Posted on 09/11/2009 2:43:18 AM PDT by Scanian
In his Wednesday speech, President Obama fired up the troops on the urgency of re ducing the number of uninsured in this country and achieving universal coverage via insurance regulations and forcing all Americans to buy insurance.
Under his plan, insurers would be faced with "guaranteed issue" and "community rating." In other words, they wouldn't be allowed to deny insurance based on a pre-existing condition, take coverage away in the middle of a treatment, set a premium based on one's medical history or set lifetime caps on coverage.
If there were a "guaranteed issue" law for fire insurance, no one would buy coverage unless his or her home was actually on fire. We'd see the same "negative selection" under the Obama plan: Lots of people would simply avoid buying insurance until they got sick. After all, if you can't be turned down when you are sick, why bother wasting money on insurance when you don't need it?
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Thus, the necessity for the individual mandate.
There's still a solution available in the form of catastrophic coverage, provided to every taxpayer and his/her dependants, administered by the states, and funded with a small payroll tax. Simple, straightforward, cheap, and free choice enhancing. Which is, of course, why it'll never go anywhere.
Yep. Basically the equivalent policies to the ones in the housing finance industry. What could possibly go wrong?
Mine is 10k deduct. It pays for injuries in the ER with no deduct. It also covers my Annual physical and RX with no deduct. It is cheap and good. I like it. I think all the co-pays and etc. are a scam to make more money.
Very, very good article.
So I can just stop paying for insurance, pay the penalty, and when I get very sick, go in and start paying for medical insurance at that time, and get the coverage that I need, at no additional cost? I wonder if I can wait until the day I have an accident or my house catches fire to purchase insurance? Think of the money that could be saved.
Who carries your insurance?
aetna
That’s pretty much what I’m talking about, though I’ve been pitching 5K, with similar exceptions. The largest expense for most insurance companies is processing those $150 “my nose is running” claims, so eliminating them saves a bundle.
The issue that causes the widest spread concern for most Americans is getting wiped out by a major health calamity. If you can address that, there’ll be enormous support. But, most Republicans aren’t willing to compromise their ‘free market or die’ convictions, preferring instead to lose the battle with honor. And lose we will, the only question is ‘how badly’. Too bad, we had a chance to be in the vanguard of a solution, now we’re going to get trampled in the stampede.
Right. If the penalty and fine is less than the insurance..why not? Another brilliant Liberal plan. My Doc is moving to Costa Rica. I might follow him..this place is going insane.
No doubt. There is no magic solution to health costs with all the new technology. If medicine was still the same as in the 50’s it would still be cheap. Now we are going to be rationed according to age and illness. Disgusting. Maybe some Docs will open up in the Bahamas or Mexico to escape the Federals. We are going to end up in a big disaster unless the Feds are stopped.
Medical tourism has been big business in New York for many years, with visitors from Europe flying in to get the care they can’t get at home. We’re about to turn that ‘export’ market into an import market.
Went to a presentation this week by a hospital administrator at our local hospital (rated number one of small hospitals in US). He said medicaid in Florida does not cover anyone who is employed, no matter how little they make so there is no onus to work if you need medical coverage. He also noted his hospital is 100% electronic medical record supported and contrary to what der leader says, there is no financial benefit so der leader's idea using electronic medical records will save money is absurd because the systems have to be built, updated and monitored constantly by a team of professional ADP types. He also noted that tort reform would save money but that is never part of the program being addressed. He ended his talk with the comment something has to be done because the system is in jeopardy of imploding adding whatever will be done will sow the seeds of problems that will have to be addressed by a later generation as every proposal has an upside and a down side.
Vince
Medicine is a huge part of our expense. I have MS and take one of the meds to slow the progression and its EXPENSIVE. Our group insurance covers it, but I'm one of those folks who get out of it more than I put in (just in the cost of the one med I take.) I really never go to the doctor (except when they make me, LOL...I have to see the neuro a couple times a year.) And other than that, I take no meds.
They had no drugs for MS until the late 90's, so only in the last decade have DMDs (disease modifying meds) come on the market. They can run from $2500 per month, to much more (for the latest drug Tysabri which is not a self administered shot, but is an infusion which must be given in an infusion center.)
Same w/chemo meds for cancer treatment. The meds save lives, but they're expensive.
Sounds like a wise guy... as distinguished from “a wise guy”.
For everyone rah rahing Obama on those EVVIILLL insurance companies... will they enjoy picking up the additional taxes that the insurance companies currently pay?
Why not make the premiums tax deductible? It would encourage more people to purchase health care insurance, particlarly young singles.
That's been an oft' heard Republican proposal. There's nothing wrong with it in itself, but from an overall policy standpoint, it doesn't get you where you need to go. The people who'll be motivated to buy by a deduction are those who are pre-disposed to buy anyway. The only way community rating can work is to cover a large percentage of those who have few claims. Those folks generally won't buy insurance on their own, deduction or not. The whole key to keeping health insurance 'affordable' is to cover as many people who don't need you as possible.
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