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Health Care & the Supreme Court [message #71953] Thu, 29 March 2012 09:51 Go to next message
love2play is currently offline  love2play
Messages: 134
Registered: March 2012
Location: GA
Master
From everything I have read over the last few days it seems as though the Supreme Court is going to strike down the health care law as unconstitutional. If they do I wonder how it will affect the Obama re-election efforts? That is his most known achievement after all.
Re: Health Care & the Supreme Court [message #71966 is a reply to message #71953] Thu, 29 March 2012 22:09 Go to previous messageGo to next message
gofar99 is currently offline  gofar99
Messages: 1895
Registered: May 2010
Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
Hi, An uncertain thing for sure. I thought that when it was put into effect over the objection of many folks this might happen. Even in Washington, it is bad form to steam roller things like this. The unfortunate thing is that some of it makes sense. Everyone sooner or later needs health care, but cramming the process down everyone's throat is not the way to get it. Worse, folks that can't afford it now will get "fined" for not having it. Sort of a financial oxymoron. That makes it worse for low income families. I think we need a different solution.

Good Listening
Bruce
Re: Health Care & the Supreme Court [message #72055 is a reply to message #71966] Sun, 08 April 2012 12:13 Go to previous messageGo to next message
love2play is currently offline  love2play
Messages: 134
Registered: March 2012
Location: GA
Master
Did anyone else catch Obama's remarks about the Supreme Court? I thought that they were incredibly irresponsible and not at all befitting of a "constitutional scholar". Here is an article with an excerpt of what he said.
Re: Health Care & the Supreme Court [message #72057 is a reply to message #72055] Sun, 08 April 2012 13:46 Go to previous messageGo to next message
AudioFred is currently offline  AudioFred
Messages: 377
Registered: May 2009
Location: Houston
Illuminati (1st Degree)
The liberal part of my brain recognizes that everybody should have access to affordable healthcare, while the conservative in me deeply resents having to pay for somebody else's healthcare because they choose not to buy healthcare insurance.

The conservative in me would like to see the free market private insurance system deal with the problem without something as complicated as Obamacare. The liberal part of my brain recognizes that the free market system is perfectly designed to get us what we have now: a system that costs far more than it should, excludes many desperate people from buying healthcare insurance, and which gives us less favorable outcomes than many other developed countries' systems.

The only solution I can see without the "individual mandate" of Obamacare or some form of state financed socialized medicine, is to offer every adult a once-in-a-lifetime oppportunity to buy affordable healthcare insurance, with the understanding that if they decline the offer there will be no free healthcare when they get sick, have an accident, or begin to experience the delcining health that comes with old age. Otherwise most people would wait until they have some terrible accident, become seriously ill, or just grow old before they buy it. This way nobody is forced to buy something they don't want, but if they decline it they will have to live with the consequences. This means if they have a bad accident, need a heart bypass operation, get cancer, etc. they will suffer and die like most people did in the 19th century, when only the rich could afford a doctor's care.

And when I say "affordable" healthcare insurance, I'm not talking about "cheap" insurance. Healthcare insurance is expensive because healthcare is expensive. For most families the premium would be about 10% of after-tax income. The poor would receive assistance in the form of a reduced premium, but eveybody would still have to pay more than they would like to pay.

Another provision I would like to see is the elimination of the present malpractice scam that lawyers are getting rich on. The new "affordable" healthcare insurance would include a mandatory arbitration clause that precludes suing anybody in the medical field. I know this is a tough thing to accept, but anybody could choose to buy a regular policy for a higher premium that would not include the arbitration clause.

We also need to rely on medical care experts to help our politicians understand why our healthcare system is so expensive. Defensive medicine is a part of the problem, but the biggest part is the fact that the system has evolved to reward more treatment rather than less, as we pay a huge price for unnecessary medications, tests, and procedures that only provide more income for the doctors, hospitals, testing labs, drug companies, etc.

And finally, its up to all of us to elect politicians who are willing to deal with all the serious problems we face in a mature and intelligent way. Currently, polticians on both sides of the aisle are being unrealistic in relying completely on their conservative or liberal ideologies to "energize the base" rather than dealing realistically with the issues.
Re: Health Care & the Supreme Court [message #72064 is a reply to message #72057] Sun, 08 April 2012 21:09 Go to previous messageGo to next message
gofar99 is currently offline  gofar99
Messages: 1895
Registered: May 2010
Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
Hi Generally I agree, however a lot would depend on the cost of the insurance. For families now living in subsistence mode, there may not be an option to pay for the insurance. It could easily come to a choice of food, housing, utilities or insurance. This situation poses a number of moral and ethical problems. Do you just allow less fortunate individuals become ill or perhaps die because they chose to eat.... Or does the system take care of them?

Good Listening
Bruce
Re: Health Care & the Supreme Court [message #72065 is a reply to message #72064] Sun, 08 April 2012 21:57 Go to previous messageGo to next message
AudioFred is currently offline  AudioFred
Messages: 377
Registered: May 2009
Location: Houston
Illuminati (1st Degree)
gofar99 wrote on Sun, 08 April 2012 21:09
Hi Generally I agree, however a lot would depend on the cost of the insurance. For families now living in subsistence mode, there may not be an option to pay for the insurance...


This is a valid point.
Re: Health Care & the Supreme Court [message #72074 is a reply to message #71953] Mon, 09 April 2012 18:29 Go to previous message
love2play is currently offline  love2play
Messages: 134
Registered: March 2012
Location: GA
Master
GoFar I definitely agree with you. The way gas prices and food costs are rising keeping food on the table and the bills paid is already getting tough. I really believe that health care in general needs an overhaul. I recently had a child and if you read the itemized hospital bill it will make you sick. On what planet does a tylenol cost $8 each? The system is definitely broken, but forcing people to buy something they cannot afford is not the answer either.
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