Medical bills #1 reason for bankruptcy

[Hutch Starskey]

Should medical bills be the #1 reason for bankruptcy in the "greatest" country on Earth? I think the article put it best.

Medical debt is a 'uniquely American problem' caused by a 'very broken' system, expert explains

A uniquely American problem. And before anyone points out that this is still going on even after Obamacare, I NEVER supported Obamacare.

Obama care does nothing but pile money into insurance company coffers...that's all it ever did.

Coverage. Of course it makes possible for people who could not previously afford it to have coverage. That gives you protection from bills that cause bankruptcy. Not the opposite.

Millions can still not afford the co-pays and deductibles. Absolutely nothing on the cost side was addressed. Sadly the Democrats still won't address this. They seem to prefer on running on "Trump bad" still as opposed to what they have planned to do about health care costs.

A lot of cost drivers were addressed. Coverage was expanded. Both in Medicaid and personal plans. Those are folks that would have previously be indigent or fall into bankruptcy.

It was never meant to fix everything. Hell, the Dems can’t even get buy in from the Repubs to wear masks during a global pandemic that has killed 600k Americans without it being called Marxist or tyranny. Good luck getting them to tackle the healthcare that they hid from while in power. What happened to repeal and replace?

Nothing was addressed on cost side.

I will note that the (D)'s might have had an easier time with masks if the guy pushing them wasn't playing both sides of the aisle.

That is just factually wrong. Simply having more people covered contributes to lower or at least slower cost growth.

BTW… there’s nothing political about wearing a mask. At least there shouldn’t be.

If there is nothing political then you shouldn't have made a political point about it.

I simply pointed to those who did make it political. That was the point. The politics surrounding healthcare on the right is absolutely toxic. Keep blaming the Dems though. Maybe they should start trying to dismantle the ACA while chanting “ repeal and replace”!

I am clearly blaming BOTH parties. I believe the only way we ever get to what is needed, something like Medicare for all only happens after we get rid of Obamacare.

The ACA does not prevent Congress from acting. The filibuster and Republican intransigence does.

Obama blowing HUGE majorities in 2010 had a lot to do with that. Democrats aren't any more interested in controlling costs than Republicans are.

Should I note that Cory Booker led the crusade to stop people from accessing lower prescription meds out of Canada?

WTF?
The Dems passed healthcare reform, fool.

They passed the Insurance and Pharmaceutical profit program.

Ok. You can believe what you want but why attack those actually trying rather than those who just lie about it?

 

[d0gbreath]

Not in the great socialist state of Texas. If you can't pay, the state will pay 66% for you and they'll drop the rest.

 

[WEATHER53]

More boo hooing for those who can’t take care of themself
Adopt and launch a course of personal responsibility where you can take care of you and your family
Employment never was and never should be designed to take care of all your expenses. That proletariat concept is weepy commie bullshit. We won’t stand for it.

 

[Hutch Starskey]

pknopp

pknopp
Which would be worse? Government run or privately run?

Based on the care my grandparents received I would say the government run shit is worse.

We can vote to change the government but there`s nothing we can do with the $9 million dollar a year CEO of a healthcare company.

UPMC CEO Jeffrey Romoff's salary rises to $8.96 million

29 UPMC employees receive compensation in excess of $1 million

www.post-gazette.com

A $21b healthcare company. I honestly don’t see this as a problem. Certainly his salary is not responsible for the cost of healthcare at only .4% of revenue. What should a guy who runs a $21b healthcare company earn? How about a $21b hedge fund ceo?

Hedge funds using our health as a hedge is a part of the problem.

How about just discuss my point rather than be an ass.
Obviously a hedge fund has nothing to do with a not for profit.

In general we do not have not for profits in health care. For a Hedge Fund manager to make 9 million, that's millions of dollars extra people are paying for their health care costs, not to mention all the others invested into it.

We absolutely do, those companies make their money off of their holdings, not the Insurance itself. The Company I work for has sent rebates out to the members 2 years in a row now.

They are leeches to the system. We should not be hedging our bets off the backs of people's health.

No one is doing that, dope.
The vast majority of healthcare providers in this country are not for profits. They are not publicly traded.

 

[struth]

gipper sure you are. You are saying it’s unfair that some people can buy the services from the better skilled doctor or nurse that can charge more

i do think cost are too high, most of which is admin cost, and monopolistic pricing due to massive regulations

 

[WEATHER53]

Chart a course for your lifestyle to fit into your income
Quit wailing that your income doesn’t let you pay your bills. I guarantee you 90% of the people who don’t pay their medical bills Do Pay for their $400 hair braiding.

 

[Polishprince]

Should medical bills be the #1 reason for bankruptcy in the "greatest" country on Earth? I think the article put it best.

Medical debt is a 'uniquely American problem' caused by a 'very broken' system, expert explains

A uniquely American problem. And before anyone points out that this is still going on even after Obamacare, I NEVER supported Obamacare.

People in America want top-flight medical care, even when they can't afford it.

 

[gipper]

More boo hooing for those who can’t take care of themself
Adopt and launch a course of personal responsibility where you can take care of you and your family
Employment never was and never should be designed to take care of all your expenses. That proletariat concept is weepy commie bullshit. We won’t stand for it.

In case you haven’t noticed there are a lot of poor people in the richest nation on earth. You may not give a shit whether they die in the gutter, but many of us do.

In nearly all western democracies in the world, along with a lot of undemocratic nations, HC is considered a right. The citizens of these nations know HC will be provided to them no matter if they’re rich or poor. They don’t believe making enormous profits off sick people is moral or ethical.

 

[JustAGuy1]

pknopp

pknopp
Which would be worse? Government run or privately run?

Based on the care my grandparents received I would say the government run shit is worse.

We can vote to change the government but there`s nothing we can do with the $9 million dollar a year CEO of a healthcare company.

UPMC CEO Jeffrey Romoff's salary rises to $8.96 million

29 UPMC employees receive compensation in excess of $1 million

www.post-gazette.com

A $21b healthcare company. I honestly don’t see this as a problem. Certainly his salary is not responsible for the cost of healthcare at only .4% of revenue. What should a guy who runs a $21b healthcare company earn? How about a $21b hedge fund ceo?

Hedge funds using our health as a hedge is a part of the problem.

How about just discuss my point rather than be an ass.
Obviously a hedge fund has nothing to do with a not for profit.

In general we do not have not for profits in health care. For a Hedge Fund manager to make 9 million, that's millions of dollars extra people are paying for their health care costs, not to mention all the others invested into it.

We absolutely do, those companies make their money off of their holdings, not the Insurance itself. The Company I work for has sent rebates out to the members 2 years in a row now.

They are leeches to the system. We should not be hedging our bets off the backs of people's health.

Sorry, the ACA mandates that 80 cents of every dollar collected be paid out in claims hence the refunds when that doesn't happen. ALLL overhead must be paid for with that 20 cents left over. You may not like the companies but but they aren't the "leeches" you're crying about.

 

[gipper]

gipper sure you are. You are saying it’s unfair that some people can buy the services from the better skilled doctor or nurse that can charge more

i do think cost are too high, most of which is admin cost, and monopolistic pricing due to massive regulations

What I saying is universal HC is the only answer now. The greedy ***** in big pharma, big hospital, and big insurance have been allowed by our corrupt government to screw the American people. Let’s just give Medicare to everybody and get out of the dark ages.

 

[struth]

gipper so the doctors and nurses don’t get to charge what they want for their skill set...

i have no problem cutting numerous regs and red tape so that doctors and nurses can get closer to their patients instead of needing all this additional red tape.

 

[WEATHER53]

It’s mostly Another Rant against those who choose good careers and those awful “institutions” that make money
It would be more FAIR if everyone was equally broke and equally dependent on being taken care of by government or by other people.

 

[gipper]

gipper so the doctors and nurses don’t get to charge what they want for their skill set...

i have no problem cutting numerous regs and red tape so that doctors and nurses can get closer to their patients instead of needing all this additional red tape.

Government will determine what the greedy ***** can charge, as they do in Medicare, Medicare, and the VA.

Secondly, doctors and nurses don’t determine costs. That is done by greedy administrators and insurance companies, who we can eliminate with universal HC.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

In case you haven’t noticed there are a lot of poor people in the richest nation on earth. You may not give a shit whether they die in the gutter, but many of us do.

In nearly all western democracies in the world, along with a lot of undemocratic nations, HC is considered a right. The citizens of these nations know HC will be provided to them no matter if they’re rich or poor. They don’t believe making enormous profits off sick people is moral or ethical.

Perhaps, but why do you think the US has so many foreign doctors here? The money they can make here draws the best from around the world.

And what socialized healthcare system has no problems or upcoming concerns?

As a local truck driver up north, I came across a lot of Canadian drivers. While waiting to get loaded or unloaded, many times we stood around outside having a BS session or inside in the truckers lounge or cafeteria. When I came across Canadian drivers, I always brought up healthcare.

The younger drivers loved their system. They said they can go to their ER anytime day or night, get treated, and never have to worry about getting a bill. The older drivers told me keep what we have, or we will be sorry when we get older.

They told me about getting subpar medications that we can get in the US, weeks and even months of waiting for a surgery. Oh sure, they'll give you some pain killers, but that doesn't help when you're out of work for two or three months. According to them, the reason they take such terrible care of their elderly is that they are a small voting block. Keep the younger and middle-aged citizens happy, and the system will never get voted out.

It got so bad that they took a tip from the US. They started to sell health insurance for people that couldn't or wouldn't wait to see a specialist or have a procedure done.

 

[struth]

gipper why do you think Govt should be able to determine what a doctor or nurse can charge?

seems rather greedy of you to think you can demand their skills and services and then demand not to pay them what they think they are worth

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Not in the great socialist state of Texas. If you can't pay, the state will pay 66% for you and they'll drop the rest.

Which is the way it should be--a state issue, not a federal one.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Obviously Ray can. He’s being treated there.

I'm a lifelong patient which is why I have no desire to change because Commie Care was a complete lie.

 

[pknopp]

Allowing the federal government to confiscate money (at the point of a gun) from everyone to offer sub-standard health care including illegal aliens is a bad idea. The government is the worst choice for health care.

Why shouldn't we want to make sure that those processing our food and caring for our kids are healthy?

Don't we already do that?

Not as far as I know. Well outside of the E.R. All the same, why shouldn't the businesses hiring these people be on the hook for the costs at least in part?

The businesses are on the hook for certifying the health of workers in critical industries. As a matter of fact the medical plans are pretty good. The question is why the rest of us should be on the hook in our old age for somebody else's medical problems. Along with a government takeover of the medical system comes government run Med schools with graduates who can't put a sentence together but literally have your life in their hands. Congress will exempt itself while the rest of us stand in line forever.

I have no desire to address ignorant posts. There isn't a person alive that has made it through medical school that has more sense than you.

 

[pknopp]

Should medical bills be the #1 reason for bankruptcy in the "greatest" country on Earth? I think the article put it best.

Medical debt is a 'uniquely American problem' caused by a 'very broken' system, expert explains

A uniquely American problem. And before anyone points out that this is still going on even after Obamacare, I NEVER supported Obamacare.

Why would you think protection from bankruptsy should be an inalienable right?

I didn't argue that. I argued that people should be able to afford medical care.

 

[pknopp]

Should medical bills be the #1 reason for bankruptcy in the "greatest" country on Earth? I think the article put it best.

Medical debt is a 'uniquely American problem' caused by a 'very broken' system, expert explains

A uniquely American problem. And before anyone points out that this is still going on even after Obamacare, I NEVER supported Obamacare.

Obama care does nothing but pile money into insurance company coffers...that's all it ever did.

Coverage. Of course it makes possible for people who could not previously afford it to have coverage. That gives you protection from bills that cause bankruptcy. Not the opposite.

Millions can still not afford the co-pays and deductibles. Absolutely nothing on the cost side was addressed. Sadly the Democrats still won't address this. They seem to prefer on running on "Trump bad" still as opposed to what they have planned to do about health care costs.

A lot of cost drivers were addressed. Coverage was expanded. Both in Medicaid and personal plans. Those are folks that would have previously be indigent or fall into bankruptcy.

It was never meant to fix everything. Hell, the Dems can’t even get buy in from the Repubs to wear masks during a global pandemic that has killed 600k Americans without it being called Marxist or tyranny. Good luck getting them to tackle the healthcare that they hid from while in power. What happened to repeal and replace?

Nothing was addressed on cost side.

I will note that the (D)'s might have had an easier time with masks if the guy pushing them wasn't playing both sides of the aisle.

That is just factually wrong. Simply having more people covered contributes to lower or at least slower cost growth.

BTW… there’s nothing political about wearing a mask. At least there shouldn’t be.

If there is nothing political then you shouldn't have made a political point about it.

I simply pointed to those who did make it political. That was the point. The politics surrounding healthcare on the right is absolutely toxic. Keep blaming the Dems though. Maybe they should start trying to dismantle the ACA while chanting “ repeal and replace”!

I am clearly blaming BOTH parties. I believe the only way we ever get to what is needed, something like Medicare for all only happens after we get rid of Obamacare.

The ACA does not prevent Congress from acting. The filibuster and Republican intransigence does.

Obama blowing HUGE majorities in 2010 had a lot to do with that. Democrats aren't any more interested in controlling costs than Republicans are.

Should I note that Cory Booker led the crusade to stop people from accessing lower prescription meds out of Canada?

WTF?
The Dems passed healthcare reform, fool.

They passed the Insurance and Pharmaceutical profit program.

Ok. You can believe what you want but why attack those actually trying rather than those who just lie about it?

As Obamacare twists in political winds, top insurers made $6 billion (not that there is anything wrong with that)