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Termyn8or -> RE: Medicaid for the middle class (6/23/2011 7:43:32 PM)
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FR
The fact is if you take in more money than you put out, that's profit no matter what the specific terminology.
The current plan is a nosebleed really. There is one way to get this done and that amounts to socialized medicine. We have socialized some things aleady, they are just not seen as such.
So if the government could be trusted, it would be a simple matter of collecting all the money that is now paid to insurance companies, and simply fund the medical industry. Case closed. Alot of people though don't like that plan. Many don't trust the government and they have good reason. Whether it's incompetence or worse is not the current subject, but most people see the government as an entity that could fuck up a wet dream. I won't argue against that.
But really the assertion that the middle class or what's left of it, should have benfits is not without merit. The poor can generally go to a public hospital and run up the bills with impunity because they have nothing to lose. But those who work and maintain their credit and pay their bills could be wiped out very easily due to an illness or accident.
A guy at my bank was bitching one day. Why ? Because he paid a partial hospital bill with a personal check and his account got frozen. Read the small print folks, there is a waiver of legal notice in some of those papers you may be signing. It was totally uncalled for, he paid them part of it ! If he paid part, you would think he intended to pay the rest once able. The guy got shafted, and what he didn't realize is that it was not the bank's fault. They get an order from a court to freeze or sieze an account and they have no choice in the matter.
Of course you can file bankruptcy on it but there are problems with that unless you are totally broke. You won't get a chapter seven, and if you want to keep your house, cars etc., the situation can be tricky. Your credit is toast, so you are alot more vulnerable to any future financial emergencies. How mant peole for example get a transmission replaced in their car and just walk in with three grand cash ? Probably about as many people who walk into a hospital with like ten grand to pay the bill. I only know one person ever who actually did that, and nobody wants to know where he got the money.
Which brings us to the real problem which is like in many companies, top-heaviness. As long as that situation exists, tough shit. And it's not going away easily. What many people don't realize is that the CEO didn't get there by responding to a want ad in the Sunday paper. He got there by having an investment in the company. It's a bit hard to fire someone or reduce their salary when they own a third of the place, and have friends who own at least another 17%. He isn't going anywhere.
If hospital were not private entities, things would be different. Pay all the employees and things would be alot cheaper. But who built the place ? Who invested in the first place ? They ganbled and won, and as much as many would like to, it's just not right to deprive them of their winnings. What would happen if we did, in a capitalist society the result would not be pleasant to say the least. New investment is slow enough, take away the incentive and things will really stagnate. In fact most would then just invest overseas, in a better venue. There is already enough of that going on.
The only real solution really would be to die on schedule.
T^T
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