Is anyone truly pleased with the current state of health care/insurance?

Question

I dont see how anyone could be happy with the current state of healthcare. In this country many people have jobs, but arent offered affordable health insurance, or even if they are the coverage is minimal at best. If people were wanting to take on a prevention approach to diseases like cancer they would not be able to afford it. For example my friend has a suspicious mole- a few of them actually- and works very hard. But with her coverage and the cost of doctor's visits, lab testing, and MRIs, she would not be able to afford life saving procedures. Why is this acceptable?

Why do people assume that people without health care are just lazy and dont want to work or that people are just going to abuse the healthcare system and the "hospitals will be overrun"?

Answer 1

When I started working 22 years ago my employer paid to cover me and if I had had one my family.  10 years later when I got married and started a family I paid $20 a week to cover my family. 2 years later I paid $40 a week and lost the dental part of the plan.  6 years later when I had to pay $350 a month for no dental, no vision and a very limited selection of doctors offices, I opted out.  I have my family on a major medical only plan were the first $2,000 per person is my responsibility.  When we switched we started a savings account were we put the savings between the two plans but with rising food and gas prices we stopped doing that.

I am not on welfare, I work and own a home.  I am doing everything that I am suppose to do as an American.  I am not looking for a hand out or something for free.  I want what my parents had, what my grandparents had.  Health care, a pension, the American Dream.  We are seeing a continued concentration of wealth at the top.  Why do we not see it?

Answer 2

I think few people would say that the American health care system is perfect... as is. What we need is health care system reform. Our health care is GREAT, but the system is broken. Administrative costs due to outlandish government monitoring and reporting requirements are skyrocketing... that needs to be fixed. Awards for malpractice are ridiculous... that needs to be fixed. Doctors need to be relieved of the fear of unreasonable suits so they no longer have to practice "defensive medicine" ... that needs to be fixed. Health care facilities and support agencies need to have a FIXED price, so they don't jack up their prices for insurance and a different for single payer... that needs to be fixed.

All that is a far cry from saying we need universal health care.

Edit: Actually, the comment about illegals draining the health care system is an excellent one I omitted. Why should law-abiding taxpaying Americans have to carry the burden of health care costs for people here illegally? In fact, where this is a significant problem, hospitals are going bankrupt! We can't support the world... let's start with health care for our own people.

Answer 3

Generally speaking, once she gets thru doc visits, testing, lab, etc. she will have either covered or come close to covering her deductable.  The surgery for melanoma would then be covered under any insurance.  The problem after that is two fold... maybe three or more.

Some insurance policies have lifetime caps meaning once you hit (say) the million mark, no more insurance coverage.  Then - NOBODY is going to cover you.  THen there are issues with getting the treatment you want versus what the insurance company wants you to have.  After care can have the same issues.  You are often bumped from your hospital bed, not cared for properly and do not get reconstructive surgery (if needed - with cancer it often is).

Now, that said, if you think government administered health care is the answer, I would think long and hard about the ramifications of that.  The government has a way of inflating the cost of doing everything and what they end up offering is incredibly substandard for the cost.  Good doctors would go to only taking patients who could pay for it out of their own pocket and you would not solve the problem of choice.  You might even end up having to wait for treatment like they do in Canada and elsewhere with socialized med.  Canadians often come to the U.S. to get treatment because the waiting list for surgery is long.

Our system certainly needs improvement.  It may only come when people stop just accepting what is doled out to them by employers or insurance companies.  Maybe when they say "this is what I need and I am going to work to se it happen" will it start to happen.

A few years ago I started reading ideas about transforming our medical system that I thought was a sane, well thought out and bipartisan set of ideas.  They formed a group and it is led by Newt Gingrich.  Here it is if you are interested:    http://www.healthtransformation.net/

Answer 4

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Answer 5

I realize that even with insurance, you have some costs. People just don't want to pay it.  Your friend should put her health first and go to the doctor.  Everything in life costs, health care is no different.  If your car didn't run and wouldn't get you to work, you'd suck it up and pay the repair bill, but as long as your walking around, you won't pay for your health?  Be happy you have insurance and don't have to pay the full amount.  As someone on here said about his mother, she found out the true value of her health insurance when she really needed it.

Answer 6

I am happy with our health care, it is the best in the world. I do see a problem with the cost of care. Your friend will not be turned away from getting care. There are tons of programs to help those that cannot afford it. Most doctors can take a biopsy in their office to remove a mole.

The hospitals are already over run with people who do not pay their bill, they are illegal aliens. We then have to pay more because they do not pay. Emergency rooms have been shut down all over the country because of this.



I don't think people without insurance are lazy, my family went without insurance several times over the years. My husband had 4 surgeries without insurance, we made payments over 10 years to pay it off. One of the biggest reasons the cost has been driven up is because employers and third parties are the ones paying for the insurance. When the user pays, they will negotiate the costs.

I want to know where in the Constitution does Congress have the authority to take income from one person to pay for the medical bills of others? That is legalized theft.  

Answer 7

I am extremely pleased with my health care. I pay nothing per week, have no deductibles, and have no office fees. How great is that!!!

Health care is NOT a right. It is a privilege. It is a bill, just like your water, heat, etc. You must adjust your budget to accommodate it.

Answer 8

I love our health care, not waiting months for surgeries, MRIs, or basic services; not having 15 people in the waiting room; not being rushed around;  getting superior care without bureaucratic nurses. You may want socialized health care, but most people love choice.

Answer 9

"Ignorant" people make assumptions, intelligent people do not. The health care system as we know it in the United States is broken, we know that. How to improve it is the question.  

Answer 10

There is always a perceived threat of socialism when talking about universal health care.  What is too often left out of the discussion is that health insurance does not provide health care.  All health insurance does is provide a potential guarantee of payment for health care.  It is the doctors and nurses and hospitals that provide the care.  Insurance helps pay from the pool of premiums it has received from all of those insured.  Health insurance relies on a large group of individuals not needing health care to make a profit.

Answer 11

The health care system /insurance needs to be over hauled but the system that the democrates are suggesting is not a good thing. It would make things worse and put the country in deeper debt.

I work in a hospital and have worked in health care for over 30 years--there are people that abuse the system. That has caused an increase in heath care costs. That and frivolous law suits

Answer 12

I don't think we should have healthcare at all.  I mean if a company wants to offer health insurance, they should be able to, but there are so many laws, mainly thanks to Nixon, that created these healthcare companies that force hospitals and Doctors to have rediculously high costs for procedures and medicine.  We should go back to how it was before the ridiculous idea of insurance when it was just you and the doctor.  No middle man taking your money every month.

Answer 13

Health care is not an entitlement. My moms insurance saved her life , she used to complain that it was to expensive but then when she got breast cancer and her insurance company spent over 1 Million on her bills. Well she changed her mind

Answer 14

h**l no.  I work for a fortune 500 company and have the worst insurance I've ever had in my life.  

I would love for the government to step in a bit.  or a lot prefferably