Health care explanation

[countrygal]

Can someone please explain the whole health care hoopla? I guess I'm just not that swift because I just don't understand what the big fight is about. When I hear someone start talking about all the health care mess, my eyes glaze over and I change the channel. Why are people against Universal Health care? Isn't it a simple thing, that everyone should be covered? Is it because the insurance companies would be closed and people would loose their jobs and rich people would loose their money? Is it just because people don't like the President so they aren't going to go for anything he tries to do? I listened to the President for a bit last night. He made sense to me I guess. But then you listen to the comments after and it's very confusing. Is everyone in agreement that everyone needs coverage or is that what they're fighting about? Can someone please explain it all in SIMPLE terms?

[Clipper]

The confusion and the argument is being caused because the options are not clear, who will be covered is not clear, what it will do to medicare is not clear, and most importantly, how to pay for it is not clear.

It is strictly my own opinion that Obama is trying to ram through a program that needs a lot of work before it will be acceptable to the "average American". I want to know what effect it will have on ME and MY present benefits for which I pay with my own money, plus what effect it will have on medicare, seeing as how I am approaching that age.

I also want to know that it WON'T pay for healthcare for illegal aliens other than to provide an ambulance ride to the border.

I watched part of his speech last night, but changed the channel when he started eulogizing the dead senator from Massachusetts for whom I had no use. I suppose that was meant to tug at someone's heart strings or to lend creedence to his plan, but in my estimation, he preaches like a Southern Baptist preacher, uses the same fear tactics that we are all going to be condemned to hell if we don't do as he says, and ALWAYS has an air about him that says "I am smarter than the average American", while he looks down his arrogant nose.

Yep! Healthcare reform is needed, but not the program that Obama is pushing right now. BIPARTISAN work is needed to develop a pill that we can swallow. The Democrats may be the majority in Congress, but they are NOT a dictatorial regime and this is not a kindom to be ruled by the few. It is to be ruled by the people, and it is time for the people to be given a chance to speak out. It is the responsibility of our representatives to take our concerns to Washington, and it is time for Obama and the Democrats to listen to those concerns and address them with something besides rhetoric and smoke and mirrors.

[concerned]

What I don't understand is about this Public Option. Obama says that everyone will be able to keep the private health insurance. What happens if your private health insurance is paid for by your employer. Your employer decides that to save money he will only pay for the Public Option Health Insurance. Would the employee lose the doctors he/she has always used under there private insurance plan.?

If Medicare is going to be cut by $500Billion how do those on Medicare get coverage for what is dropped by Medicare coverage? Medicare Part is free. Will Medicare Part B also be free?What happens to people who are on Medicaid or are dual eligable and pay a Medicaid Spend Down in order to qualify for Medicaid coverage in any particular month coverage is needed.

I emailed Rep. Arcuri many times but I get no answer. Even sent emails to the White House( many many times, like 10 per week---) no answer.

[Clipper]

Unfortunately you will not get any answers Concerned because they don't have any. It is a ship of fools, commanded by the pied piper, on a voyage to destruction if the course is not altered to address those concerns before ramming through such an all encompassing plan.

[corner]

something needs to be fixed in this mess bottom line is you cant trust the government to rubn anything esp health care right now i pay a portion of my ownthe balance by my retiremnt pension system as part of a negotiated benefit ..over the years i contractually took lower pay to recieve better benefits while i worked and in my retirement so essentially i paid for my benefits then and now by accepting lower pay rate than the private sector... that being said my bottom line is i paid for mine and still am and no offense to anybody i realy dont want to pay for yours... that unfortunately is where the public option is headed is into our pockets....and the model everybody wants to use is Canada well ask Natasha Richardson the actress how that worked for her oops sorry you cant she's dead.

[dgriffin]

Lack of credible answers is, I think, the bottom line. The government proposes and we react with questions They provide answers and we don't believe them. We may have elected them, but we don't believe them. Now I remember why I don't go to the polls as often.

[gski]

I'll weigh in. Who trusts their government right now? Who trusts them in the past few years? Past decade?

Who believes that our government can run something more efficiently than private sector?
Can someone give multiple examples of what government programs have been or are currently being run effeciently?

How about another question. Where and how many times has the government stepped in to solve a problem and helped the situation? Fixed it? Not complicated it?

Concerned has stated an overall problem. Confusion. Our current leaders have multiple plans on the table, thousands of pages in them, stating differnent ideas in each. I guess it's to have all their bases covered so they can point to a section of each and not get caught in a lie.

One problem area that is being sluffed off in all of these plans is rationing. I consider myself somewhat intelligent, (no comments on that one please), so someone needs to tell me how we can add potentially millions of people to the health care system, not add to the infrastructure, and not have increased health care rationing?

Another issue that gets danced around is cost. We're dazzled with an array of answers, some of which are that we will not have any increase in cost to the average taxpayer and be paid for by taxing other health care plans, or cutting medicare reimbursements. So what is the final cost? A floating number that we're supposed to "trust" our government with.

Reform. We hear about the insurance companies and how bad they are. We have heard about the waste & fraud in medicare & medicaid, both government run programs, however they still are not run well and that's admitted. So now we need to have the goverment run it all?

Cost reform. They all keep going up. Tort reform? Nope can't touch that. Don't bite the hand that feeds you. So cut medicare tests that Dr's run that are deemed unnecessary. Deemed unnecessary by the government. Dr's admit they are done to "cover themselves" from potential lawsuits. Sounds like a vicious circle to me.

I agree with what Dave has said. We don't believe them. Wolf has been cried too many times and we're not chicken little. There are however, too many people that believe the sky is falling. That being when our elected officials are being told by those elected them, not to do this and we the people are being told to sit down, shutup, and they will decide what's best for us!

[dgriffin]

Good summary, gski. As to the the government running health care successfully, I suppose anything is possible, if not likely, even Santa Claus.

I just this week finally solved the mystery of why Medicare wasn't paying my bills as primary. They had begun to do so last fall when I turned 65, but abruptly stopped paying 2 months ago, telling providers they were NOT the primary. When I called Medicare, they said that was untrue, that they WERE the primary. But another end of the agency was saying they were NOT.

Turns out my Medicare records indicated this past spring I went to work for a college some miles from here I've never worked for or even been to, and supposedly was covered by their insurance company! (I'm sure that company would have mailed me a card, if true.) The folks who finally fixed the problem happen to be an outside contractor, a private company paid by Medicare to fix their problems!

[concerned]

And I think the frustration that the American people is having with its government was brought to a head when during Obama's speach before Congress one of the Republican Representative's yelled out' THATS A LIE ' when Obama was making a point that illegal immigrants will not be covered. I don't see how they can not be covered because they drive up the cost of health care because they cannot get medical insurance.

Here is a good example of how the government health care works:

Along with receiving Medicare A and B, you have to have another health insurance coverage. I am able to get Medicaid. I earn to much so in the month I need coverage ( the legal phrase for that " need coverage " means the " month you plan on being sick"- sounds crazy but that is how the Medicaid Law is writed) I have to pay a Spend Down ( an amount of money I have to pay to poor me down to the poverty level to qualify for Medicaid coverage for that month).

Three years ago I questioned whether I had to send a check in every month, because Medicare D is paid for by NYS and I have several medications I need each month. Well I asked the County Medicaid office and after four months I was told to contact the NYS Department. I e-mailed my guestion to them and after three e-mails to them I was answered and they said to contact the Federal Medicaid Office. I e-mailed them( trying to call them is impossible you could take a shower, eat breakfast and run around the block before you get off hold) I was told by them to contact the COUNTY IN WHICH I LIVE.

After much frustration I asked two of my Doctor's and they didn't know. They said don't send in one months Spend Down and see what happens. Well I did that now for the past three years i get money back for overpayment during each month I sent in my check. Crazy. Even the Doctor's laughed

Now I am going around in circle's again because I stopped receiving my monthly notice from Medicare and Medicaid showing me the claims that have been assigned to them from Doctor's and hospital labs this has something to do with checking for fraud, lol. I asked my Doctor's first and they said don't bother no one else gets them.

I wonder how the Public Option will work.

[gski]

When you read the posts on what folks have gone through with medicare, medicaid etc, this seems like a microcosm of what the country is talking about.

If medicare & medicaid are confusing and problematic, what's going to happen when we add an additional program, even larger than these two together?

Is it supposed to be 3rd time is the charm? We'll do it right this time!

Just remember, the great and powerful OZ has spoken. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain....he doesn't have any answers either, just more smoke and mirrors.

I appears that Dorthy may have awoken just in time to see our politicians try and take her ruby slippers before they can be clicked 3 times to go home! Where's the good witch when we need her?

[Ralph]

She's bleeding out in an ER somewhere while a bunch of illegal immigrants are ahead of her getting checked for head lice and chest colds. ;D

[gski]

careful Ralph that could me misconstrued as a racist statement in today's world. LOL!

Oh yeah, btw for the illegals, who won't be covered, yes they will, no they won't, yes they will, no they won't...you lie...oops that was someone else...

the loop holes in the other proposed plans are supposed to be closed so people would have to show proof of citizenship prior to getting coverage. Hmmm..wait till the ACLU gets wind of that one.

[snickers]

I believe the TRUTH of the "Politi-Speak" answer that illegal aliens won't be covered is this: we won't KNOWINGLY give them free care - because it is not legal to ASK WHAT THEIR STATUS IS (just the way they're getting care now).

Just keep in mind that "very popular" recent (and comparitively simple) CARS program. It was run by this administration. It was supposed to last about three months and cost $1Billion. It ran out of money after three weeks, and wound up costing $3Billion. A lot of customers are having to wait for a long time before they get their titles, and a lot of providers are having to wait (perhaps in vain) for reimbursement from Big Daddy Guv'mint. Oh, yes. Let's have more of that!