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Employer insurance falling fast
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THAT SAID, contrary to what the reporter wrote, I do NOT think that everything is "just fine." I fully agree that the system is BADLY BROKEN and needs a radical fix. I think the Republican and Democrat leaders in our state and country need to stop treating their party platforms as holy writ and just pass laws that make sense based on the set of facts that are actually before us -- instead of on the sets of "facts" that their "evangelists" are forced by party orthodoxy to preach.
There's no such thing as a free market where health care is concerned. No better proof of this exists than the news article itself.
It's time for a nationwide single-payer health care system. Go ahead and hyperventilate about "socialism" for a minute and then when you get that out of your system and calm down, give some serious consideration to the realities of our predicament.
We spend more per person on health care, yet have _worse_ overall health care than any industrialized nation in the world.
We have phenomenally more health care bureaucrats per patient than any nation in the world.
Our economy is suffering because employers can't afford to fund health insurance, and employees don't move to jobs that match their skills because of health insurance concerns.
Our health care system is predicated on maximizing the profits of hospitals and insurance companies, not the well-being of patients.
Anything short of a national single-payer system is simply more of the same system of failure.
Fine, it's all George Bush's fault then.
The hospitals need to pay for malpractice insurance. The doctors and nurses do the same. No one pays these costs out of their own pockets. They just pass them along to the consumer. Tort reform would go a long way in reducing malpractice insurance, which would bring the cost of care, and medical insurance, down.
But do you really think we will ever see elected officials (mostly lawyers) ever introduce legislation to bring tort reform into our system?
If workers would stop abusing the system and take care of themselves and leave the big things for insurance, we'd all be better off and they would probably be healthier by not taking so much medication.
One of my favorite phrases is "Give doctors half a chance and they'll kill you!"
How much better off we would be if we "doctored ourselves" and weren't always running to the doctor for a cure. They've become gods to our society.
That said, I have coverage but my husband and I rarely go to the doctor. We average once every 3-4 years. We like knowing it's there for us when needed but we never abuse it.
And if you think our government does a good job at anything they do, look no further than Social Security.
The answer is to move away from traditional and HMO style health plans to High Deductible Health Plans with Health Savings Accounts (HSA). The premium savings is significant. Users can put this money in their HSA and spend it as needed on their health care needs. When they reach their deductable cap (usually around $2,000), their health insurance kicks in to pay most if not all of the rest. When they are healthy and don't use it, the money builds up in their HSA and they can use it later when needed.
People are much wiser consumers when they are paying for services out of their own public.
Health Insurance should be like other insurance - to transfer risk of high cost events. Auto insurnace would be much more expensive if it also included the cost of fuel and maintenance.
I am on the other end from you. I was promised insurance (which was why I took the job) and it didn't happen. My health situation changed (after I was supposed to have insurance) and now I am uninsurable or they ask ridiculous amounts (which my employer can't pay) and my employer has given up on getting me the promised insurance and is ready to hand me the money. I'd rather have insurance.
Drive around and look at the ridiculous homes that people that have money build in Utah. Rameumptum homes, set up on the hill to show off their success and wealth. It is all around us. Drive an Escalade, drive a Lexus, drive a Hummer. You employ people? You see yourself as one of these line your pockets type people? You taking away health insurance from your employees? How big is your house? How many toys have you? There. You have it.
I have a friend who heard a leader in the church, as they drove around looking at the homes, say, "What are the members thinking?"
That says a lot. My mansion is bigger than yours, I have 4 73" TV's, a home theater, I have a cabin as big as my house, and I have two boats, a house boat at Powell, I have 10 condos, and we spend winters on cruises.
But my employees have no insurance.