Why Bush's Health care Plan is Wrong!

[bleedingheart]

Recently Bush has been touting that he wants to allow small businesses to group together to buy the insurance the BIG companies have so that they can give their employees better options.

Well ITS ALL A LIE!

You see small companies have been banding together to do this already...so his touting this as a "new" idea is actually an old idea. For example the Pittsburgh High Tech Council has been doing this for at least 15 years because I know that a company I used to work for got greatly reduced benefits because of its membership in the High Tech Council...

BUT...in spite of this...the cost of health care has still gone up for even those companies involved in these plans.

The NEXT BIG LIE is that somehow all is well with the BIG companies... well for those that have been paying attention...BIG companies like GE have been for years trying to reduce the amount of money they spend on employee benefits because the costs are going up so dramatically. Many unions strike over this issue alone.

http://www.forbes.com/2003/01/14/cx_mh_0114ge.html

I work for a very large company that actually has been promoting that married employees use their spouse's coverage rather than use our company's coverage to reduce costs...and if they don't my company attaches an additional monthly fee to those individual's health care cost as a form of punishment. (so you either lie about your spouse's coverage or you swallow the fine...)

[Nite Owl]

1. Another thing that is missing

from his 'tort reform to lower costs' argument is any use of this to say that it will be mandatory that premiums will be lower. If his argument is that that frivolous law suits are the problem than that should also be a part of the plan, if he really believe it than insurance companies should guarantee lower premiums for consumers. Coward that he is he would never stand up to his big donars. It's all phoney, the public will just get screwed twice: pay higher premiums and not be allowed any recourse in court. He has no intention of doing anything.

[bleedingheart]

2. Ask people, "Did the insurance companies promise to lower rates?"

this normally prompts a stupified look at which they say.."no"..and then I normally say...well then you are a fool to vote for tort reform because they will screw you over completely.

[livinginphotographs]

3. Another thing that irritates me

Is how he keeps harping on HSAs. HSAs are such a load of shit. They only benefit higher-income workers, and if they become the norm, will basically penalize the sick and lower-income workers.

If I had a choice between an HSA and no insurance, I'd probably end up going with no insurance. That doesn't seem to solve the problem, IMO.

Of course the health insurance companies love it because they can collect premium and not have to pay out as much.

[bleedingheart]

4. You are right! I know people who don't participate in the 401k's because

they don't have the extra cash to spare...let alone a Health Savings Account...it's all nonsense.

[Serial Mom]

5. Letter I got from my Insurance Co re: HSA

Just this past Tuesday, I got a letter from my insurance company regarding my HSA and my HIGH DEDUCTIBLE MED INSURANCE.

To save money, my company went with a huge deductible ($3500 year), no prescription benefit. We then were allowed to open HSAs where we can put OUR OWN money in it (before taxes) to help defer costs such as office calls and paying for prescriptions (which do NOT count toward my deductible).

The letter informed me that my insurance company can INCREASE MY DEDUCTIBLE each and every year by the amount of cost of living increase. So, if next year the cost of living increases by 3%, by deductible becomes $3605 and so on each year.

Where is the benefit to me? My company hasn't given me a raise in 29 months, and previous to that it was 23 months. So actually, I have received one raise in 52 months, and if we had that insurance all 4+ years, I would have lost money and lowered my actual income at least twice the cost of living each year (no COL raise, higher deductible).

These are LITTLE things that the mis-administration does to benefit big business such as insurance companies that people don't hear about.

I hate *!

[bleedingheart]

6. many people are in the same boat as you

and in fact I am one of them. last year my "raise" was completely absorbed by my healthcare increases and in fact...I ended up making less money because the healthcare costs cut even more into my wages...

[Serial Mom]

7. Yeah, same boat, higher costs though!

I live in SE Wisconsin, where health care costs are about 55% HIGHER THAN CHICAGO AREA.

In a recent article http://www.jsonline.com/news/metro/aug04/253483.asp

Medical care is pricey here, study confirms
Barrett, Ryan warn of business exodus
By JOE MANNING
[e-mail]
Posted: Aug. 23, 2004

Milwaukee-area hospital and physician prices were shown again Monday to be dramatically higher than national averages, hamstringing local businesses trying to compete.

Soaring Costs

A comparison of health care costs in the Milwaukee area with the average of 239 metropolitan statistical areas across the country:

+27% Health care spending overall.

+63% Hospital costs.

+33% Doctor prices.

Source: Government Accountability Office
Related Coverage


The reason, according to a study released by the Government Accountability Office, is that area health care providers flex more muscle in negotiations than insurance companies do.

Hospital inpatient charges are 63% higher in the Milwaukee area than the average of 239 metropolitan statistical areas across the country, the study found.

<snip>

In other words, hospitals charge 63% higher than average cause THEY CAN. Sounds like Dubya and his mis-administration!

[ogsball]

8. If Bush could just link higher health care with . . .

Iran then there would be justification for invading.

I knew an Iranian doctor once who charge a lot. Or better maybe there is a group of Iranian lawyers who keep sueing American born doctors driving up health care costs.

I bet Rove is way ahead of me on this.