Health Care Reform: 61% Say Congress Should Start All Over Again on Health Care

[sboyle24]

If you want to fix health care it would help if you knew what is causing the problems

Antitrust exemption for the insurance industry was established in the 1945 McCarran-Ferguson Act. The insurance industry has a special statutory exemption from the antitrust laws. Insurers should be subject to the same antitrust laws as everyone else.” Congress needs to pass S.1681 - Health Insurance Industry Antitrust Enforcement Act of 2009 This Act repeals the exemption for the most egregious forms of antitrust violations - price fixing, bid rigging, and market allocations. Repeal Antitrust Exemption

Want to know why there are too few general practitioners & soaring medical cost?

They told me I was too smart to go into primary care "Everyone told me it was the wrong thing to do," recalls Dr. Jennifer Weyler, explaining her decision two years ago as a medical student to become a family doctor. "My teachers discouraged me; administrators discouraged me. They told me I was too smart to go into primary care or that the job wouldn't be enough of a challenge." And sure enough, Weyler, now a resident in family medicine at the University of Massachusetts, is frustrate - but not by her job, which she loves. "It frustrates me," she explains, "to have to continually explain to people what a primary care practitioner is."

It was only 50 years ago, after all, that no one had to be told what a family doctor was, mainly because that's about all there was. Eighty-seven percent of all doctors in the thirties were general practitionersgeneral practitioner - namely internists, pediatricians, and family doctors. Today that figure has dropped to 30 percent.

A New England Medical Center's Health Institute study in 1992 found that specialists order more tests, perform more procedures, and hospitalize patients more often than primary care doctors treating similar symptoms. Family practitioners are less likely to hospitalize patients than specialists treating patients who had similar levels of illness, according to a recent Journal of the American Medical Association report. A 1990 study estimated that a 50-50 mix of primary care doctors to specialists would produce a 39 percent reduction in total expenditures for physician services. "Primary care protects people from unwanted procedures," explains Fitzhugh Mullan, an assistant U.S. surgeon general "General practitioners look at risks and benefits, both in terms of care and costs."

The American Medical Association is a trade union that limits the number of people who can enter medical school. Control over admission to medical school and later licensure enables the profession to limit entry in two ways. The obvious one is simply by turning down many applicants. The less obvious, but probably far more important one, is by establishing standards for admission and licensure that make entry so difficult as to discourage young people from ever trying to get admission.

Like the AMA, SEIU is largely a medical trade union who wrote Obamacare H.R.3200. Obama is the SEIU union boss negotiating their pay contract with the US citizens. These unions will pay lower premiums & get more benifits than the average citizen under Obamacare. "SEIU's Agenda is My Agenda!!!" said Obama "Together we had fought to raise wadges for home care workers in Ilinois." SEIU Employees are getting a Big Raise with Obamacare. Obama - SEIU's Agenda is My Agenda Takeover & Deception

Do you really want more rationing & higher medical cost? Adding a 2,000 page bureaucracy congress did not read forcing everyone into that system will make prices even higher & care worse for us that pay for it. Unlike the H.R.3200 health care bill passed by the house that does away with private health care & forces me to pay more for less, there is no public option, only mandated government healthcare! I would at least like the option to provide my own health care. A 10 page health care bill would be enough. Whats in H.R.3200 Republicans are NOT the party of NO!

LOL I think I have thought of a new term for tea-partiers and extreme anti-Obamaists. NEO-TWOOFERS!!! hahahahahahaha

 

[Polk]

The majority wants to start over? I'm down with that.

The majority also wants a public option. Let's do that too.

no. they just think they do. until they find out that turns into government-run health care.

So polls only count when they support your position, but otherwise, they're crap?

 

[Polk]

no. they just think they do. until they find out that turns into government-run health care.

It's an option.

There will still be a demand for premium insurance.

If private health insurance providers can't keep up or find a way to adjust to the market with gov't having a non-profit option for Americans then they can fail.

Yeah because every health insurance company can compete with someone who is allowed to operate in the red.
That option turns into government-run health-care.

It's just the ossiah's way of tricking everyone into social medicine.

Two things.
1. In all of the proposals, the public option had to be financed by premiums (which kinda ruins your argument).
2. The surest path to "government-run health care" is the status quo. More and more people will lose their employer-based insurance every year and the individual health insurance market is so instantly expensive that no one can afford it. The result will be increased political pressure for Medicaid expansion.

 

[Polk]

I'm not ... but it proves that other companies can compete with the gov't in the same market.

is the public "option" free? or does it charge money the way the post office does?

I'm not exactly sure ... I think whether it is "free" or not depends on your income level.

It's not free. It's financed by premiums. Individuals could end up not having to pay those premiums due to subsidies, but they could take that same money and apply it to private health insurers as well.

 

[Polk]

I'm not sure you want to use the USPS as the poster child for public option...

I'm not ... but it proves that other companies can compete with the gov't in the same market.

Not really, not when the USPS has a monopoly on "non-urgent" letters. You should read this: Reference for United States Postal Service - Search.com

The right of the United States government to engage in postal services is established by Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 of the Constitution. The USPS holds a statutory monopoly on non-urgent First Class Mail, outbound U.S. international letters[3] as well the exclusive right to put mail in private mailboxes,[4] as described in the Private Express Statutes.

Does that sound like "competition" to you? With health care, perhaps they will eventually claim a monopoly on providing coverage on everything except "non-urgent" or emergency care.

That's to ensure mail delivery. Without that, there would be no mail delivery outside of the major cities.

 

[sboyle24]

Oh those neo-twoofers.

 

[Polk]

Question:

As it stands right now what incentive do insurance companies have to lower their premiums?

Tell you what.
you make it the law that EVERYONE must purchase health insurance. healthy or not. that will bring the costs down.

That's exactly what the individual mandate is.

 

[Polk]

exactly. they do it with auto insurance, at least here.

Well the thing is you can't force everyone to buy a car ..

And I wouldn't support mandatory insurance coverage without there being a public option otherwise it's just a boon to the insurance companies.

if you do it without the option, everyone still wins. the prices would still go down by way of the market.

I agree. I think a public option would help, but I've never seen it as necessary to reform.

 

[KissMy]

Well the thing is you can't force everyone to buy a car ..

And I wouldn't support mandatory insurance coverage without there being a public option otherwise it's just a boon to the insurance companies.

if you do it without the option, everyone still wins. the prices would still go down by way of the market.

I agree. I think a public option would help, but I've never seen it as necessary to reform.

The key here is making the public option "truly optional" The way the public option is currently written into the bill makes it mandatory government insurance. Once this starts you can't leave the government plan & buy private insurance. If for any reason you lose your private insurance you are permanently stuck on the government insurance plan. I hate the way the words public option have so manipulated in this bill.

 

[Polk]

if you do it without the option, everyone still wins. the prices would still go down by way of the market.

I agree. I think a public option would help, but I've never seen it as necessary to reform.

The key here is making the public option "truly optional" The way the public option is currently written into the bill makes it mandatory government insurance. Once this starts you can't leave the government plan & buy private insurance. If for any reason you lose your private insurance you are permanently stuck on the government insurance plan. I hate the way the words public option have so manipulated in this bill.

That's simply not true. The public option has always been exact that, an option. There is no provision of the bill that forces someone to use the public option.

 

[KissMy]

I agree. I think a public option would help, but I've never seen it as necessary to reform.

The key here is making the public option "truly optional" The way the public option is currently written into the bill makes it mandatory government insurance. Once this starts you can't leave the government plan & buy private insurance. If for any reason you lose your private insurance you are permanently stuck on the government insurance plan. I hate the way the words public option have so manipulated in this bill.

That's simply not true. The public option has always been exact that, an option. There is no provision of the bill that forces someone to use the public option.

Start reading at page 16 of H.R.3200

10 (1) LIMITATION ON NEW ENROLLMENT.—
11 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in
12 this paragraph, the individual health insurance
13 issuer offering such coverage does not enroll
14 any individual in such coverage if the first
15 effective date of coverage is on or after the first
16 day of Y1.

Do you still think it is optional? This will cause private insurance pools to shrink until that company goes out of business forcing everyone onto the option-less government plan.

 

[sboyle24]

Starting over is always a step backward, and just another political ploy to impede.

 

[California Girl]

I'm not ... but it proves that other companies can compete with the gov't in the same market.

Actually, it's a strong argument that the gubmint should stay out of the competition...

There's no Constitutionally compelling reason for it to be involved as a competing business...

Well I disagree ...

General Welfare.

I hope you're joking, Art. Please educate yourself on the Constitution and how the founders defined 'general welfare'. Because your comment informs me that you haven't got a clue what it means.

 

[Polk]

The key here is making the public option "truly optional" The way the public option is currently written into the bill makes it mandatory government insurance. Once this starts you can't leave the government plan & buy private insurance. If for any reason you lose your private insurance you are permanently stuck on the government insurance plan. I hate the way the words public option have so manipulated in this bill.

That's simply not true. The public option has always been exact that, an option. There is no provision of the bill that forces someone to use the public option.

Start reading at page 16 of H.R.3200

10 (1) LIMITATION ON NEW ENROLLMENT.—
11 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in
12 this paragraph, the individual health insurance
13 issuer offering such coverage does not enroll
14 any individual in such coverage if the first
15 effective date of coverage is on or after the first
16 day of Y1.

Do you still think it is optional? This will cause private insurance pools to shrink until that company goes out of business forcing everyone onto the option-less government plan.

Yes, the public option is still optional. You're not understanding what that provision is saying. Look at the header: GRANDFATHERED HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE DEFINED.

That provision doesn't ban new private policies. It's saying that on the date the new coverage standards take effect, all policies must meet those standards, but those with existing policies can keep their current ones.

To say that bans private insurance is like saying that if Honda stopped selling Civics tomorrow, that means all Civics on the road disappear.

 

[EriktheRed]

Starting over is always a step backward, and just another political ploy to impede.

They want to try and run out the clock.

 

[nana5624]

The majority wants to start over? I'm down with that.

The majority also wants a public option. Let's do that too.

no. they just think they do. until they find out that turns into government-run health care.

And, as proven in those countries with government run health care, you still need reform and you still need private insurance. So WHY in the world would we want to put ourselves in that position? You will still be paying for your own private insurance AND for others public insurance. What's wrong with this picture?

 

[sboyle24]

The majority wants to start over? I'm down with that.

The majority also wants a public option. Let's do that too.

no. they just think they do. until they find out that turns into government-run health care.

And, as proven in those countries with government run health care, you still need reform and you still need private insurance. So WHY in the world would we want to put ourselves in that position? You will still be paying for your own private insurance AND for others public insurance. What's wrong with this picture?

I doubt that the proposed system is as close to other public systems as you assume.

 

[MajikMyst]

It's an option.

There will still be a demand for premium insurance.

If private health insurance providers can't keep up or find a way to adjust to the market with gov't having a non-profit option for Americans then they can fail.

Yeah because every health insurance company can compete with someone who is allowed to operate in the red.
That option turns into government-run health-care.

It's just the ossiah's way of tricking everyone into social medicine.

Kind of hard to compete with a company who can just print more money if and when it starts failing...

Then why are you morons worried about a deficit or the national debt?

You can't have it both ways!!

Grow a brain will you??

 

[MajikMyst]

The majority wants to start over? I'm down with that.

The majority also wants a public option. Let's do that too.

no. they just think they do. until they find out that turns into government-run health care.

Actually they do.. Most americans by a large margin want a government health plan.. Try looking at polls by non-biased organizations..

Most americans do want universal health care.. The rest of us aren't as stupid as you..

 

[jillian]

no. they just think they do. until they find out that turns into government-run health care.

actually, the government does health care pretty well. medicare is run with something like 1.5% of its income spent on administrative costs and it operates much more efficiently than insurance companies and they don't try to wait til you're dead to approve procedures.

there are things to criticize, but i don't think the 'government run' part is necessarily it....particularly when insurance companies do such a bad job at it.