My US healthcare assessment... another thread by me

robocop (actually) · Jul 19, 2017

I have talked to a lot of people about the American Healthcare Act (TrumpCare) vs the Affordable Healthcare Act (ObamaCare) and what's to become of them.

I believe the Democrats could repair Obamacare from its abyss diving if they wanted but even if they had the choice they wouldn't have the balls.

The Republicans are insisting on going it alone, and now John McCain has brain cancer. 51 Republican Senators vs. 48 Democrat Senators means that all but one of the Senators has to go along. Because of the political climate that the Republicans are going it alone, it is up to them.

Rather than flush Obamacare down the toilet which they almost went for, which would make it even harder to change because the people would be poorer and less willing to have their representatives sacrifice, I am at least grateful that Trump still wants to repeal and replace.

He offered help with opiod addiction in an opiod addiction state and I think that's the key. He needs to provide a carrot for Senators that aren't middle enough for the American Healthcare Act so that he can get all but one of the Republican Senators to go along.

Please discuss.

Lyndon · Jul 19, 2017

Trumpcare is not Health care, its Health non care!! The focus of the ACA has always been getting people affordable health care, the focus of Trump care has always been cutting off peoples health care and making bigger profits for insurance companies.

robocop (actually) · Jul 25, 2017

Well now they say they are focused on lower premiums. My hope is that those who need it will stay on and that insurance companies pay their taxes. My hope is that this will be better.

Twilight Hue · Jul 25, 2017

robocop (actually) said:
Well now they say they are focused on lower premiums. My hope is that those who need it will stay on and that insurance companies pay their taxes. My hope is that this will be better.

That's the big issue. Affordability.

Something Obamacare and Trumpcare dosent even address when it comes down to actual numbers.

robocop (actually) · Jul 25, 2017

I hope that those insurance companies pay healthcare research companies. Microbiological research is truly worthwhile!

A Republican Senator said today that this one is supposed to be focused on lowering premiums. I apologize for not remembering who.

Lyndon · Jul 25, 2017

my father is a research Microbiologist he has got a lot of grants from and worked for The National Institute of Health (NIH), I presume Trump intends to cut their funding.

Valjean · Jul 25, 2017

robocop (actually) said:
Well now they say they are focused on lower premiums. My hope is that those who need it will stay on and that insurance companies pay their taxes. My hope is that this will be better.

Lower premiums will equal junk policies, caps, high deductibles, &c.

Obamacare requires insurance companies' to spend at least 80% of premiums on claim payments and health promotion. (80/20 rule).
It requires premium increases of more than 10% per year to be justified to the government and publicly posted (Rate review provision).
It limits tax deductions per insurance executive to only $500, 000. per year.
I don't expect these safeguards will be included in whatever Trumpcare ends up being.

Republicans complain that Obamacare's an expensive failure, but they fail to mention that the coverage and pricing problems are largely their own doing. They deliberately undermined the ACA by making the Medicaid expansion optional (National Fed. vs Sibelius) and by gutting the risk corridor provision that compensated the insurance companies for unanticipated losses.

If we were really serious about lowering costs (and increasing average wages), completely eliminating the insurance industry middleman with a single-payer "Medicare for all" system might go a long way.

robocop (actually) · Jul 26, 2017

Thank you I hope you two are right even though it means we are in trouble because of what you said.

robocop (actually) · Jul 27, 2017

Valjean said:
If we were really serious about lowering costs (and increasing average wages), completely eliminating the insurance industry middleman with a single-payer "Medicare for all" system might go a long way.

Wouldn't that be like Canada?

Valjean · Jul 27, 2017

robocop (actually) said:
Wouldn't that be like Canada?

Could be. Canada's a single payer system, like Medicare. Details could vary.

Or we could go with a socialized system, like the UK or American Veterans Administration. Again. the system's already set up, paperwork and procedures already established.
Easy transition.

metis · Jul 27, 2017

Valjean said:
Or we could go with a socialized system, like the UK or American Veterans Administration.

Or, like Bernie says, just put everyone on Medicare, especially since it's much more efficient than private insurance companies.

Lyndon · Jul 27, 2017

But Medicare is all being done through HMO insurance companies, they are a big part of the problem in the high cost of Medicare.

Valjean · Jul 27, 2017

No need to keep any insurance companies if they're not performing any useful services that couldn't be handled collectively.

metis · Jul 28, 2017

Lyndon said:
But Medicare is all being done through HMO insurance companies, they are a big part of the problem in the high cost of Medicare.

But they are still far more efficient than privately purchased health insurance, operating at about 3%-5% overhead, depending on how one counts it. The last figure that I have on the free-market insurance was that they were operating at 29% overhead, but it seems to me that Obamacare lowered that to a max of 20% overhead.

robocop (actually) · Jul 28, 2017

80% not to profits means 25% overhead.

Valjean · Jul 28, 2017

With the exception of our single-payer and socialized systems, American healthcare is designed to be complex and inefficient. It's a Byzantine Rube Goldberg of dozens of individual interests all grabbing a piece of the pie.
It's not designed to serve the healthcare interests of the citizens, but to extract the maximum possible profit from government and individual pockets.

robocop (actually) · Jul 28, 2017

Yes I must agree because the cost is so much higher than in other countries.

Twilight Hue · Jul 29, 2017

That's what happens when you mix for profit companies with a service that should be completely non profit.

Shadow Wolf · Jul 29, 2017

The ACA is far from perfect, but with estimates that under the AHCA millions will loose insurance and coverage, it should be considered a moral and ethical crisis.

Twilight Hue · Jul 29, 2017

Shadow Wolf said:
The ACA is far from perfect, but with estimates that under the AHCA millions will loose insurance and coverage, it should be considered a moral and ethical crisis.

It's just yet another bandaid. Screw insurance. Look at the healthcare industry itself.

In the meantime, just watch all the hard earned money disappear from hard working people into the pockets of those who don't even give a damm about you or your welfare. Just give them the damn money and shut up. You got cheap premiums now.

Seems to be the popular way of doing things these days anyways.

My US healthcare assessment... another thread by me

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