The random political thoughts thread (Part Deux)

[Alex]

It is certainly a valid point of view to say "even if the current way sucks, it is my view that the alternatives would be worse in aggregate."

Also valid to say "the current system sucks and should be changed but this particular solution would be worse."

My problem with much of the opposition on the right is that they say the latter and behave the former.

[Betty]

Originally Posted by scaeagles

I did say there would be a doctor shortage, but a doctor shortage for everyone, not just me.

And as it stands now - I have a pretty severe doctor shortage and you don't. So yeah - I'm jealous and mad about it. My point is that you have the luxury of time and don't seem to feel the same urgency that someone like myself does.

[BarTopDancer]

Originally Posted by Betty

So - what in the heck am I supposed to do if one of my kids breaks an arm? Or worse - what if something tragic happens and I end up in the hospital?

Catastrophic insurance is cheap. Look into it through Anthem Blue Cross.

It's what I had when I was out of work.

[scaeagles]

So...let's say the highest numbers out there are accurate and 48 million people are uninsured (i do not subscribe that figure). This means that 252 million Americans are insured.

You are saying that it is unfair that 252 million people have something that you do not. Because of that, you would impose a change on the 252 million people that have it.

Of course, I won't claim to say that all 252 million people are happy with it. I'm not always happy with mine (had to pay a lot for the knee surgery and rehab the daughter had). I also won't say that all of the uninsured really want insurance (if they have to pay) because some have other priorities for their money).

I understand there are problems with the current system. However, this does not mean I think the proposed fix is a good idea, and it does not follow that I think nothing should be done. It just means I don't think this shoudl be done.

[BarTopDancer]

Leo - what would you do if either you or your wife lost their job and insurance wasn't available. Or you both lost your jobs.

Now you have to use your savings and UI to live off of and pay for COBRA.

Now your savings are gone and you can no longer afford COBRA.

Now you have no insurance.

What would you do?

Don't say it won't happen, because it can. It is happening to thousands of people across the country.

What would you do?

Originally Posted by scaeagles

However, this does not mean I think the proposed fix is a good idea, and it does not follow that I think nothing should be done. It just means I don't think this shoudl be done.

What's your suggestion then? Come up with something better.

[Betty]

[quote=BarTopDancer;308551]Leo - what would you do if either you or your wife lost their job and insurance wasn't available. Or you both lost your jobs.

Now you have to use your savings and UI to live off of and pay for COBRA.

Now your savings are gone and you can no longer afford COBRA.

Now you have no insurance.

What would you do?

Don't say it won't happen, because it can. It is happening to thousands of people across the country.

What would you do?
[\QUOTE]


And COBRA is oh so affordable when you've lost your job... I used to feel the same way SCA. It was someone elses problem... I had insurance so sure, I could see the importance of it, but it wasn't urgent. Things sure do change when it's your family that's affected. My health insurance wasn't all that great - or so I thought until I had none. I didn't know how good I had it.

And letting go of COBRA had to be done. I got a bill for nearly $3,000 for one month. OMFG! Just can't afford it. Well I could - but we would just pay for that and be homeless.

Health care is out of control.

[JWBear]

Of course, even if you have insurance, there is no guarantee that you would be covered when you get sick. If your illness is a very expensive one, the insurance company will find a way to not pay up. (Talk about "death panels"!)

[BarTopDancer]

Originally Posted by Betty

And COBRA is oh so affordable when you've lost your job.

It's not. I couldn't afford it, even with the subsidization.

Seriously Betty, look into a catastrophic policy through Anthem Blue Cross. At least for the kids. Or do the kids qualify for the MediCal for kids program?

[Strangler Lewis]

Originally Posted by scaeagles

So...let's say the highest numbers out there are accurate and 48 million people are uninsured (i do not subscribe that figure). This means that 252 million Americans are insured.

You are saying that it is unfair that 252 million people have something that you do not. Because of that, you would impose a change on the 252 million people that have it.

Maybe. Sixteen percent strikes me as a high failure rate for something that's fairly basic. As an absolute number, 48 million people is huge. If there was a world without public education and sixteen percent of the country (48 million people) was not getting a basic education, I would hope we would impose a change on everybody else or come up with a public option.

[Betty]

Originally Posted by BarTopDancer

It's not. I couldn't afford it, even with the subsidization.

Seriously Betty, look into a catastrophic policy through Anthem Blue Cross. At least for the kids. Or do the kids qualify for the MediCal for kids program?

We're looking into a few options actually - the school just sent home some info and a family friend is going to quote us on a catastrophic policy. Thanks!