Republicans – Question: What are Health Care Companies good for?

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rdean

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I don’t understand the reason why Republicans work so hard to defend Health Care Insurance companies. They make their money by denying health care to the severely ill.

They don’t make anything. They don’t build anything. They license doctors and hospitals. A “not for profit” co-op could do that. And you could pay the CEO of a co-op 10 million and still have a “high price” manager. Only you wouldn’t have so many administrative costs or stock options or corporate jets.

That would free up all those other executives to do things like sell American Made products to other countries instead of figuring out new ways to “skim” money off insurance policies.

That would drive down the cost of insurance.

This morning on “Morning Joe” the guests talked about a company that moved to Canada. They were paying 7 dollars an hour more here just on health care. Salaries have been flat for the last 8 years because the cost of health care has gone up as benefits dwindled, moving that money for salaries into just paying for health care. In that same time, Insurance Company CEO Salaries have doubled or tripled if you include stock options and bonuses. The CEO of Cigna received a 73 million dollar bonus. The company has two corporate jets. Not bad for a company that makes its money by skimming insurance policies.

So the question becomes, “What are the benefits from these companies?”
 
I don’t understand the reason why Republicans work so hard to defend Health Care Insurance companies. They make their money by denying health care to the severely ill.

They don’t make anything. They don’t build anything. They license doctors and hospitals. A “not for profit” co-op could do that. And you could pay the CEO of a co-op 10 million and still have a “high price” manager. Only you wouldn’t have so many administrative costs or stock options or corporate jets.

That would free up all those other executives to do things like sell American Made products to other countries instead of figuring out new ways to “skim” money off insurance policies.

That would drive down the cost of insurance.

Aren't your complaints true of any type of insurance, car, home owners, etc.? You're fooling yourself if you think the later are somehow more altruisitc than health insurance providers. So the real question is do you see a need for such a concept as insurance?

As far as them not making anything or building anything, government doesn't do any of those things either, but for some reason you think it's a good idea for them to run health care.

Personally I do see insurance as a neccessary evil and there are ways to make it cheaper. If we made insurance companies actually compete that would be a good start and deregulated insruance companies on the state level that would allow for greater customization of policies for the individual.

The 'benefit' of health insurance or any insurance for that matter, is to be able to afford the unexpected/unplanned for. The other benefit of it is when those unexpected things happen generally it is going to cost more than what people have on hand to cover on their own. I was always told insurance is something that you have that hopefully you never have to use.
 
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I don’t understand the reason why Republicans work so hard to defend Health Care Insurance companies. They make their money by denying health care to the severely ill.

They don’t make anything. They don’t build anything. They license doctors and hospitals. A “not for profit” co-op could do that. And you could pay the CEO of a co-op 10 million and still have a “high price” manager. Only you wouldn’t have so many administrative costs or stock options or corporate jets.

That would free up all those other executives to do things like sell American Made products to other countries instead of figuring out new ways to “skim” money off insurance policies.

That would drive down the cost of insurance.

Aren't your complaints true of any type of insurance, car, home owners, etc.? You're fooling yourself if you think the later are somehow more altruisitc than health insurance providers. So the real question is do you see a need for such a concept as insurance?

As far as them not making anything or building anything, government doesn't do any of those things either, but for some reason you think it's a good idea for them torun health care .

Personally I do see insurance as a neccessary evil and there are ways to make it cheaper. If we made insurance companies actually compete that would be a good start and deregulated insruance companies on the state level that would allow for greater customization of policies for the individual.

Why do you insist one telling lies asshole?
 
It's so sad to see the heartbreak of economic and business illiteracy on parade.

Condolences to rdean and TM. Answering the OP questions would be like trying to explain a symphony to someone who was born deaf.
 
Tell us all how the stock market is responding to the likely pass of the healthcare bill Boody?
 
The Mega-Corps are thrilled at the prospect of siphoning off taxpayer dollars via their cronyism with Big Government.

It's clear that you don't get that Big Government colludes Mega-Corps at the expense of the smaller competitors who provide services at a lower cost. Such corporations use government to get rid of competition. Big Government in return gets the support to expand their control (which is what their goal always is).

And you dim bulbs on the left don't get it.

You rail about business being evil - yet are unable to distinguish the conditions which foster honest competition. What a pathetic group of useful idiots you are.
 
I don’t understand the reason why Republicans work so hard to defend Health Care Insurance companies. They make their money by denying health care to the severely ill.

They don’t make anything. They don’t build anything. They license doctors and hospitals. A “not for profit” co-op could do that. And you could pay the CEO of a co-op 10 million and still have a “high price” manager. Only you wouldn’t have so many administrative costs or stock options or corporate jets.

That would free up all those other executives to do things like sell American Made products to other countries instead of figuring out new ways to “skim” money off insurance policies.

That would drive down the cost of insurance.

Aren't your complaints true of any type of insurance, car, home owners, etc.? You're fooling yourself if you think the later are somehow more altruisitc than health insurance providers. So the real question is do you see a need for such a concept as insurance?

As far as them not making anything or building anything, government doesn't do any of those things either, but for some reason you think it's a good idea for them torun health care .

Personally I do see insurance as a neccessary evil and there are ways to make it cheaper. If we made insurance companies actually compete that would be a good start and deregulated insruance companies on the state level that would allow for greater customization of policies for the individual.

Why do you insist one telling lies asshole?

You don't think government should run health care?
 
Any insurance company is out to make money. Who they make it for is the question. The answer is they make money for themselves, and by that I mean the executive management hierarchy, and the investors. As for the health insurance industry, there's an additional player, the medical community. A third of what you pay in premiums, if that, goes towards your personal care. The rest goes to those living off your hard earned dollar and living large. :neutral:
 
Aren't your complaints true of any type of insurance, car, home owners, etc.? You're fooling yourself if you think the later are somehow more altruisitc than health insurance providers. So the real question is do you see a need for such a concept as insurance?

As far as them not making anything or building anything, government doesn't do any of those things either, but for some reason you think it's a good idea for them torun health care .

Personally I do see insurance as a neccessary evil and there are ways to make it cheaper. If we made insurance companies actually compete that would be a good start and deregulated insruance companies on the state level that would allow for greater customization of policies for the individual.

Why do you insist one telling lies asshole?

You don't think government should run health care?

Government doesn't need to run health care, they just need to change the rules.
 
I don’t understand the reason why Republicans work so hard to defend Health Care Insurance companies. They make their money by denying health care to the severely ill.

They don’t make anything. They don’t build anything. They license doctors and hospitals. A “not for profit” co-op could do that. And you could pay the CEO of a co-op 10 million and still have a “high price” manager. Only you wouldn’t have so many administrative costs or stock options or corporate jets.

That would free up all those other executives to do things like sell American Made products to other countries instead of figuring out new ways to “skim” money off insurance policies.

That would drive down the cost of insurance.

Aren't your complaints true of any type of insurance, car, home owners, etc.? You're fooling yourself if you think the later are somehow more altruisitc than health insurance providers. So the real question is do you see a need for such a concept as insurance?

As far as them not making anything or building anything, government doesn't do any of those things either, but for some reason you think it's a good idea for them to run health care.

Personally I do see insurance as a neccessary evil and there are ways to make it cheaper. If we made insurance companies actually compete that would be a good start and deregulated insruance companies on the state level that would allow for greater customization of policies for the individual.

The 'benefit' of health insurance or any insurance for that matter, is to be able to afford the unexpected/unplanned for. The other benefit of it is when those unexpected things happen generally it is going to cost more than what people have on hand to cover on their own. I was always told insurance is something that you have that hopefully you never have to use.

I'm not so sure. If you don't own a car, you don't need automobile insurance, or if you don't own a home, likewise. But everyone gets sick. Anyone can get injured.

On Morning Joe, they said only Insurance companies and "something else" (was it baseball?) were able to "fix prices" legally.

If you allow insurance across state lines, the bigger companies will eat up the smaller ones and then you would end up with a few really big insurance companies that would jack up their prices because there would be no competition. I don't see that as a solution.

No, the question is, "Why wouldn't a "co-op" work? They would be able to negotiate directly with the hospitals and doctors. No corporate jets. No 70 million dollar bonuses.
 
I'm not so sure. If you don't own a car, you don't need automobile insurance, or if you don't own a home, likewise. But everyone gets sick. Anyone can get injured.

On Morning Joe, they said only Insurance companies and "something else" (was it baseball?) were able to "fix prices" legally.

If you allow insurance across state lines, the bigger companies will eat up the smaller ones and then you would end up with a few really big insurance companies that would jack up their prices because there would be no competition. I don't see that as a solution.

No, the question is, "Why wouldn't a "co-op" work? They would be able to negotiate directly with the hospitals and doctors. No corporate jets. No 70 million dollar bonuses.
The health insurance companies provide a service, and that's security to know that you'll be ok if you get sick or hurt. If you don't think that's valuable enough, then simply don't buy insurance and take your chances without it.

It's also incredibly presumptive of you to think that all the big companies will swallow up the little ones like they're nothing, and that that's a bad thing. Big companies (in general) get as big as they are because they have a good business model and can provide their good or service at a cheaper cost, thus passing on the savings to the consumer. This is why Wal Mart is as big as it is; because they've found a way to offer better products for less than their competitors. Until there's a true monopoly then i don't see a problem with big companies controlling most of the industry as the bigger a company becomes, the harder it it to put them out of business. If two industry giants are colluding to jack up prices then that's a crime and they can be prosecuted for it.

Especially in the insurance industry, the barriers to entry are minimal. All you need is some capital, a means to keep records and some balls (as insurance is just risk management) and you're in. Even if a big company was charging too much, surely someone could step in and seize the opportunity to do it better for cheaper.

I've said it a million times it seems, but deciding which third party is going to be responsible for your health care bills does little to address costs, as a third party is just a middle man, and middlemen add costs to a process. But if you want to make the costs of administering health insurance cheaper, you're surely not going to do that by putting it in the hands of the government when it has no competition. Break down barriers and make the insurance market more competitive and force these companies to make efficiencies in their processes so they can afford to offer their product at a lower price. Right now, all these companies can only operate within a state under a strict set of regulations, and all that does is add cost... having to erect multiple locations, hire people to make sure certain procedures are being followed, etc.

I'm personally a fan of HSAs, so from the "why do we need health isnurance companies?" standpoint, i'm with you there a little bit.
 
I'm not so sure. If you don't own a car, you don't need automobile insurance, or if you don't own a home, likewise. But everyone gets sick. Anyone can get injured.

On Morning Joe, they said only Insurance companies and "something else" (was it baseball?) were able to "fix prices" legally.

If you allow insurance across state lines, the bigger companies will eat up the smaller ones and then you would end up with a few really big insurance companies that would jack up their prices because there would be no competition. I don't see that as a solution.

No, the question is, "Why wouldn't a "co-op" work? They would be able to negotiate directly with the hospitals and doctors. No corporate jets. No 70 million dollar bonuses.
The health insurance companies provide a service, and that's security to know that you'll be ok if you get sick or hurt. If you don't think that's valuable enough, then simply don't buy insurance and take your chances without it.

It's also incredibly presumptive of you to think that all the big companies will swallow up the little ones like they're nothing, and that that's a bad thing. Big companies (in general) get as big as they are because they have a good business model and can provide their good or service at a cheaper cost, thus passing on the savings to the consumer. This is why Wal Mart is as big as it is; because they've found a way to offer better products for less than their competitors. Until there's a true monopoly then i don't see a problem with big companies controlling most of the industry as the bigger a company becomes, the harder it it to put them out of business. If two industry giants are colluding to jack up prices then that's a crime and they can be prosecuted for it.

Especially in the insurance industry, the barriers to entry are minimal. All you need is some capital, a means to keep records and some balls (as insurance is just risk management) and you're in. Even if a big company was charging too much, surely someone could step in and seize the opportunity to do it better for cheaper.

I've said it a million times it seems, but deciding which third party is going to be responsible for your health care bills does little to address costs, as a third party is just a middle man, and middlemen add costs to a process. But if you want to make the costs of administering health insurance cheaper, you're surely not going to do that by putting it in the hands of the government when it has no competition. Break down barriers and make the insurance market more competitive and force these companies to make efficiencies in their processes so they can afford to offer their product at a lower price. Right now, all these companies can only operate within a state under a strict set of regulations, and all that does is add cost... having to erect multiple locations, hire people to make sure certain procedures are being followed, etc.

I'm personally a fan of HSAs, so from the "why do we need health isnurance companies?" standpoint, i'm with you there a little bit.

In the midst of a deep economic recession, America's health insurance companies increased their profits by 56 percent in 2009, a year that saw 2.7 million people lose their private coverage.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/HealthCare/health-insurers-post-record-profits/story?id=9818699

I don't know. 2.7 MILLION? You know that was all sick people.
 
I'm not so sure. If you don't own a car, you don't need automobile insurance, or if you don't own a home, likewise. But everyone gets sick. Anyone can get injured.

On Morning Joe, they said only Insurance companies and "something else" (was it baseball?) were able to "fix prices" legally.

If you allow insurance across state lines, the bigger companies will eat up the smaller ones and then you would end up with a few really big insurance companies that would jack up their prices because there would be no competition. I don't see that as a solution.

No, the question is, "Why wouldn't a "co-op" work? They would be able to negotiate directly with the hospitals and doctors. No corporate jets. No 70 million dollar bonuses.
The health insurance companies provide a service, and that's security to know that you'll be ok if you get sick or hurt. If you don't think that's valuable enough, then simply don't buy insurance and take your chances without it.

It's also incredibly presumptive of you to think that all the big companies will swallow up the little ones like they're nothing, and that that's a bad thing. Big companies (in general) get as big as they are because they have a good business model and can provide their good or service at a cheaper cost, thus passing on the savings to the consumer. This is why Wal Mart is as big as it is; because they've found a way to offer better products for less than their competitors. Until there's a true monopoly then i don't see a problem with big companies controlling most of the industry as the bigger a company becomes, the harder it it to put them out of business. If two industry giants are colluding to jack up prices then that's a crime and they can be prosecuted for it.

Especially in the insurance industry, the barriers to entry are minimal. All you need is some capital, a means to keep records and some balls (as insurance is just risk management) and you're in. Even if a big company was charging too much, surely someone could step in and seize the opportunity to do it better for cheaper.

I've said it a million times it seems, but deciding which third party is going to be responsible for your health care bills does little to address costs, as a third party is just a middle man, and middlemen add costs to a process. But if you want to make the costs of administering health insurance cheaper, you're surely not going to do that by putting it in the hands of the government when it has no competition. Break down barriers and make the insurance market more competitive and force these companies to make efficiencies in their processes so they can afford to offer their product at a lower price. Right now, all these companies can only operate within a state under a strict set of regulations, and all that does is add cost... having to erect multiple locations, hire people to make sure certain procedures are being followed, etc.

I'm personally a fan of HSAs, so from the "why do we need health isnurance companies?" standpoint, i'm with you there a little bit.

In the midst of a deep economic recession, America's health insurance companies increased their profits by 56 percent in 2009, a year that saw 2.7 million people lose their private coverage.

Health Insurers Post Record Profits - ABC News

I don't know. 2.7 MILLION? You know that was all sick people.
I never argued that the system doesn't need reform and you'll be hard pressed to find people who will. Yet, you asked what they're good for and i answered. Once again, i think you could drop down their costs to be passed on to the consumer if you really increase their ability to compete directly against each other.

So, to me, it seems like you're not interested in a discussion, you're just interested demonizing for-profit industry.
 
In the midst of a deep economic recession, America's health insurance companies increased their profits by 56 percent in 2009, a year that saw 2.7 million people lose their private coverage.

Health Insurers Post Record Profits - ABC News

I don't know. 2.7 MILLION? You know that was all sick people.

:lol:....come on Dean.....every one of those 2.7 mil were sick?....there wasnt at least one who was ok?....you are so full of it your getting to be the comedy relief around here.....
 
I don’t understand the reason why Republicans work so hard to defend Health Care Insurance companies. They make their money by denying health care to the severely ill.

They don’t make anything. They don’t build anything. They license doctors and hospitals. A “not for profit” co-op could do that. And you could pay the CEO of a co-op 10 million and still have a “high price” manager. Only you wouldn’t have so many administrative costs or stock options or corporate jets.

That would free up all those other executives to do things like sell American Made products to other countries instead of figuring out new ways to “skim” money off insurance policies.

That would drive down the cost of insurance.

Aren't your complaints true of any type of insurance, car, home owners, etc.? You're fooling yourself if you think the later are somehow more altruisitc than health insurance providers. So the real question is do you see a need for such a concept as insurance?

As far as them not making anything or building anything, government doesn't do any of those things either, but for some reason you think it's a good idea for them to run health care.

Personally I do see insurance as a neccessary evil and there are ways to make it cheaper. If we made insurance companies actually compete that would be a good start and deregulated insruance companies on the state level that would allow for greater customization of policies for the individual.

The 'benefit' of health insurance or any insurance for that matter, is to be able to afford the unexpected/unplanned for. The other benefit of it is when those unexpected things happen generally it is going to cost more than what people have on hand to cover on their own. I was always told insurance is something that you have that hopefully you never have to use.

I'm not so sure. If you don't own a car, you don't need automobile insurance, or if you don't own a home, likewise. But everyone gets sick. Anyone can get injured.

On Morning Joe, they said only Insurance companies and "something else" (was it baseball?) were able to "fix prices" legally.

If you allow insurance across state lines, the bigger companies will eat up the smaller ones and then you would end up with a few really big insurance companies that would jack up their prices because there would be no competition. I don't see that as a solution.

No, the question is, "Why wouldn't a "co-op" work? They would be able to negotiate directly with the hospitals and doctors. No corporate jets. No 70 million dollar bonuses.

I don't think you're fear of what might happen is realistic. For starters it's already that way because of state regulation. There are maybe 2 or 3 major health insurance companies that operate here in MN. That simply isn't how competition works. Some have said the free market is all about profit, that isn't entirely true. The real goal and the only way any company can remain successful and profitable is when they meet the demands of the consumer. When the correct economic policy is in place it forces companies to innovate. It's a race to see who can serve the customer the best.

The other thing that needs to change is the crony capitalism in this country. You're right in the sense that it wouldn't be enough to just deregulate, the corporate tax breaks and favors need to end as well. That is one of the complaints against capaitlism is the collusion between companies and governments, but that isn't capitalism at all.

I'm not sure what a co-op would look like, but speaking to negotioating, the best negotiator on your behalf is YOU. That's part of what needs to happen, the actualy customer needs to have more direct control over their money so they are in a better bargaining postion with service providers.
 
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I don’t understand the reason why Republicans work so hard to defend Health Care Insurance companies. They make their money by denying health care to the severely ill.

They don’t make anything. They don’t build anything. They license doctors and hospitals. A “not for profit” co-op could do that. And you could pay the CEO of a co-op 10 million and still have a “high price” manager. Only you wouldn’t have so many administrative costs or stock options or corporate jets.

That would free up all those other executives to do things like sell American Made products to other countries instead of figuring out new ways to “skim” money off insurance policies.

That would drive down the cost of insurance.

Aren't your complaints true of any type of insurance, car, home owners, etc.? You're fooling yourself if you think the later are somehow more altruisitc than health insurance providers. So the real question is do you see a need for such a concept as insurance?

As far as them not making anything or building anything, government doesn't do any of those things either, but for some reason you think it's a good idea for them torun health care .

Personally I do see insurance as a neccessary evil and there are ways to make it cheaper. If we made insurance companies actually compete that would be a good start and deregulated insruance companies on the state level that would allow for greater customization of policies for the individual.

Why do you insist one telling lies asshole?

If they're lies, then Prove it.
 
In the midst of a deep economic recession, America's health insurance companies increased their profits by 56 percent in 2009, a year that saw 2.7 million people lose their private coverage.

Health Insurers Post Record Profits - ABC News

I don't know. 2.7 MILLION? You know that was all sick people.

:lol:....come on Dean.....every one of those 2.7 mil were sick?....there wasnt at least one who was ok?....you are so full of it your getting to be the comedy relief around here.....

Maybe one.
 

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