Even when you HAVE insurance, you get crappy care and go bankrupt

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

That was Michael Moore's larger point. "Sicko" was about those who HAVE insurance and still got shafted.

The debate is not about adequate Health Insurance, it's about adequate Health CARE. For everyone.

I just caught a tiny bit of Daschle and he was saying, "even if you have health insurance, you have a 50/50 shot of getting the care you need." Is it possible that he gets it and true relief might be on the way?

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. I know I have more faith in Daschle than in Sanjay Gupta

That's just a nutty appointment :crazy:

[ncrainbowgrrl]

2. *cry*

That's exactly what's happening to me right now. I have decent insurance...And still the bills come in- and I worry about how I'm going to pay for my meds to keep me out of the hospital again.

I'm 29 years old.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

3. We are all touched by the inadequacies of our current deranged system

If not personally yet, just wait a bit.

I feel for you, I really do. For ALL of our sakes, we have to get a grip and wrestle control of healthcare away from the for profit sector.
:hug:

[baldguy]

9. No, you don't have decent insurance - nobody does.

If you did, you wouldn't be worrying about how you would pay - THE INSURANCE CO. WOULD COVER IT!!

[ncrainbowgrrl]

23. You're right.

Perhaps I should have put the word "Decent" in quotes.

[leftstreet]

4. Capitalism has infected our brains. Everything is seen in terms of profit/loss

You're right, we need health CARE

[John Q. Citizen]

5. Here's the rap: "Polling shows that Americans don't want

single payer. Most people, when asked, like the insurance they currently have."
People without health insurance make up 3% of voters."

It's the rap of the Max Baucus, but it's a suspect rap if you think about it.

For one thing, the assertion that majorities like their current insurance doesn't account for how many people even know what their insurance covers. It doesn't take into account how happy people are with their insurance when they need to use it.

I flat out don't believe the second stat. But even if it's true, it doesn't address the fact that most people who have insurance have crappy insurance. And it doesn't address the very real fact that things just keep deteriorating when it comes to cost and access, for everyone.

[mrreowwr_kittty]

7. People who are happy with their insurance haven't had to use it for anything major yet.

I'm "happy" with mine because I'm a healthy person who has yet to have a serious injury or illness. It remains to be seen how "happy" I will be in the event either of those things happens.

[eridani]

12. Bingo. I bet you're happy with your fire department, too.

If you are lucky, and statistically most people will be, you'll never have to know.

[John Q. Citizen]

13. But you do know, because your neighbor down the streets house doesn't

set your on fire cause they put it out.

So you do know. I've seen plenty of fire dept action in my day. They are pretty good usually, they take is serious and personal.

And we know that the fire dept isn't raising your premiums as much as they can possibly get away with, and trying not to show up if possible.

[eridani]

19. True, fires are more obvious to the neighbors than terminal illness

My point was that fires are not statistically likely, but they could happen to anyone. Therefore we deal with the risk by socializing it--everybody pays for the fire department.

Serious illness is more likely than a serious fire, but still 5% of the population is responsible for 50% of health care expenses. Therefore, like fire protection, health care should be a publicly funded public good.

[John Q. Citizen]

21. Yes, I agree. It's in all of our best interest to spread the risk as far and thin as possible.

Teeth man.

Lots of low income young adults would live a lot healthier if they could afford a little more attention. So it does hit everybody.

Broken nose. Burnt elbow. A nail through your foot.

We could make the Warren Zevon tune "My shit's fucked up" the national musical accompaniment to single payer political action.

Well, I went to the doctor
I said, "I'm feeling kind of rough"
"Let me break it to you, son"]
Your shit's fucked up."
I said, "my shit's fucked up?"
Well, I don't see how-"
He said, "The shit that used to work-
It won't work now."

I had a dream
Ah, shucks, oh, well
Now it's all fucked up
It's shot to hell

Yeah, yeah, my shit's fucked up
It has to happen to the best of us
The rich folks suffer like the rest of us
It'll happen to you

That amazing grace
Sort of passed you by
You wake up every day
And you start to cry
Yeah, you want to die
But you just can't quit
Let me break it on down:
It's the fucked up shit


(Just Kidding!!!!:-)

Do you know any songs about teeth?

[K Gardner]

8. Americans "don't want" what Americans don't understand. I think that's the

problem with single-payer, or any kind of health care reform: Fear of the unknown.

Maybe that's why Obama picked Gupta to be the talker. Because Obama realizes what a hard sell ANY reform is going to be and the HardSells are going to have to come from a familiar "trusted" face.

Thank god Daschle is on it, too.

[John Q. Citizen]

15. We will see, but this is the most serious i've seen anyone in long time so

now is the time to push and demand what we want, instead of letting others give us what we get.

I agree about the unknown, but that is why it's up to us to make it known. If Obama is smart, he will let some states go single payer in terms of all federal expenditures and state revenues, because it's also regionally an easier sell in certain places. Social security followed a similar path.

In fact that would be an awesome strategy here in Montana. Max can pass his national behemoth patchwork multi-payer insurance subsidy, and in return states are allowed to go single payer and put their Fed health care dollars into a state run pool.

So we put all our chip/medicare/medicaide/and some of our expanded military medical and anything else health care into the single payer pool and then we are the American pioneers.

That's a good idea. That could work.

Did you see this?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3679933

[K Gardner]

22. Wow ! I did not know that was going on in Montana ! Keep us posted on how this

turns out.. I agree, would be an EXCELLENT trial run and example for other states if it works !

Good for Montanans !

[eridani]

11. Unfortunately the last statistic is correct. Poor people don't vote as much

--as the more affluent.

[Zodiak]

20. The second stat is easy

40 million without insurance

to make a hundred percent, you need 33x3%.

40 million times 33 equals well over a billion....way more than the US population.

Even if he was only counting those that actually vote....does a democracy only apply to those that vote? Are those that do not vote entitled to a government? According to Baucus...no. According to the Constitution.....yes.

I hate DLCers and their excuses for killing people through neglect so they can line some corporation's pocket.

[K Gardner]

6. I hope true relief is on the way. Daschle is correct - good post title. n/t

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

10. United Healthcare paid its CEO 1.6 BILLION in stock options

http://www.startribune.com/business/11093081.html

Anyone think that's excessive? Must be a LOT of money in for profit healthcare. It would be a shame to spend that bonus money on things like procedures and medications for policy holders or use it to reduce costs, wouldn't it?

[uponit7771]

16. That's crazy!!!!

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

17. Reflect upon it the next time your policy goes up (as it always does)

Not just crazy, but immoral, unethical and any of a number of other adjectives.

[Thrill]

14. Daschle's hearing was really good. He sounded like the biggest progressive out there

[LibDemAlways]

18. My husband is covered through his work at an

enormous corporation you've all heard of. The insurance sucks. Premiums are high. Deductibles are large. Out of pocket expenses are unconscienable. He needed outpatient surgery in the doctor's office for a relatively minor problem recently, and it set us back several thousand dollars.

Health care absolutely needs to be overhauled. The current system squeezes the consumer and benefits nobody but insurance company bigwigs.