[NurseKevin]

Originally Posted by spacenurse

One question:
WHO SHOULD BE DENIED HEALTHCARE?

Who is?

[pickledpepperRN]

Originally Posted by NurseKevin

Who is?

I hate to assume but admit this is just a guess.
Perhaps this question refers to the fact that emergency departments must triage and stabilize all who seek care?

Or maybe it refers to patients who are healthy, educated, and informed enough to access one of the myriad charitable or government programs or clinics? Or who have someone to advocate for them?

Right guess? Or wrong?

[soliant12]

No one is denied health care right now not even illegal aliens

Originally Posted by spacenurse

One question:
WHO SHOULD BE DENIED HEALTHCARE?

[pickledpepperRN]

Originally Posted by soliant12

No one is denied health care right now not even illegal aliens

Who is paying for the uninsured?

[grannynurse FNP student]

Originally Posted by clee1

My policy is through Aetna. Originally, I went to a website like insurance.com to find it. Do a google search on "self-employed health insurance".

I suspect that the price will go up with age and/or preexisting conditions.

Our system was the best in the world (and it still may be in spite of the shortcomings) until somebody got the bright idea that "insurance" should pay for every sniffle, ache, and antihistamine. Such lead to the HMO/PPO mess we all despise. THEN, tack on the costs of defensive medicine practiced because of the multi-million $$$$ lawsuit payouts for malpractice, w/ most of the $$$ going to trial lawyers; aided and abbetted by our "elected representatives" that are more interested in campaign contributions than they are about doing what's right for their constituents.

Actually there are very few multi-million dollar malpractice awards. And those that are won, are frequently settle for substantially less then the jury award, in exchange for the judgment not being appealed. And it is the bad investments, the insurance companies have made, that have lead to higher costs to physicians. And lets face it. We have all worked with a doctor or two that we know shouldn't be practicing.

Grannynurse

[clee1]

Originally Posted by spacenurse

Who is paying for the uninsured?

We all are; via our tax dollars.

[clee1]

Originally Posted by grannynurse FNP student

Actually there are very few multi-million dollar malpractice awards. And those that are won, are frequently settle for substantially less then the jury award, in exchange for the judgment not being appealed. And it is the bad investments, the insurance companies have made, that have lead to higher costs to physicians. And lets face it. We have all worked with a doctor or two that we know shouldn't be practicing.

Grannynurse

Very valid points, Granny.

I know more than a few MDs that should never have been given a licence, and many more that should have packed it in decades ago.

Let's face it folks; the whole shebang is all about $$$$. Doctors, lawyers, insurance companies, HCF administrators and CEOs, and politicians - they all want their slice of the pie, regardless of who else gets screwed in the end.

[pickledpepperRN]

Originally Posted by spacenurse
Who is paying for the uninsured?

Originally Posted by clee1

We all are; via our tax dollars.

If we are already paying for universal healthcare why not discuss a more organized simplified way to do so?

[clee1]

Originally Posted by spacenurse

If we are already paying for universal healthcare why not discuss a more organized simplified way to do so?

Oh, but it is NOT universal healthcare; it is indigent care.

While I am generally politically conservative, I have no real issue with my tax dollars supporting emergency or acute care for people without insurance or the means to pay for care. Our society is wealthy enough to see that the truely needy do not fall through the cracks, so to speak.

However, abuse of the system is rampant: ambulance rides to the ER for minor issues, frequent flyers seeking a warm meal and a bed - with nothing else wrong with them.... etc. ad nauseam. Sorry to say it but illegal aliens deserve nothing but a bologna sandwich and transport to the border; not thousands of dollars of healthcare on MY dime.

Socialized medicine would be a disaster. Ask the UK, Canada or the Scandanavian nations about it. Our already outrageous taxes would double or more to pay for it all. MY family needs the money I can earn - your healthcare is your problem.

[pickledpepperRN]

What about the young person who thinks he is healthy so chooses not to buy insurance?
Say he has a good job but lives paycheck to paycheck.
Should taxpayers pay for his care if he is in a bad accident or develops cancer?

With Medicare for everyone everyone pays, everyone is insured. I also think a single high standard of care is needed. No waiting until it is an emergency.
Whatever happened to the preventative care the HMOs promised twenty years ago?

As Quentin Young MD says, "Everybody in. Nobody out"