On February 9, 2019 at 18:49, davidcasemore said...
There is another reason for the high cost - the uninsured who use the ER because they are now so sick from being untreated for something that would have been easily treatable had they had health insurance to go see a doctor. Now they are on death's door and the rest of us have to pick up the cost.
This is why universal health care is needed. You can call it Socialism, Medicare-for-All, Kenyan Care, Single-Payer - it doesn't matter. The two biggest costs to our current health care scheme are the uninsured and the bureaucratic costs involved in processing the insurance claims. These go away with universal coverage. Other factors are the student loans which force doctors to have to charge so much, the pharmaceutical industry (and their false claims about R&D which is actually done for them by our universities), as well as American's wanting to have an MRI facility on every corner. Oh, and the cost of end-of-life care where 90% of your health care costs are spent in the last couple of years of your life. We treat our pets better - Let Granny Go!
And I love at the SOTU he (I can't say, or make fun of his name) tosses out the bone of "Socialism - BAD!"
Socialism in the USA:
- Our Military
- Social Security
- Medicare and Medicaid
- Police and Fire Departments
- The Veterans Administration
- Public Parks, Toilets, Drinking Fountains
- Public Libraries
- Public Schools and Universities
- Roads and Highways
- Water and Sewer Systems
And that doesn't include Corporate Socialism/Welfare (which the Republicans think is just awesome):
- Tax subsidies for relocating businesses (I'm talking to you, Amazon)
- Sports Stadiums
- Food stamps and welfare for WORKING people at low-paying jobs (I'm talking to you, Walmart)
- Hedge Fund Managers (The REAL Welfare Queens)
Democratic Socialism does not equal Communism, Fascism, or Collectivism.
It's not only the ones who are on death's door who burden the ERs, it's people who go there for stubbed toes, a headache, splinter, etc. We should have more clinics spread around that are meant to handle minor ailments and care, leaving the hospitals to deal with the major stuff.
One of my problems with an American single payer program is that someone from the US Government will be in charge of it and, unless they put strong safeguards in place to prevent corruption and using the money for other pet projects, it will have a hard time funding everything. OTOH, removing the insurance from the equation will make the money go a lot farther but it will also cause a lot of people to be unemployed and the fancy headquarters will be vacant.
WRT 'Americans' wanting an MRI on every corner, that's not the reason so many have been installed, IMO- it's because so many large medical groups have bought others and they want to keep patients coming to them. They know they're the only game in town and they'll be damned if they're going to lose business to someone else. My guess is that many MRIs go unused, most of the time. That said, companies that build MRIs like GE Medical Systems wouldn't need to hire as many people to service them. I kow someone who does this, so I could find out how many need repairs in this area as an example.
