Obamacare and Nursing.. what do you think?

Nurses Activism

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I know that I am possibly opening up a can of ugly worms. I hope that in spite of differing opinions, that this thread can remain friendly and a simple exchange of ideas and opinions.

As a beginning nursing student, I am being told that there is this looming nursing shortage and that there is great job security. A little research on my own shows me that in my particular state, there definitely is a decent population of still practicing nurses who are 60 years and older who will be retiring soon, which would open up the way for us who are just getting started. More and more emphasis is also being put on the new healthcare law and how it will open the doors for more people to access medical care which again will increase the need for staffing.

I grew up in a country with a socialistic government, which also includes healthcare for everyone. I have seen how the hospitals are understaffed, and you are lucky if you get to spend 5 minutes with your physician, and you are not in control over which healthcare facility you can go to. I know that the new bill isn't necessarily socialistic, but there are socialistic principles in it.

As a nursing student, I can't help but wonder how this is going to affect my future as a nurse. I know that nurses talk among themselves and things trickle down from above onto the floors. Nothing is going to keep me from becoming a nurse. I am not in it for the money, but rather I feel somehow "called." However, I believe that it's good to be prepared for times ahead so that I can adjust accordingly.

How do you think that Obamacare is going to affect how care is delivered?

By the way, this is NOT a homework assignment of any kind. I am merely looking for for a friendly exchange of ideas and opinions.

Specializes in Critical Care.
Why can't Obama Care cost the same amount as auto insurance or home insurance

instead of the outrageous amounts people are talking about?

How would that be possible? We spend $120,000,000 on auto claims, and $2,700,000,000,000 on health claims, so of course the premiums will be higher, much higher since we spend about 20 thousand times as much on healthcare as we do on car repair claims.

I'm worried about the healthcare in America. I want to provide the best care POSSIBLE to my now residents as a CNANd future RN and beyond. With this new law I fear quantity is going to overtake quality.

There is something inherently wrong with deciding who lives, and who dies, based on how much money they have.

i really don't see how any of this will be paid for.

It's written into the law. The money is coming from different sources than it does right now.

Have you ever read about the Industrial/Miltary complex that the pigs have created ?

I work with an Iraq veteran. After the stories he has told me, it is clear there is no one behind the wheel. The government can't manage something as simple as providing water to soldiers in Iraq in a logical efficient way, how can they manage a gigantic healthcare system? Simple, they can't. Bureaucracy kills all progress.

There is one point that EVERYONE on this thread has missed. No matter what the laws are they will never be fully followed or enforced for people who cannot afford legal backing. The healthcare system as a whole marginalizes people based on their income level, sometimes illegally. They get away with it because they know lower income people have: 1. Less education 2. Less ability to pay for legal fees to enforce laws. Laws aren't automatically enforced. You can't call the cops and arrest a hospital or insurance sompany. You need to take them to court. Even then you're talking about average Joe VS gigantaur corporation with a full office building of lawyers.

And it bothers me how healthcare is the stuff of businessmen and lawyers. Sure we should make a good living, but it seems like healthcare industry lost it's soul at some point. Instead of trying to heal the world we are trying maximize how much money we can extract from it. Is private, corporate, for profit healthcare really the way to go? It doesn't seem like it's working to me. It sounds like a bunch of share holders arguing about who gets a bigger piece of pie. What about helping people?

How much education on obesity do you do with your patients?

How are you doing?

Obesity is first and foremost, a psychological disorder. Being over weight is just a symptom. Obesity should be treated by a psychologist/ psychiatrist first.

Why can't Obama Care cost the same amount as auto insurance or home insurance

instead of the outrageous amounts people are talking about?

Simple, there is no collateral in healthcare insurance.

Specializes in retired from healthcare.
How would that be possible? We spend $120,000,000 on auto claims, and $2,700,000,000,000 on health claims, so of course the premiums will be higher, much higher since we spend about 20 thousand times as much on healthcare as we do on car repair claims.

Let's suppose they get rid of all the health insurance fraud.

If this is possible then do you think they might be able to get health insurance down to a lower price than it is right now?

Let's suppose they get rid of all the health insurance fraud.

If this is possible then do you think they might be able to get health insurance down to a lower price than it is right now?

There are many reasons why auto and home insurance is relatively cheap compared to health insurance. Some of those reasons:

-Auto and home insurance is real insurance. It pays only for when really bad things happen. It doesn't pay for routine things like tires, oil changes, painting your house, visits from the plumber.

-Auto and home insurance premiums are based on real risk. It's not the same price for all. A 21 year old male driving his Ferrari will pay a lot more for insurance then grandma in her Buick.

-There is much more competition in the home and auto insurance market.

-When insurance does pay for claims, the products and services that are being paid for are in a real market. Home and auto repairs are in a market where prices are based on competition, supply, and demand. This does not exist in healthcare.

Specializes in Critical Care.
There are many reasons why auto and home insurance is relatively cheap compared to health insurance. Some of those reasons:

-Auto and home insurance is real insurance. It pays only for when really bad things happen. It doesn't pay for routine things like tires, oil changes, painting your house, visits from the plumber.

-Auto and home insurance premiums are based on real risk. It's not the same price for all. A 21 year old male driving his Ferrari will pay a lot more for insurance then grandma in her Buick.

-There is much more competition in the home and auto insurance market.

-When insurance does pay for claims, the products and services that are being paid for are in a real market. Home and auto repairs are in a market where prices are based on competition, supply, and demand. This does not exist in healthcare.

I would think the most obvious reason health insurance costs more than auto and home insurance is that insurance cost is directly related to the costs it is covering. We spend not twice as much, not three times as much fixing people as we do fixing cars, but 23,000 times as much. It makes you wonder why we spend so much on car insurance, not the other way around.

If having a functioning car was comparable to having a functioning body then the dynamics of both types of insurance would be comparable, but it's not. If I show up at a body shop with a mangled car, and cannot present any evidence I will be able to pay the bill, the shop is under absolutely no obligation to fix my car. If I show up at an ER with a mangled body, the ER is legally required to fix me regardless of the cost and regardless of my potential ability to pay the bill.

In order for true market forces to work, a product has to be subject to supply and demand, and preferable should be something we can do without with if the market can't provide it at a fair price. Healthcare doesn't work that way, for our most expensive care, you can't shop around, although we do at least have insurance companies that do that for us. Nobody cares if a teenager gets priced out of driving a ferrari, we hold a different view on someone being priced out of cancer treatment.

Why can't EMTLA be revoked? I know Ronald Reagan signed it into law.

I'm just curious.

Many politicians and citizens think that the treatment they receive in the ER is free.

I know my state gives money to the hospitals every year because these hospitals would otherwise close. There are too many people who don't want to carry health insurance,because they believe they can just walk in and receive free treatment,and the sad thing is some politicians are telling them that.

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