Why Do Americans Support Medicare?

[auditor0007]

While I think Paul Ryan's Medicare voucher plan is a disaster waiting to happen, I find it quite ironic that so many Americans are against it. Given that the majority of Americans support Medicare, how is it that they are so against a single payer system run by the government? This is a complete contradiction. Before Americans retire, they want to have choice by purchasing insurance through private insurance companies, or for most, they want the insurance plan that their employer makes available to them. Most Americans don't really get much choice. But when they retire, they want the government run single payer system called Medicare? It seems to me that if Americans are so against single payer, they would be against Medicare. But this is not the case. In fact, Paul Ryan's plan pretty much does that and Americans are against it in astonishing numbers.

84 percent oppose Ryan

For the life of me, I do not understand this.

 

[chikenwing]

Its a free ride for many, and after many years of FICA taxes people would like what has been promised.

 

[midcan5]

Most do not consider the wider implications of any of these plans, and confusion reigns supreme with corporate paid media manipulating reality.

Medicare was paid for through wages, medicare only pays a portion of care, medicare costs are dependent on the plan you select, medicare guarantees insurance while any actuary will tell you it is not profitable to insure people over 65, and most of all, some people in and out of government recognize life often deals bad cards, and these particular people have the moral backbone to support care for all people. Any society that claims it is about the welfare of its citizens would do the same. Ryan's plan would work for the healthy and ruin the lives of the many. Ruining lives is only a concept on the republican side of the fence, they call it by other euphemisms by the way.

I revised this but this will do: http://www.usmessageboard.com/healt...241-answers-to-all-your-questions-on-uhc.html

 

[boedicca]

Easy Peasy: Many Americans have been brainwashed with The Fog of Health Care Fear by the Progressive Big Gubmint types and their MSM Hench Thugs.

 

[slukasiewski]

My Dad (90) has Medicare and it's been great!

 

[konradv]

My Dad (90) has Medicare and it's been great!

Freakin' socialist!!!

 

[slukasiewski]

My Dad (90) has Medicare and it's been great!

Freakin' socialist!!!

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

 

[konradv]

My Dad (90) has Medicare and it's been great!

Freakin' socialist!!!

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

Regardless, it's still socialism, if the amount paid in is less than the amount charged for services. It's amazing how quickly righties go to this excuse, but will revile anyone who uses any other program. I paid into SS all my life, too. That doesn't stop anyone from calling it a Ponzi scheme or worse.

 

[slukasiewski]

Freakin' socialist!!!

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

Regardless, it's still socialism, if the amount paid in is less than the amount charged for services. It's amazing how quickly righties go to this excuse, but will revile anyone who uses any other program. I paid into SS all my life, too. That doesn't stop anyone from calling it a Ponzi scheme or worse.

And you can disenroll yourself from the SS program any time you like!

 

[Spoonman]

While I think Paul Ryan's Medicare voucher plan is a disaster waiting to happen, I find it quite ironic that so many Americans are against it. Given that the majority of Americans support Medicare, how is it that they are so against a single payer system run by the government? This is a complete contradiction. Before Americans retire, they want to have choice by purchasing insurance through private insurance companies, or for most, they want the insurance plan that their employer makes available to them. Most Americans don't really get much choice. But when they retire, they want the government run single payer system called Medicare? It seems to me that if Americans are so against single payer, they would be against Medicare. But this is not the case. In fact, Paul Ryan's plan pretty much does that and Americans are against it in astonishing numbers.

84 percent oppose Ryan

For the life of me, I do not understand this.

for most it's the only option available. beggars can't be choosers, bottom line, plus as long as they've been paying into it all their working lives why not take advantage of it

 

[Flopper]

Most American realize that without Medicare, they could not possibly afford the cost of private insurance in their senior years. Couple that with the fact they have been paying for Medicare for many years through payroll taxes, they expect it to be available when they retire. The Ryan plan is a thinly veiled attempt to abolish Medicare.

 

[Flopper]

Freakin' socialist!!!

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

Regardless, it's still socialism, if the amount paid in is less than the amount charged for services. It's amazing how quickly righties go to this excuse, but will revile anyone who uses any other program. I paid into SS all my life, too. That doesn't stop anyone from calling it a Ponzi scheme or worse.

Medicare is socialist only to the extent that it replaces private insurance for seniors with a government insurance plan. It is no more socialist than VA healthcare benefits, public education, or most spending by state and federal government.

 

[jgarden]

Does Health Care Reform Apply to Everyone? - No. All the politicians in the US Senate, Congress and White House and their families are exempted from Healthcare Reform.

Why shouldn't members of Congress be required to have the same health coverage that its members are now forcing on the rest of the Country?

..... Congressmen, Senators and members of the Administration have private insurance coverage. The tax payors pay on average about 72 percent of the premium In the federal program, the standard family premium for the popular Blue Cross and Blue Shield plan is $13,442 a year, with taxpayers paying about $9,678 of the bill.

This year, the premiums in the federal plan are going up an average of 8.8 percent from this year.

Federal politicians can choose coverage from the widest selection of health plans in the country.

The Congress does have two perks not available to other federal workers.

One is free outpatient care at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and Bethesda Naval Medical Center. The other is access to the Office of the Attending Physician at the Capitol. That means they are just steps away from highly professional care for everything from routine physical exams and X-rays to surgery.

Do we know if Paul Ryan and his Republican colleagues are planning on giving up the security of their current Congressional healthcare plan - in exchange for the one they are attempting to "sell" to the American public?

If not- why not"

 

[rdean]

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

Regardless, it's still socialism, if the amount paid in is less than the amount charged for services. It's amazing how quickly righties go to this excuse, but will revile anyone who uses any other program. I paid into SS all my life, too. That doesn't stop anyone from calling it a Ponzi scheme or worse.

Medicare is socialist only to the extent that it replaces private insurance for seniors with a government insurance plan. It is no more socialist than VA healthcare benefits, public education, or most spending by state and federal government.

Looks like all of those are "socialist" programs.

Medicare was started by liberals because no one would insure anyone 75 years old. To be old was to be poor. Poor meant eating catfood.

Do Republicans really want to return to those "good old days"? Are they really that heartless?

 

[JamesInFlorida]

My Dad (90) has Medicare and it's been great!

Freakin' socialist!!!

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

Exactly.


PS to others-Medicare isn't really a "socialist program". People on the left tend to be equally as clueless about socialism as the people on the right.

 

[jgarden]

Regardless, it's still socialism, if the amount paid in is less than the amount charged for services. It's amazing how quickly righties go to this excuse, but will revile anyone who uses any other program. I paid into SS all my life, too. That doesn't stop anyone from calling it a Ponzi scheme or worse.

Medicare is socialist only to the extent that it replaces private insurance for seniors with a government insurance plan. It is no more socialist than VA healthcare benefits, public education, or most spending by state and federal government.

Looks like all of those are "socialist" programs.

Medicare was started by liberals because no one would insure anyone 75 years old. To be old was to be poor. Poor meant eating catfood.

Do Republicans really want to return to those "good old days"? Are they really that heartless?

YES - recent rumors on Wall Street have it that our wealthy Republican "friends" are currently switching their financial portfolios from gold and silver to "catfood."

 

[Rozman]

My Dad (90) has Medicare and it's been great!

Yeh when you are benefiting from something it's great.How about the fact that there is widespread corruption and more people taking out from the system then putting into it.
It needs to be fixed.If you look at how government is running these programs now and they are doing a piss poor job how is it possible so many people are pushing for government to take over the whole health care system.It doesn't make any sense.

 

[jgarden]

My Dad (90) has Medicare and it's been great!

Yeh when you are benefiting from something it's great.How about the fact that there is widespread corruption and more people taking out from the system then putting into it.
It needs to be fixed.If you look at how government is running these programs now and they are doing a piss poor job how is it possible so many people are pushing for government to take over the whole health care system.It doesn't make any sense.

- widespread corruption

- needs to be fixed.

- they (government)are doing a piss poor job

"Rozman" continues to promote the "same-old, same-old" conservative party line - unfortunately that is invariably based on sweeping assumptions and innuendo as opposed to the facts.

Why deal in "facts" when its already a well-known "fact" that a conservative American ideology already possesses all the answers - and the 1 000 000's who haven't achieved success under their system past and present - must be all be lazy, dead-beats, etc.

Canada is widely considered to have the best "banking" system in the world - which is the primary reason the citizens of that nation didn''t take the same economic "hit."

The reality is that Canadian banks and financial institutions have always been subject to far stricter government control and more accountable than those to the south.

Within this context, it could also be argued that Canada's banking system was actually allowed to protect the long-term hest interests of the average citizen -which is more than one could say about a system that represented those short-term private sector interests who drove the Anerican economy "into-the-ditch," and would do it all again given half-a-chance.

The same could be said about the public healthcare system in Canada - it may not be perfect but this "piss poor" government system has resulted in the current lifespan of the average Canadian (81.38 years) to exceed that of his/her more "politically and economically correct" American counterpart (78.37 years), by 3.01 years longer!

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html

 

[uscitizen]

Freakin' socialist!!!

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

Regardless, it's still socialism, if the amount paid in is less than the amount charged for services. It's amazing how quickly righties go to this excuse, but will revile anyone who uses any other program. I paid into SS all my life, too. That doesn't stop anyone from calling it a Ponzi scheme or worse.

Sure many things in America are socialist.

Our education system. You pay school taxes whether you have children or not.
our highway system. Yes mainly paid for with gas/fuel taxes. But someone who has never paid any fuel taxes before can drive on it fine when they get their drivers liscence.

 

[Flopper]

He paid into it all his life. It's an entitlement, not a handout.

Regardless, it's still socialism, if the amount paid in is less than the amount charged for services. It's amazing how quickly righties go to this excuse, but will revile anyone who uses any other program. I paid into SS all my life, too. That doesn't stop anyone from calling it a Ponzi scheme or worse.

Sure many things in America are socialist.

Our education system. You pay school taxes whether you have children or not.
our highway system. Yes mainly paid for with gas/fuel taxes. But someone who has never paid any fuel taxes before can drive on it fine when they get their drivers liscence.

Our economy is a blend of socialist programs and private industry as is the economies of every nation on the face of the earth. Without the private sector, we lose innovation and the the incentive needed for economic growth. Without socialist programs we lose our humanity. Determining the proper balance is one our greatest challenges.