I enjoyed reading both articles on Obamacare [“The Great Obamacare Scare,” “Obamacare Will Not Fix Health Care,” May 24, City Weekly]. The private for-profit health-care system in America is terrible. It doesn’t work for me. The health-insurance companies make money off of a pool of low-risk health people paying outrageously high premiums.
When you get sick, either the companies will up your premiums or drop you altogether. Then the hospital industry comes in. It will take you to the cleaners for payment of its outrageously expensive services.
We, the American people, have been held hostage by the anti-competitive monopolistic greed of both the health-insurance companies and the hospital industry.
Solution: a national or state single-payer system. Expand Medicare for everyone. Choose your own doctor and/or health-care provider. Fire the health-insurance companies. Regulate the hospital industry to protect the patient/consumer. The right-wing echo machine on TV and radio tells me that the private sector for profit solves all our problems. “Privatize it all,” they scream. “Anything the government does is a failure.” Not so. One screwdriver doesn’t fit all screws. We have a mix of the private sector, good government services and the commons—i.e., things everybody can use, such as the public library and public roads.
I am good with this model. When the private sector fails, I want the government to step in on my behalf and fix the problem.
Mike Riordan
Salt Lake City
Health care is not a right granted to us in the constitution. If you get sick you have no God or government given right to great healthcare. Just like everthing else in our country you get what you pay for. Healthcare and health insurance are products just like food water shelter and clothing. We all know we will get sick or injured someday. If you choose not to save your money or buy health insurance that is a risk you have decided to take. For those that do not their are charities where people can give voluntarily if they want. I have several relatives and friends that are uninsured. They claim they cannot afford any insurance. Yet they somehow pay their car payments, cable bills and smart phone bills with no problem, even take an occasional vacation. The insurance bill is the first thing they cut long before all those luxuries. I am sure when they get sick or injured they will expect the same excellent care that I get after a lifetime of paying premiums and doing without luxuries I could have purchased instead of saving up my sizable nest egg. America is a capatilist country. Earn the dream!! Get what you pay for and if it is not enough then start working harder and smarter until it is enough; stop expecting the goverment to take care of you. If you don't like capitalism or are unwilling to participate in it move to Europe and embrace socialism. Just ask Spaniard or Grecian how thats working for them!!!
KNOW THIS: There are two kinds of people in America, and two kinds only: those who own, work for, or invest in the health insurance industry...and everyone else. Single-payer is the ONLY solution to our corrupt health care "system." Health care actually is a human right. For decades I paid into the healh care system, and now I don't have any because (due to no fault of my own) I'm between jobs? What, was I RENTING health care?!? Gee, I'm not "renting" being a living human being! Our current health care system is about as inhuman as it can be (though we do have the best health CARE in the world). Ask yourself: if you were to invent a system of caring for the health of the citizens of your country, is this the system you would come up with? Of course not. Simply follow the money. As Aetna, Wellpoint, Humana, et. al. always like say, "Don't tread on me." Yeah. Don't tread on their system of profits. They're busy making millions at the expense of our health. Remember: if you don't think the government can't do anything right, tell that to the Marines and the Navy SEALS. And while you're at it, stay off our (socalized) interstates. And out of our libraries. And avoid calling the cops and the fire department. THINK IT THROUGH - a Healthy America is a Strong America! Google it: H. R. 676
I can't tell if the author of this post is being sarcastic or if he is serious. He complains about the anti-competive monoposistic insurance companies and hospitals, which is true, but his solution is to totally eliminate freedom and markets by giving the entire industry to one payor. That's the very definition of monopoly: a situation in which a single company or group owns all or nearly all of the market for a given type of product or service. By definition, monopoly is characterized by an absence of competition, which often results in high prices and inferior products. According to a strict academic definition, a monopoly is a market containing a single firm.
So don't advocate a monopoly, advocate free markets.
The health care crisis was caused by government interference in the first place via medicare regulations, which make up close to 40% of the healthcare economy. It is because of government why we have high cost in healthcare. Due to the Medicare act of the '60s and HMO act of the
70's it caused prices to go up. It was because of government that caused more interventions such as Medicare and the HMO act which resulted in cost increase. It goes back even further than those also. During the WWII era FDR would not allow businesses to increase wages, swell guy,
so instead businesses opted to offer insurance benefits which can't be taxed since they aren't wages. The result of that is now our insurance
is covered by employers. When employers pick a single insurance provider for all employees, choice goes down, and price goes up. Currently states have their own rules and regulations which are all
different. Utah alone has 25, RI has 69, and Idaho has 13. Compared to the rest of the country its found that states with less mandates the price goes down. So the more mandates then the more people are uninsured.
At a first glance, single payer seems to actually
increase the flexibility of patients. I mean, since the government pays for everyone under one plan you are entitled to visit any doctor you desire. However, single payer will also come with
numerous stipulations. Will lasik surgery be covered? What about breast reduction for back problems? Or a nose job to fix a bump from an accident?? Medical procedures will come down to an debacle for who qualifies under single payer and who doesn't.
Even the steps to start universal healthcare will be a messy one with endless files, papers, numerous laws, obviously, more taxes, as well
as new records for patients. With Universal Healthcare, America will see private practices go bye bye, which will make future doctors discouraged from pursuing a career in
medicine, another reason despite loss being able to have a flexible and competitive pay that may decrease the interest and pursuit in btaining a job in the medical field.