Get to see what goes on in the background of this site, and perhaps gain some insight as to why I can be a "jerk" to some.
How I feel about the whole healthcare deal and Obama's plan
Posted 08-10-2009 at 11:03 PM by Steven
I've been listening to a lot of people moan and groan about the discussion on healthcare reform that the Obama administration has been trying to push forward. Frankly, a lot of it sounds like the scare tactics and plain fear of change that some people are used to... particularly when all of the opposition comes from conservatives.
Now, before I go further, I don't consider myself liberal, nor am I by any means conservative. I don't identify myself as either Democrat or Republican (though for full disclosure, I was once a member (and past President) of my college chapter of the College Democrats... until I got sick of what Lansing (MI) tried to dictate). I'm actually much more in the middle of the line. I am more of a centrist/populist.
The fact of the matter is... our healthcare system is broken. Costs for everything (prescriptions, hospital stays, office visits, tests, etc.) have skyrocketed beyond our inflation rate, insurance premiums have also skyrocketed (sometimes while offering less care), and many times, we find ourselves at the mercy of the healthcare provider or insurer when it comes to our treatments. Then, people who find themselves "underinsured" or uninsured are left to pay for bills that could be in the thousands at the blink of an eye.
I've heard the liberal views on it, and of course, I get to hear the other end... many aren't for any reform... but then I also don't hear any alternative, or their idea for a solution, other than that "socialism doesn't work" -- a common response I hear. Is it because they like it status-quo, or they don't have an idea of what would be good?
So, I just want to put my views out. Some of you have heard a relatively small taste of what I've said already. But, here's about the best rundown about it.
Really, what I have heard proposed for reform, I feel, doesn't go far enough. In fact, I don't think we should use the word "reform", because essentially what it means is you're taking something existing and changing it. I also don't like the ideas that have been passed around, like forcing people to get private insurance, or face a fine of $1000/year.
What I think needs to happen is that it should be a ground-up rebuild of our system. I think it needs to be equal, universal, accessible, and affordable. I also don't think private for-profit corporations should have their hands in it, because when you have profit in mind, greed (in the form of higher profits) sets in.
Now, who does that leave to run such a system? You either have government, or you have non-profit.
The argument I hear about government is that they shouldn't be dealing with healthcare, and cite Medicaid/Medicare as examples. The fact is that the overhead to run those programs is far less (around 3-5%) than typical private insurers (15-30%). I've heard that the 3% overhead on Medicare is a myth, but those arguments often come from such sources as Kaiser Permanente, Cigna, or Humana, who are profit-oriented, and as I said, when you have profit in mind, greed sets in (they want to protect their profits).
I also hear the argument about higher taxes if the government was running it. Well, yeah, you will have to pay higher taxes if they run it. Nothing is free in this world. Someone's gotta eat somewhere... someone's gotta have clothes on their back somewhere. However, have you thought about the insurance premium that you are already paying? Or, if you're not seeing it deducted... maybe your employer is paying for it, or you may just be receiving it in lieu of getting an extra $50/week gross in your paycheck. If it were government run... you wouldn't have to actually pay the healthcare premium. Your employer wouldn't either. It would be part of your payroll deduction, or the taxes your employer pays. However, it would be according to what you make, and likely be smaller than the healthcare premium you are paying for now.
How can it be smaller? Well, combine the fact that it's a universal system, lower overhead (less bureaucracy, profit, and frivolous fringe benefits found in private insurers) with lower costs elsewhere (ban drug advertising, disallow unnecessary tests that often take place, having doctors that can truly be accountable for their care without having high malpractice insurance, focus on preventative medicine vs. dealing with illness as they come, etc.), the costs will come down, and you'll pay less as a taxpayer.
Ok... how about the hospitals? They should be taken out of the hands of profiteers... period.
Then I get to hear about the supposed horror stories in countries with socialized medicine, often citing Canada as an example. Let me ask this... why do they live longer than us? Why isn't there such a huge revolt against their system if it doesn't work? Opponents say to ask a Canadian why it doesn't work. I've asked a few, and none could even say that it was even broken and that they like (or love) it, even when they called themselves conservative. But, of course, many of those I talked to were in Ontario... which Canada's system relies on the provinces to run their systems, with some national involvement. So, while it might be great in Ontario, it may suck in Quebec (I think Quebec sucks anyway, so there). And of course, while it has imperfections, nothing is really perfect. If it were, we'd really be in Heaven.
Then, how about many of the European countries (Great Britain, France, Norway, the Netherlands, Taiwan, Japan, etc.) that also have universal healthcare? I don't hear peeps from them.
While I focused a lot on the government providing it instead. I know there's other ways it can be done without the government actually running it, including private non-profits running it, public non-profits, handing it over to the states, etc. Quite honestly, I don't know if I want government running the system in its entirety myself, but at least I know there's alternatives that lead to the same rebuild of our system.
For those who say they distrust government to run things... how about you actually get involved... vote, speak to your representative, run for an office yourself? I vote, and I write to people (including our President).
So, I want to hear constructive thoughts on this. I don't want bashing of Obama's policies or anything. Think of it as a brainstorming session and an open exchange of ideas.
Now, before I go further, I don't consider myself liberal, nor am I by any means conservative. I don't identify myself as either Democrat or Republican (though for full disclosure, I was once a member (and past President) of my college chapter of the College Democrats... until I got sick of what Lansing (MI) tried to dictate). I'm actually much more in the middle of the line. I am more of a centrist/populist.
The fact of the matter is... our healthcare system is broken. Costs for everything (prescriptions, hospital stays, office visits, tests, etc.) have skyrocketed beyond our inflation rate, insurance premiums have also skyrocketed (sometimes while offering less care), and many times, we find ourselves at the mercy of the healthcare provider or insurer when it comes to our treatments. Then, people who find themselves "underinsured" or uninsured are left to pay for bills that could be in the thousands at the blink of an eye.
I've heard the liberal views on it, and of course, I get to hear the other end... many aren't for any reform... but then I also don't hear any alternative, or their idea for a solution, other than that "socialism doesn't work" -- a common response I hear. Is it because they like it status-quo, or they don't have an idea of what would be good?
So, I just want to put my views out. Some of you have heard a relatively small taste of what I've said already. But, here's about the best rundown about it.
Really, what I have heard proposed for reform, I feel, doesn't go far enough. In fact, I don't think we should use the word "reform", because essentially what it means is you're taking something existing and changing it. I also don't like the ideas that have been passed around, like forcing people to get private insurance, or face a fine of $1000/year.
What I think needs to happen is that it should be a ground-up rebuild of our system. I think it needs to be equal, universal, accessible, and affordable. I also don't think private for-profit corporations should have their hands in it, because when you have profit in mind, greed (in the form of higher profits) sets in.
Now, who does that leave to run such a system? You either have government, or you have non-profit.
The argument I hear about government is that they shouldn't be dealing with healthcare, and cite Medicaid/Medicare as examples. The fact is that the overhead to run those programs is far less (around 3-5%) than typical private insurers (15-30%). I've heard that the 3% overhead on Medicare is a myth, but those arguments often come from such sources as Kaiser Permanente, Cigna, or Humana, who are profit-oriented, and as I said, when you have profit in mind, greed sets in (they want to protect their profits).
I also hear the argument about higher taxes if the government was running it. Well, yeah, you will have to pay higher taxes if they run it. Nothing is free in this world. Someone's gotta eat somewhere... someone's gotta have clothes on their back somewhere. However, have you thought about the insurance premium that you are already paying? Or, if you're not seeing it deducted... maybe your employer is paying for it, or you may just be receiving it in lieu of getting an extra $50/week gross in your paycheck. If it were government run... you wouldn't have to actually pay the healthcare premium. Your employer wouldn't either. It would be part of your payroll deduction, or the taxes your employer pays. However, it would be according to what you make, and likely be smaller than the healthcare premium you are paying for now.
How can it be smaller? Well, combine the fact that it's a universal system, lower overhead (less bureaucracy, profit, and frivolous fringe benefits found in private insurers) with lower costs elsewhere (ban drug advertising, disallow unnecessary tests that often take place, having doctors that can truly be accountable for their care without having high malpractice insurance, focus on preventative medicine vs. dealing with illness as they come, etc.), the costs will come down, and you'll pay less as a taxpayer.
Ok... how about the hospitals? They should be taken out of the hands of profiteers... period.
Then I get to hear about the supposed horror stories in countries with socialized medicine, often citing Canada as an example. Let me ask this... why do they live longer than us? Why isn't there such a huge revolt against their system if it doesn't work? Opponents say to ask a Canadian why it doesn't work. I've asked a few, and none could even say that it was even broken and that they like (or love) it, even when they called themselves conservative. But, of course, many of those I talked to were in Ontario... which Canada's system relies on the provinces to run their systems, with some national involvement. So, while it might be great in Ontario, it may suck in Quebec (I think Quebec sucks anyway, so there). And of course, while it has imperfections, nothing is really perfect. If it were, we'd really be in Heaven.
Then, how about many of the European countries (Great Britain, France, Norway, the Netherlands, Taiwan, Japan, etc.) that also have universal healthcare? I don't hear peeps from them.
While I focused a lot on the government providing it instead. I know there's other ways it can be done without the government actually running it, including private non-profits running it, public non-profits, handing it over to the states, etc. Quite honestly, I don't know if I want government running the system in its entirety myself, but at least I know there's alternatives that lead to the same rebuild of our system.
For those who say they distrust government to run things... how about you actually get involved... vote, speak to your representative, run for an office yourself? I vote, and I write to people (including our President).
So, I want to hear constructive thoughts on this. I don't want bashing of Obama's policies or anything. Think of it as a brainstorming session and an open exchange of ideas.
Total Comments 0
