Illness as the primary cause of bankruptcies...

[sgeeeee]

Socialized medicine, pay as you go, fee for service, HMO, PPO:  all are different ways of rationing health care.  You can ration by long waits, by high costs, by hassling the individual until he goes away, by using "gate-keepers" with a financial incentive to keep costs down. 

I personally think that some minimum level of health care should be a right in this country.  If you want above the minimum level, you can pay for it.  Evidently, I'm in the minority.

I agree with this completely. Unfortunately, discussion of providing any minimal health care as a basic right seems to be like discussing the existance of god.

 

[greg]

Socialized medicine, pay as you go, fee for service, HMO, PPO: all are different ways of rationing health care. You can ration by long waits, by high costs, by hassling the individual until he goes away, by using "gate-keepers" with a financial incentive to keep costs down.

One of my big problems with the current system and where it's heading with the new program being implemented this fall-winter is that everybody that is sick or injured shouldn't be faced with all kinds of hassles, requirements, and pre-requirements. Old people shouldn't have to have support from five less feeble family members to wade thru the gate, especially when they need to be focusing on getting the person back up and running. Sometimes I think all the distractions and anger at the healthcare system can further compound the complexity of the health decisions. It may even extend the course of an illness. IMO.

--Greg

 

[maddythebeagle]

If I could pay medical care providers at their insurance negotiated rates, I wouldn't care to have insurance except maybe a $10,000 deductible policy or something.

I think that is what a lot of people have on this board (somewhere in the 5k dollar deduct.). I would actually like a ppo (my current one through work doesnt require a referral) and you just look up in a book if your specialist is covered. I would like to have a medical savings account that rolled over year-to-year also with it.