Posted on 04/24/2012 5:27:47 AM PDT by TurboZamboni
If the Supreme Court strikes down President Barack Obama's health care law, employers and insurance companies—not the government—will be the main drivers of change over the next decade and maybe even longer. They'll borrow some ideas from Obamacare, and push harder to cut costs.
Business can't and won't take care of America's 50 million uninsured, but for the majority with coverage, here's what experts say to expect:
(Excerpt) Read more at twincities.com ...
Unions will get waivers and special exceptions in order to be considered “best company to work for”.
Then workers can unite to hail The One.
Exactly. Have the insureds pay for checkups and routine care, at least a good percentage of it, enough for people to think about the costs and watch for fraudulent charges. Then co-pays significant enough that people will question the need for that 3rd MRI or CT scan, before just going ahead with it.
Amen. And repeal Section 125.
Why do you think there is age discrimination and offshoring? Health care costs are a huge factor....the company doesn't have to pay for "Vijay in Mumbai"'s health care.
Did you miss my post? The main cost driver for "healthcare inflation" is recouping losses from underpayment by government programs and other "free healthcare".
Providers need to be forced to pay for bad debt and charity care with some other funding mechanism.
Employer-provided insurance has resulted in “that cost is crazy but I don’t have to pay it so I’ll give it no further thought”.
Partially correct. Consumer driven healthcare (shopping) would go a long way towards creating competition among the providers. But that has nothing to do with the employer. The employer could still offer HSAs as a benefit.
The "group" aspect offers a lower group rate, as well as guaranteed issue. (if you're healthy enough to work, you're healthy enough to insure)
No I didn't you young whippersnapper. I'm older than that and a cancer survivor. Without fairly easy treatments, I'd be dead by now. It's only a death sentence if you frig around like you are.
The Bible pegs the average lifespan at 70 years.
Well, here in the present time, where we have modern things like horse and buggy spacecraft, the US lifespan is a lot higher than that.
But I’m also very active.
So am I...what cancer?
I have not been screened, nor do I intend to be....Regarding cancer, just give me some pain medication.
Well, the hospice care isn't free either, and your family might not like hearing you scream as the strongest pain medication is unable to keep you comfortable. Sometimes, the only way out for terminal patients is a legal overdose.
You keep quoting Biblical scripture...I thought suicide was a sin.
—where we have modern things—
Every age is “modern” at the time.
—You keep quoting Biblical scripture...I thought suicide was a sin.—
Where did I mention suicide?
Did you glance at the youtube video I referenced or look up Max on the internet? It will give you insight into my perspective on this.
BTW, there is NO history of cancer in my family. Neither side.
You prepare the way you want and I’ll prepare the way I choose. I acknowledge that life in this human vessel is very temporary. I have no desire to prolong it. As wonderful as this life is, I know there is something better waiting. When I am at my best, I take each day as though it was my last.
All people have the exact same life span. We call it “today”. I will live until I can no longer say it is “today”.
Not if everyone starts doing it. If enough companies dump healthcare, it will start a stampede.
And the plan was to raise taxes on the workers, not the corporations. Short sighted isn’t it.
Where you said you would refuse cancer treatment.
there is NO history of cancer in my family. Neither side.
Mine neither.
All people have the exact same life span.
Well, Jeanne Calment lived to be 122. Your wife's first husband died at 27. Hmmmmm...
I have no desire to prolong it.
Wow! Without treatment, you could die from an infected toe nail. So I take it you don't seek treatment for any formerly terminal diseases.
I guess you are old...and a luddite.
—I guess you are old...and a luddite.—
When it comes to medical treatment, yes, I am a luddite.
BTW, I didn’t mention that when my wife’s first husband died, the hospital was expressly told to not take certain life saving procedures. They did anyway, to the tune of a couple hundred thousand dollars, and then he died.
We were designed by our creator to be self healing and self replicating. Ever since the AMA lost the long suit with the Chiropractors, I’ve lost respect for the medical community at many levels. They are a for-profit industry. My father in law is almost 90 and is in the hospital AGAIN as I type this. He’s been to the hospital for prolonged stays about 1/3 of the time for the last several years. And this includes many, MANY costly surgeries. He’s practically an invalid, but at least he’s a good profit center for the medical profession.
In my case, I prefer to treat this body I occupy like I would treat a car I own. I only get the one. I’ll take care of it, use good gas, keep the oil changed, touch up paint nicks and one day it will just wear out. It’s what they do. The boomer generation seems to forget that. I suspect it is the loss of a spiritual perspective that causes that. After all, if this life is all there is, I suppose I’d want to preserve my body as long as possible. But I have something better waiting on the other side.
I don’t expect agnostics or atheists to understand this.
I would disagree that “they” - meaning the health insurance industry - pushed for all of this intervention. Remember, before government and unions got involved - the model from the industry was a lean catastrophic only product called major medical. That’s the way they make more money with less employees. They gross more billing the current way, but it’s not nearly as clean of a business model. I’m sure some in the industry like this, but history dictates that left to their own devices, the industry would have stayed with the major medical cat coverage model.
Actually that’s not entirely true, the cost curve went up with the popularization of insurance.
Its simply a product of perceptively unlimited supply having no constraint on demand. That is what health insurance is. That is why the debasement of health insurance with high deductibles has proven successful in better controlling costs.
The business plan to control health care costs will work for the same obvious reasons:
“Workers will bear more of their own medical costs as job coverage shifts to plans with higher deductibles, the amount you pay out of pocket each year before insurance kicks in. Traditional insurance will lose ground to high-deductible plans with tax-free accounts for routine expenses, to which employers can contribute.”
“If enough companies dump healthcare, it will start a stampede.”
The Stampede will be towards a single payer - socialized system. Which is not what neither of us wants.
We need to bring costs down by introducing more competition into health care.
Their is very little competition between health insurance companies, in fact they are basically a cartel. They have lobbied government to make so many rules and regulations that has reduced competition.
The AMA restricts the number of doctors. (less competition).
Lawsuit reform.
Illegal Immigration-free health care.
Could go on and on.
The point is that if health care wasn’t so expensive it would not be a point of contention between employers and employees. (As it is becoming).
And for good reason.
Nothing here about the GOP plans for TORT reform, competition across state lines, making premiums deductible.
As usual, AP is rooting for Dems.
I agree - I just got out of the hosp. after lung cancer surgery. I’m 77. My wife is 64 and has had uterine and breast cancer after she was 55. I also had AAA repair last year.
I’m counting on another 15 years of good life, but couldn’t do it without my $161/mo. insurance.
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