In a way, he’s right. In one of them there socialistical countries, you got all kinds of questions to answer, slows things down. In America, there’s only one question: How much money do you have?
Moves things along briskly.
This is irrelevant to the issue of underestimating the true cost of Medicare and selling the public using the incompetent calculations.
Likewise, you can’t mislead someone and say a new Toyota Camry will only cost $3000 and sell him on that expected cost. Now that the Toyota Camry is found to truly cost $35k, you guys try to justiy it with a non sequitur about the Camry being more efficient on gas than a Humvee. The efficiency of the Camry vs the SUV is irrelevant to the incompetent cost calculations used to scam the buyer. Please stop it.
It is also true the Medicare is expensive because it covers the costliest segment of society. But the lawmakers already knew it would cover the costliest segment of society; it’s the definition of Medicare by design. Another example of financial incompetence.
It’s like complaining that the Space Shuttle is expensive because it runs on liquid oxygen, requires expensive heat shield tiles, and uses thousands of other expensive parts. Well duh?! The engineers and government officials already knew that when the Space Shuttle was on the drawing board. Pointing to the the expensive parts after it’s built as an excuse for being blindsided by the cost is retarded.
This is simply an American Exceptionalism argument, only you’re saying that Americans are exceptionally bloated and inefficient.
I for one do not believe this, and I think that it is an oft-repeated phrase which has no basis in reality. I actually KNOW people who work for the government in the US, and believe it or not, they are not lazy, nor are they inefficient, nor do the operate in a particularly bureaucratic fashion. They do wonderful jobs in their field, in fact.
I refuse to believe that Americans who work for the government suck at their jobs, and can never improve.
LBJ was many things, but not incompetent about getting a program through Congress. I think I’ve seen some evidence that he knew it was more expensive than he said - so it is an example of political wheeling and dealing, not incompetence. My grandfather and father both thank LBJ for getting this much needed way of supporting the medical needs of millions of people. Whether he or they knew how much it was really going to cost is doubtful, given that it would require knowing the increase in life expectancy for those over 65 and the availability of more expensive treatments.
But imagine what life would be like without Medicare? Having retired people forced to pay $10K or some un-Ogly sum for insurance would be a healthcare crisis far worse than any we’ve got - and we’d be seeing some real death panels.
None of this, btw, in any way refutes the statement I cribbed from Lobohan. Got an answer or refutation, or are you going to go off on death panels and socialism next?
Any cite that our govt is either inefficient on an absolute basis or relative to other countries? Or did you just pull this assertion out of your ass?
Doctors actually care about their patients. The Mayo Clinic doctors are on salary. The insurance companies care about profits. Can you see the difference?
Oh ya, well in America, 50 million patients will wait until they win the lottery before they can afford to see a primary care doctor.
booyah!
Yes, it took me that long to come up with it.
And just to add a bit more fuel to the fire, according to that liberal rag The Washington Post, there is currently a shortage of about 40,000 primary care physicians in the US.
Strange that your system hasn’t magically made more appear.
Perhaps I’ll make that Myth #7, the US doesn’t have a shortage of primary care physicians. Would you mind saying that for me so I have a quote to use?
Uh what? I can walk into any urgent care and see a doctor. the money most people spend on 2 weeks of lottery tickets would cover the cost and they stay open until 10 pm. My Primary doctor’s cash rates are cheaper than what he charges insurance companies and is the price of cable TV for a month. That’s not much to budget for.
What is scary is what isn’t even considered common practice in Canada. God forbid somebody hits their head skiing and needs a hospital with a CT scanner or a helicopter.
I like how you managed to avoid the other half of my post with cites and stats.
BTW a typical doctor’s visit can cost upwards of $200. There is a large segment of the population that doesn’t have that lying around, and yet also don’t qualify for Medicaid. I actually remember a guy that worked for the Salvation Army, who had their group coverage, came in to tell his boss he was too sick to work. The boss said, “have you been to the doctor?” The guy said, “I don’t have the $20, payday isn’t until Friday.”
So if your system is so great, why is there a massive shortage of primary care physicians? (please please please tell me there isn’t)
You might actually read the article you posted. That was a predicted shortage based on an increase of insured patients. We artificially regulate doctor internships and that is a number easily changed along with doctors who come in from other countries because of free-market forces. If you build it they will come.
Any time a doctor can’t fit me in I simply go to another doctor. Next time you have a boo boo bring your wallet and experience the freedom of choice.
Oh you are an absolutely goldmine of myth based quotes. I love it!
You don’t actually live in the US do you? Is this all a big woosh?
I will gladly accept a 26 week waiting period when it is accompanied with the 100% certainty that my bills will be covered, and the promise of a politician to do his best to get it down to 25 weeks.
What I will not accept is the thought that after years of paying insurance premiums I’ll find out that I can have the surgery tomorrow, but my insurance isn’t going to cover it. Assuming I can even get insurance for something I was born with! Will you accept that?
You might have CT scanners at all of your ski hills, but what good are they if your insurance won’t cover it?
And are you aware of the cost of a Medevac Helicoptor ride? Or are you basing your policy decisions on what the wives of rich actors can afford. What happens if your insurance doesn’t cover it?
It’s fun debating with the anecdote king. Argumenteum Anecdoteum.
Come up with factual statistics about waiting lists? He’ll counter that with an anecdote about a single patient with a non-life threatening condition who had to wait.
Post about millions of patients in the US who cannot see a primary care doctor due to lack of insurance? He’ll counter that with the fact that HE does not have to wait to see one.
And if you have cancer then your chances of survival just went out the window.
I don’t know if you’re actually challenged in some way and can’t understand that I’m not suggesting we make no changes. I’ve been clear on that.
You just don’t get it. Hospitals are required to provide life saving medical care. Private insurance is a lot easier to fix than a government bureaucracy. You’re lack of medical services is not acceptable.
Emergency responders don’t ask you if you can afford to live when helicopters are brought in. I’ve personally watched them bring in a helicopter on a highway that was 6 miles (by road) to the nearest hospital. Actually there was a closer hospital but it is dedicated to children (by charter).
I’m just voicing the sentiment of 100’s of millions of Americans who don’t want their medical care FUBAR’d like Canada.
Canada spends less per person, gets better results and covers everyone in their country.
You have a strange version of FUBAR. Are you even willing to examine your opinions in the face of facts that contradict them?
Canada spends less per person and it shows. They don’t have the equipment or the doctors to meet demand. CT scanners and emergency helicopters are not the norm. Not only does every hospital in my area have CT scanners we have outpatient facilities that serve private practice medicine. These are common diagnostic machines. My family doctor has had an X-ray machine in his office since the 60’s.
How far apart are the hospitals in your area? It is natural that if a place has a machine, it uses it, even when it might not be absolutely necessary. Are the CT scanners fully utilized? For cases that really need them?
Back in post 50 Shodan complained that he got more CAT scans for his back than where necessary. See any connection between this and your paradise of a CT scanner in every garage?
When I was a kid we were covered by a very early HMO. My family doctor certainly did not have an X-ray machine. If I ever needed one, I could go to a hospital which was closer to my house than his new office was.
BTW, do you come down on the UHC will bankrupt us by giving everyone all the care they want or the UHC will kill us by denying care to save money side? You people seem to see no middle ground.
the hospitals are closely grouped within the city. Specialists are more scattered as are separate diagnostic facilities. I can’t imagine hospitals sharing equipment because of the need for emergency diagnostics. the outlying centers that are test-facilities-only provide diagnostics for non-emergency medical treatment and are utilized by specialists not attached to hospitals.
So if Obama-care costs way more than he claims it will, this is good? Interesting way to look at it.
“More efficient” in the sense of currently running at a deficit, costing almost ten times more than expected, and scheduled to go bankrupt altogether in a few years. But apparently these are not flaws.
Regards,
Shodan