first payment you get on disability. Some persons draw enough Disability so they don't qualify for Medicaid and some don't. I think the cut off is around $1400 a month per person somewhere in there.
Sure there has to be some reform coming. But the reform has to be done in a manner that doesn't cut off vulnerable persons who have through wage conscription paid into the system. One way to cut cost is for Medicare/Medicaid to encourage families to do their own care if possible. But that also requires a family member with the disposition to do it otherwise the person is subject to abuse.
I do my wifes care and I did my dads Hospice care last year so he could stay home. I'm the one in the family who had the mental disposition to handle it except for my wife and her physical disability makes that impossible for her or she would. My mom will not see a nursing home either if I'm physically and mentally able to provide the needed care. My sister for her safety is where she is and it is private paid by her money. Assisted living for a Dementia patient is about $4K a month and up due to the extra measures it takes. The laws have changed you can't restrain a Dementia or Alzhiemers patient in a hospital or any licensed facility. Nor can you restrain any patient who can stand up. Mom can't do the care for her she's 80. I'm taking on more and more of her care.
Got answers? The old well we'll just end it all right now and every person for themself won't work. There has to be some reason and common sense in the reforms. It will take at least a generation to make the change.
There is something else many don't realize. People are surviving ailmants and accidents that a couple of decades ago usually meant death. With that comes a need for medical treatment. Many times it does mean the person survives but may be disabled. My wife's condition was likely caused by Polio Relapse they think hitting her at C-5 C-6 level in her neck. That added to her 4'10" 90 pound body was lifting 6 ft 200-300 pound plus patients at the time. No one knows what awaits them.