I've listened and watched American politics for a while. Health care has always on the front burner .but nothing changes...........and I wonder why. Up here in the frozen north we have universal health care. Yes, no charge..........somewhere in our taxes we pay for it i'm sure but nothing out of pocket.....for a doctor visit or hospital visit. It seems very simple to me. Now I have heard the talking heads say that we have very long wait times. Maybe for surgery that is not emergency..but I can tell you if it is an emergency or something that needs fixing it is done. Yes, you may wait in the E R for a few hours but you will be seen and no charge. No premiums, nobody to say "you are not covered" Everyone treated the same. There are even walk in clinics with no appointment needed.............It seems simple to me. Any comments?????
Health Care
- Thread starter CWR
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Roadcuda
Well-Known Member
CWR, I don't dispute your view on this issue. As always there are two sides to an issue which makes it so hard to deceide which side to believe. This article is an editorial reply with a different perspective that was printed today in my local paper.
I well understand that there is no perfect mousetrap...........I'm sure you can find people in Canada who are not happy with the system. My neighbour just last week got an MRI 6 days after is Doc ordered it. I don't deny there are problems............MD's dont want to work in small towns, BUT they are paid well (by the system) whixh is the government (the taxpayer)and they don't have any bad debts. But for the most part, the system works [/size]and has worked for myself, and my family and that is the only experience I know first hand. I dont't wish to argue which is better.............just that ours works most of the time
Big John
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There are always two sides to the coin. :cheers:
The US system of health care could use some tweaking and I doubt if there are too many people would say its perfect the way it is.
That said, the proposed health care bill has some very controversial sections and many of us feel that its being foisted upon us with no debate and no compromise. The speed and so called "urgency" of this and other changes has a lot of us wondering what is really going on.
The Canadian system may work, I really don't have any first hand knowledge. I do know that Canadians pay a lot more in taxes then we do. For example the 13% sales tax (GST and PST) paid on purchases....so yea... you pay for it.
The US system of health care could use some tweaking and I doubt if there are too many people would say its perfect the way it is.
That said, the proposed health care bill has some very controversial sections and many of us feel that its being foisted upon us with no debate and no compromise. The speed and so called "urgency" of this and other changes has a lot of us wondering what is really going on.
The Canadian system may work, I really don't have any first hand knowledge. I do know that Canadians pay a lot more in taxes then we do. For example the 13% sales tax (GST and PST) paid on purchases....so yea... you pay for it.
With our systems of government "we" all get to pay eventually. Yes we pay what amounts to 13% on everything we buy............. All the spending waste ia what concerns me....politicians don't seem to be for the people anymore......
SomeCarGuy
Well-Known Member
You can get coverage pretty cheap that has a high deductible, like 7500. But it pays at 100% after that.
Those plans don't cover small stuff typically but are there for you if you have a major need.
I don't understand why we can't just get coverage like that for people. Much cheaper than some of the bailout crap we have done in the past year and then everybody will have coverage for when they really need it.
That would clear up a lot of the problem we have with the covered paying extra for the people with no coverage.
Would still have to figure out how to deal with "prexisting" conditions but it would be a start and not involve any of the things the political crapheads aren't explaining well or at all right now.
Those plans don't cover small stuff typically but are there for you if you have a major need.
I don't understand why we can't just get coverage like that for people. Much cheaper than some of the bailout crap we have done in the past year and then everybody will have coverage for when they really need it.
That would clear up a lot of the problem we have with the covered paying extra for the people with no coverage.
Would still have to figure out how to deal with "prexisting" conditions but it would be a start and not involve any of the things the political crapheads aren't explaining well or at all right now.
Jim S.
Well-Known Member
I think that one thing that makes a big difference, is Canada has a "loser pays" policy in their court system. That would stop a lot of crap lawsuits including questionable malpractice suits which our doctors pay big insurance premiums for.......Jim
Big John
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SomeCarGuy said:
The big issue with that is people have an expectation of being able to walk into the doctor's office and not have to pay a cent. They've lost sight of what insurance actually is or should be... protection against catastrophic loss.
We have a high deductible plan for our employees. We also have a Health Savings Account plan for employees to put pre-tax money for health care in. We contribute to the HSA also to offset the high deductible but also expect our employees to contribute. Its a really nice plan that gives excellent coverage for our guys. By NY law, I can only have the same coverage as our employees and its what I would choose anyway.
One of our concerns is that we may be forced to change the coverage and have to use the goverment plan.
The thing that fries me is in New York State we already have a great insurance plan available for lower income families. You pay based on your earnings. Its a long story... but my youngest step-son had coverage through this from his father. It was great, even better then the plan I had for my family. He coud go to the same doctors we had, the only thing we ran into was the dental coverage only allowed for dentists in the plan. A minor inconvience.
With a little tweaking to allow for higher income people with no insurance, it could work out real well for everyone.
roadrunnerh
Well-Known Member
A major difference between the Canadian health system and the U.S. is sheer volume. How can we compare systems with such a huge difference in population?
Personally, I am happy with my health care insurance, and I don't want the government messing with it...
Personally, I am happy with my health care insurance, and I don't want the government messing with it...
roadrunnerh said:
Like Mr. Rogers stated in his opening remarks (in the video in the other thread on this same subject) the system works for 85% of our population and they want to completely reinvent the wheel for the 15% (his numbers IIRC) that can't or won't get themselves coverage rather than figuring out a way to integrate them into a system that works for most of the rest of us.
mcmopar
Well-Known Member
It's called "control". They want to "manage" everything in our lives. They know what we need and are hell-bent on making sure we get it whether we really want/need it or not. The best part about this health care system that is being force-fed to us is this: If you don't sign up and get some kind of health care you will pay a tax penalty each and every year until you do. Don't let anyone kid you - this is not an elective plan. You will be forced to have SOME kind of health coverage because its "for your own good". Nobody in the press is talking about this little gem. Gee, I wonder why?
Big John
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[youtube:2s8h0ong]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WnS96NVlMI[/youtube:2s8h0ong]
Interesting video. They're completely right that we as a country need to overhaul how we think about health care...as is evidenced by the "grocery insurance" segment...so telling... 