How Will Universal Health Care Change Nursing?

There are many other options. Health Savings Accounts (Whole Foods), the article about Safeway's health care plan, the John Stossel video has many ideas and also looks at Canadian healthcare, which has its share of problems and wait times and rationing. Plus, this is not FREE health care. It is paid for by increasing taxes. And Canadians are starting to complain and want changes.

Two of the websites I posted have other solutions.

The history of Medicare and the promises made and broken are a huge example of why letting the government run our health care is a very bad idea.

steph

I was very much talking to you with the article you copy pasted about how many Americans with incomes over 75 and 50 thousand dollars a year chose not to have health coverage. You then posted info about how single parents chose not to fill out "all that paperwork" to cover their kids or themselves.

Listen, I very much know fear when I hear it, read it, and see it. But, let me tell you-- I live with it EVERY DAY. I pray to God that my kids are safe. That if they get hurt, the insurance provided through partial medicaid will cover their injuries. That my student insurance will see me through. That I will have a job after graduation.

That does not change the fact that the system has been broke a very long time now. The poor people of this country need medical insurance, and NOT just when pregnant. Dental coverage, preventative and restorative care is necessary for the good of all. Have you ever worked with someone that had an abscessed tooth? Or had so many teeth pulled due to no dental coverage they could not eat normal food? Or get a job because their teeth were so bad? People are kinder, gentler, even pleasant to be around when they are not in pain or hungry.

If you really want to know the comparison of Health plans between the countries, PBS did an awesome documentary comparing them all-- check it out.

I won't participate in any government run insurance. The doctors I see told me the same thing; some of them are turning away Medicare/Medicaid patients.

I know my docs, know what my family and I need.

I'm not going to be told by some government numbers counter to tell me what to do...no way, uh-uh, I don't think so...

I'm sorry - your post was a little confusing.

Yes, I have worked with someone with an abscessed tooth. I am a member of a medical mission organization that goes to Vietnam twice a year. We work in rural areas and in the dental clinic, usually pulling teeth to prevent abscesses. The hardest part is the kids.

My point in addressing the myth of 47 million is that people have to know the details and not just accept information without researching it.

I have seen and read about comparisons - and right now Canada and England especially are looking at changing their systems because it is too unwieldy.

I really like the idea of health savings accounts. I don't like the idea of the government running health care.

steph

The health savings account only saves you money if you don't use it. If you have kids, you use it and pay twice as much! If you have any illness-- diabetes, arthritis, a car accident, a broken arm, vaccinations, checkups, dental work-- you name it-- the savings account will eat up your whole pay check. The only people that save on this type of health insurance are 18-28 years of age, single family-both parents working-- with poss one child, or maybe, a very healthy single older individual. Read into it. Apply the costs to more than one person, with 2-3 kids. American families are in the poor house due to the cost of health insurance/ medical/dental bills-- those of us that pay or care enough to fill out all that paper work. They offered that at my old job. It was a joke. My son plays football. I care so he goes to the doctor when he gets hurt. yea, I want my son to be in sports and academics too.

This is exactly why the poor have no health insurance. Because the more educated, the more income we have, the more it becomes all about me. I pray that does not happen to me when I graduate. I don't think the way things have been done is working out, do you? Or are you more worried about our paychecks?
The bottom line is the economy is not allowing things to remain the same. I know someone with health insurance that almost died this week to avoid going to the hospital. There will be fewer and fewer pt's in the hospitals, therefore fewer RN jobs.....
Actually- that is already happening here.

I just got a response about how the government was not going to provide their health plan. I know how bad the gov works. I have seen how the vets have been treated, or rather not treated. But we have to come together on this as a whole, as one team. We say how things work when we do! The gov will divide and conquer the American public and put in place what they see fit for us if we do not do this right.
We all know exactly how in touch with reality the senators are with what is really going down- (McCain).
Their income is over $125,000.00 per year and they get their annual raise, not like the state/city workers here that had all of their annual raises suspended, including the teachers.

We need to stop arguing amongst ourselves and agree to disagree on the end result so long as EVERYONE benefits in the end. We need to take care of our people here, our kids, we need to help each other until everyone has their basic rights met. Do you consider the treatment of Cancer/Leukemia/Diabetes a privilege to be earned?

After having both breast removed secondary to CA, do you consider reconstructive surgery-- optional? Should the woman really have to wait 5 years- CA free to feel like a woman again-To have breasts again? To have to pay full costs due to it being "plastic surgery"? Do you realize what kind of baloney is going on? There are more problems than we can begin to address on a chat page.

We all just need to step out of the box for a couple of minutes. Look beyond our own paychecks, pending student loan payments (mine!), 401k that went down the drain-mine too! And come together to be sure the gov does not pull a quick one but that we take care of our friends and neighbors alike.

I have seen the opposite here in America. Where I work (MICU) many many patients come and start full code and remain full code throughout their stay despite the very low survival rate they are given. They either have private insurance, in which case private insurance stops paying when treatment is deemed futile and the hospital is stuck with the bill, or they have pending Medicaid or Medicaid and quite frankly I don't know what they pay for terminal intensive care treatment, but we are stuck with lots of them. They linger on our floor because they are too sick to move to another facility, and they eventually die on our floor.

Most recent example, a terminal cancer patient told her family she wants "everything done." She comes to ICU and stays in ICU for five months while her cancer progresses and spreads throughout her body. She is ventilated, on daily dialysis, on two pressors and has multiple chest tubes, as well as the typical electrolyte protocols etc etc. She develops infection after infection, all of which are treated, doctors literally quit her case, but the family is unfazed, they want ALL CARE DONE TO THE END. She is unresponsive for the two months prior to her death, but they want all care done. Insurance stopped paying after 30 days, so we picked up the bill. It was either that or a lawsuit, and from what I hear, they are now pursuing a lawsuit as well.'

So no, we don't automatically get DNR's. I wish we did. Honestly, I thought that would happen if we went to a single payor system.

I want to say how sorry I am to hear all that you have gone through. It isn't fair and I hate this system under which we currently live.

But to speak to this directly. The problem with this premise is that lots of people in America believe, essentially, in Objectivism. Believe in every man for himself and those who don't make it, well they should have worked harder. SO we can;t start with this premise, that we hope that everyone benefits in the end, because that would mean someone is taking up slack for someone else, and here in America, that is unthinkable. Unfortunately.

1st post is the ideal.
2nd post is the dominant force, the reality.
soooo disheartening.

leslie

With health insurance we have 'choices'.

I buy my own insurance, I refuse to take an employer plan. I bought my coverage at 18 so I would have a lower rate overall.

I have had NUMEROUS health problems, but thanks to my ins coverage they have no bankrupt me. 80/20 plans do have more out of pocket costs than a 500 ded with 100% coverage, but that is the plan you got.

I bought a plan that covers me very well, I picked and chose which benefits I wanted.

We need to cover those who cannot afford insurance, but at the same time I want to keep my insurance because I like it.

It seems to me that everyone wants something for free, and I cannot understand that mindset.