Health Care Reform

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Nov 8, 2009

Moved to the Social & Health Care Coverage Activism forum.

dannyc12 · Nov 8, 2009

I think it is a small step forward for us as a country and is in line with Provision 1 of the ANA's Nursing Code of Ethics:

" The nurse, in all professional relationships, practices with compassion and respect for the inherent dignity, worth, and uniqueness of every individual, unrestricted by considerations of social or economic status, personal attributes, or the nature of health problems."

However, the devil is in the details. If it ever does come to fruition, this is going to cost a lot. Like electrification, roads, bridges, research, planes, tanks, bombs and soldiers cost a lot. Hopefully we won't screw up the implementation and make the system worse and make providing health care even more difficult than it is now.

The most fortunate among us will end up paying some more to help out the least fortunate. It is hoped that in return for this cost, we will all be strengthened.

In the end, we will end up with the health care system we deserve.

HM2VikingRN, RN · Nov 8, 2009

Its only 96 years too late....

Onekidneynurse · Nov 8, 2009

Its only 96 years too late....

Ironic that it will only cover 96% of Americans. Who's gonna decide who WON'T be covered in a rationed system? All this and there will still be uncovered AMERICANS.

TruNurse86 · Nov 8, 2009

To be completely honest with you all I am afraid. I am this way because I do not know EXACTLY

GCTMT · Nov 8, 2009

I think it's certainly a step in the right direction. And I agree with Viking that it has been a long time coming.

Perhaps, we as a people are finally taking lessons from the rest of the developed world? Time will tell. :)

tewdles, RN · Nov 8, 2009

I also think we need reform. I do not agree that capitalism should be the driving force behind healthcare delivery.

SilentMind · Nov 11, 2009

I also think we need reform. I do not agree that capitalism should be the driving force behind healthcare delivery.

Capitalism is evil. When other people do it anyways. CEO's that make buisness their lives for years and years and eventually get into a position where they're single handedly responsible for keeping an entire corporation afloat, who's responsible for the well being of each and every employee as well as customer....and actually getting rewarded for it? Eeh-vil. Beyond evil, Greedy. You who work 40 hours a week so you can afford 300 channels of television, laptop computers, air condition, nice houses, private vehicles....That's well, it's certainly not capitalism. That's just you scraping by. Anyone who doesn't believe healthcare should be motivated by capitalism is a hypocrite, or at least the majority. I'm assuming because you're posting on this forum that you're in the nursing field, and that you were blessed with the education, the skills, and the knowhow to make a difference in the world. You're perfectly able to take capitalism out of your own practice, lower your standard of living to those of priests in the middle ages, and devote your volunteering and promoting the existence of free medical facilities. There's no shortage of those who believe as you do, so it shouldn't be difficult to recruit medical professionals of all specialties to your cause.

But of course, thats not what you mean at all. What you really believe is that you should still recieve your ample wages for your 40 hours a week so you can afford the luxuries you've become accustomed to, but others should be condemned for the same actions.

tewdles, RN · Nov 11, 2009

Capitalism is evil. When other people do it anyways. CEO's that make buisness their lives for years and years and eventually get into a position where they're single handedly responsible for keeping an entire corporation afloat, who's responsible for the well being of each and every employee as well as customer....and actually getting rewarded for it? Eeh-vil. Beyond evil, Greedy. You who work 40 hours a week so you can afford 300 channels of television, laptop computers, air condition, nice houses, private vehicles....That's well, it's certainly not capitalism. That's just you scraping by. Anyone who doesn't believe healthcare should be motivated by capitalism is a hypocrite, or at least the majority. I'm assuming because you're posting on this forum that you're in the nursing field, and that you were blessed with the education, the skills, and the knowhow to make a difference in the world. You're perfectly able to take capitalism out of your own practice, lower your standard of living to those of priests in the middle ages, and devote your volunteering and promoting the existence of free medical facilities. There's no shortage of those who believe as you do, so it shouldn't be difficult to recruit medical professionals of all specialties to your cause.
But of course, thats not what you mean at all. What you really believe is that you should still recieve your ample wages for your 40 hours a week so you can afford the luxuries you've become accustomed to, but others should be condemned for the same actions.

Actually, that is not what I believe at all...nope, not even close.

SilentMind · Nov 11, 2009

Actually, that is not what I believe at all...nope, not even close.

If you don't want the people running the health care corporations to be making profits, it should really apply all the way down the chain, shouldn't it?

tewdles, RN · Nov 11, 2009

If you don't want the people running the health care corporations to be making profits, it should really apply all the way down the chain, shouldn't it?

You are suggesting something very different here. Mandating that insurance companies offer basic health insurance policies for american citizens which DO NOT increase the profit margin does not mean that people cannot be paid salaries and compensated for their work. It means that for those basic policies 90+% of the premiums go to payment of claims with less than 10% being used for compensation and bonuses. If the insurance companies want to offer more expensive, "designer" policies that provide for private rooms, or other nonessential health services, fine, they may increase their profit margin there. That works pretty well in Germany and a few other places where insurance companies continue to exist and are profitable. The bottom line is that when basic healthcare is limited or rationed or outright denied because insurance companies decide as much in order to improve their profits, that is bordering on amoral. In a country as grand as ours it is clear that we can and should do better.