Fiddleback

I use a plumber whose daughter is his right hand. She is one of the few certified master plumbers in the state and she makes well into six figures every year. One of my cousins has a 24 year old daughter who is about to graduate from welding school and already has multiple job offers waiting for her - all paying way more than entry level nursing. Locksmiths, electricians, machinists, HVAC techs all make more than your average nurse. Point is, you are young. You can learn new skills in fields that don’t require you to sacrifice your sanity. As one who is seriously looking at getting out after the first of the year I am telling you, it’s getting to the point where it’s just not always worth staying.

Our managers and charge nurses are actually smart enough to know people won’t answer the phone when work is calling. So they developed the sneaky habit of using their personal cell phones when they want to call someone in. I never answer a call from a number I don’t recognize. When I don’t return the call and they ask why, I come up with something like “I was in the middle of the lake fishing and my service didn’t pick it up” or “it was really loud in the casino and I didn’t hear the phone” or maybe even “I was having some really good sex. We’re you going to offer something better?” I haven’t been called in quite some time.

Spent six years working an intake unit where all our patients were fresh off the street and still seriously psychotic. I had one grab me from behind and try to choke me out one night while I was sitting one to one on another patient. I wound up with bruises on my throat. I’ve been hit, bitten, kicked, head butted, scratched, spit on, and just generally beaten during restraint situations while giving emergency injections. I’ve also known two aides who were attacked and so badly injured they are now living on disability. Like others have said, always be aware of your surroundings and NEVER forget who you are dealing with. The mildest, most timid patient you have can go off without warning given the rift circumstances. And remember that management considers the nurses and aides to be interchangeable parts of the machine just like parts in your car. I work in corrections now and most of my patients are, to be politically incorrect, totally nuts. The difference is I have correctional officers with me whenever I am dealing with them and the really bad ones are in wrist restraints and sometimes full shackles. I feel safer dealing with the murderers, rapists, gang bangers, etc. than I ever did working in the mental facility.

Having 50 or 60 blood sugars a shift my recurring dream always involves me trying to gets all those FSBS’s charted but I keep getting interrupted every couple of entries. Or is that reality?

I actually work in a large state correctional facility. My employer is a large state university that provides healthcare to several of the state penal facilities so my benefits are good and the pay is better than I can get as an LVN at a SNF or hospital. One of the things I like the most is I have never had a family member cuss me out five minutes after clocking in over “Mama” not getting her extra blanket six hours earlier. When one of the offenders becomes verbally abusive I can simply walk away without being accused of being “uncaring.” Also, you can be a little more, shall we say blunt, when dealing with malingerers, fakers, attention seekers, and manipulators than you can get away with on the outside. On the down side, it can be depressing. Some of the COs can be as bad as the inmates. The constant security can be stressful. And the first time you get “gassed” can be a total deal breaker. It’s not for everybody. If you don’t think you can stand still while watching someone who’s sliced their wrist bleed until the COs have served the scene then it’s probably not the job for you. On the other hand, if you’re tired of bedside nursing and all the aggravation that goes with it, correctional nursing might be a good fit.

This is a question I ask every time I look at my paycheck stub. I have a deduction for FICA and for Medicare. Then there is a deduction for State Retirement that is higher than FICA and Medicare combined. School Teachers, at least in my state, are in the same boat. Welcome to bureaucracy run amok.

What I think about these laws isn’t important. They survived the test of constitutionality at the time Roosevelt fist got them through. In reality, Medicare was simply an extension of Social Security. Also, in spite of what you may believe, no one can MAKE you sign up for any of these programs. I know several state retirees who never signed up for Medicare because their insurance that’s part of their state retirment beats the dog out of Medicare. And before you receive SS benefits you have to sign up for them A person whe is covered under a state retirement system may not even be able to collect social security even though they paid into it their entire working life.

Each of the countries that make up your merry little group has its own Health care system and I doubt that any two systems are exactly alike. You also failed to mention that the most populous of these countries is, if I’m not mistaken, Germany with a population roughly 25% of the the United States and an area roughly equal to the single state of Montana. And there are 49 other states plus a few territories, each having diverse regulations, laws, and bureaucracies. There is a wide variety in the customs, politics, needs, attitudes, and ways of life between different areas of the country. For that matter lifestyles in Soutn Texas are pretty different from those in North Texas or West Texas. Point is, this country is big, spread out, and very diverse. The heartland has a different set of attitudes from the coastal areas. North and south have different ways of doing things. East and West are way different. The constitution grants all authority not specifically granted to the federal government to the states. Even Obama Care is different from state to state and may not even exist much longer depending on the Supreme Court. Even if by some miracle some kind of single payer, universal care, Medicare for all system can get through Congress, can it survive the question of constitutionality? Oh and for those who keep referring to this country as a democracy, you’re wrong. This is a republic. If you don’t know the difference, go hit the books (or internet).

I’m not opposed to Medicare for all - all who want or need it. What I am saying is there are people in this country who are happy with their benefits and we should not be forced give up what we have if we don’t want to. And even if I was allowed to keep my current plan, I don’t want to have higher taxes eat into my paycheck for something I wouldn’t be using so yes, I am selfish Not all of my years in the public sector have been in health care and the sacrifices I made at that time have made me cynical Also, My first wife was covered under Medicare due to her being on dialysis. The first four months my insurance paid due to the four month waiting period. Everything went smoothly. From the day her Medicare kicked in till her death three years later, it was a constant battle with the system. Can’t use this doctor, have to change dialysis centers, have to do this, can’t do that. I don’t want to be told what doctor I can use and I don’t want to be told what hospital I have to use. Any one who says that won’t happen has forgotten “ if you like your plan you can keep and you can keep your doctor.” I might add that if you think the government will do a better and more efficient job just look at the VA.

Not without an act of the state legislature they can’t. And that’s not likely to happen in a state where nearly thirty percent of new hires quit within the first two years of employment because they don’t look at the long term. And if it does there will be enough of a lag between the changes being passed and actually taking effect that those of us who can will go ahead and retire under the current system.

At no time have I said I am against a system that would provide DECENT health care to people who can’t afford insurance. What I am against is taking insurance plans that people are happy with and have worked for years to keep away from them and reducing their take home pay through new payroll taxes. Yes, I have stayed in the public sector and turned down other jobs that paid more because of benefits. If you want to call that “gold handcuffs” then so be it. I can retire at any time with a really good pension and health care. Can you say the same? I simply don’t see where it is right to take away something many people have worked for their entire lives. By all means let’s find a way to get health care to those who need it. Just let those of us who are happy where we are keep what we have worked for.

But Bernie is currently the loudest and most strident voice and he is calling his plan Medicare for All. As the loudest voice he is getting the most media coverage. So much so that a number of the hoard of hopefuls are jumping on the band wagon. So the general public is seeing his plan as a true Medicare plan. Perception is reality. Many of the posters on this topic have actually said they are in favor of a single payer - ie government - system.

How is it different from slavery? It’s different because I still have a choice whether or not to continue working there or not. I guess I forgot to mention that I passed the “rule of eighty” a long time ago so even if they wanted to fire me or I became disabled I could take retirement and have the CHOICE to keep my current plan and have Medicare as my secondary insurance. Or not. Did no one here listen to Bernie when he said that under his plan employer provided coverage would no longer exist and BCBS and other health care insurance companies would only be there to cover elective procedures like nose jobs. So I still have options. Under the Bernie plan no one has a choice.

There seems to be an assumption on some people’s part that Medicare For All would be better than any other insurance and everyone should be happy to switch their premiums over to a payroll tax. Well, I for one don’t pay premiums for my employer provided insurance; it’s part of my compensation package (about 12k per year). To add my spouse is only about $350 a month. I have a $500 deductible, low copays, can see any doctor I choose, very good prescription drug coverage, and a decent out of pocket maximum. So why would I want to cheerfully give this up only to see my take home pay reduced by a Medicare tax because I really don’t think I would get a plan like this for the same money.

The “end of private care” probably comes from Bernie Sanders stating that BCBS would be reduced to only being able to cover nose jobs.