Home Forums Discussions General Discussion "Affordable" Healthcare Plans

If you think people have a RIGHT to healthcare, then you must also agree they have a right to housing, food, transportation (government must provide free housing, free food, and a free car) communication (Obamaphone), recreation and all the rest. Obviously, the LEFT in this country believes this. Once all this is in place, the lazy parasitic consumers will say it is not FAIR that others have a nicer phone than the Obamaphone, a nicer health plan, a nicer car, and a nicer house. Bear in mind they are also not PRODUCING anything of value. This brings the destruction of the Republic, when the citizens realize they do not have to work and can mooch off everyone else in the name of 'equality' and 'fairness.' You have a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. A right to have opportunity. You have no right as the the outcome.

Aye!

"The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money". (Alexis de Tocqueville 1840)

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the majority discovers it can vote itself largess out of the public treasury. After that, the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits, with the result the democracy collapses because of loose fiscal policy..." (multiple historic attributions, quoted by Ronald Reagan in 1964)

OK guys. But what do doctors "produce?" Most of my patients are either on Welfare or Medicare -- it's where we live, and the result of the destruction of our local economy.

I don't "produce" anything but hot air and marks on paper and 1's and 0's on a hard drive someplace -- but I bill the public treasury for all that.

Often people thank me for what I do, and sometimes bring me gifts in appreciation, and I try to reciprocate by being responsive to them, and trying to make them feel better.

But it is illegal for me to actually try to make them responsible for paying for our interactions.

And so I become another lazy parasite of the system that our sleazy representatives have concocted.

Is it truly "illegal" for you to make people pay for the service you provide? You can send them to collections, or dismiss them. Granted, providing health care has been deemed "special" and it may well be. I'm just not sure. Maybe only under certain circumstances. For instance, an ER must accept and "stabilize" anyone regardless of their financial means. But after they are stabilized, I'm not sure. But I do remember stories in the newspapers of DC of people dying just outside the hospital because they didn't have insurance so they were refused treatment for the knife or gunshot wound. Or the chest pain. I think that's what got those kind of laws passed.

But you provide a service, which is like producing something. Generally, its fine to make people pay for your service, just like the housekeeping service. But there have been some special laws passed with regard to health care.

Not illegal if you have opted out of Medicare and Medicaid. But if you haven't, you can't bill people for "covered" services if you see them. That's what's illegal.

Opting out not practical here -- most everyone on Medicaid and Medicare -- they can't pay cash (they don't have any) so we just sign up.

It gets worse, because now many "private" insurance plan pay less than Medicare, and Tri-Care is actually below Medicaid in Oregon.
And under Obamacare everyone will have to have insurance -- so it cuts out the cash pay altogether.

We don't "opt out" -- there wouldn't be anyone to see.

Well actually most of those new obamamama patients will be cash patients as the deductibles apply to everything except the yearly wellness visit.

Koby, that's kinda right. Only thing about deductibles is that they force you to extend the insurance carrier's discount rate to the patient for the deductible payment, instead of you being able to charge an FMV rate. Further insures that they won't meet the deductible.

Tom: it is all the doctors in Oregon that are at fault for agreeing to a plan that pays less than Medicare. We have done it to ourselves.

These observations remind me of the story that if you put a frog in hot water it will jump out; But, if you put him in a pan of cool water and gradually turn up the heat, he will sit there until he is boiled to death. We have it in our power to make it different. I, for one, find medicine fulfilling. It starts with saying "no".

I hvae seen a couple patients with one of the new plans...I have also seen a few medicaid patients who guess what!!!!! they were told they don't make enough money to buy a plan so were shot into the medicaid system..they didn't have a freaking choice!!! the patients are pissed of course..

David
the frog story, like many others of it's ilk, leads me to search SNOPES to determine the possible truth in this type of lesson.
http://www.snopes.com/critters/wild/frogboil.asp
the lesson is still appropriate even if no frogs wait around to hear it.
Have a great day!
Marc

Maybe frogs are smarter than we.....

Frogs might be smarter, but they have less control over their environment.

Humans have a lot of control over their environment, but they aren't smart enough to do it right.

There used to be a commenter on TheOilDrum before it went out of busisness -- he signed off his posts "are humans smarter than yeast?" One wonders. Carl Sagan and Ernst Mayr once debated the proposition: "intelligence is a lethal mutation"

Boondoc: I is impossible for "all the doctors in Oregon" to do anything as a group.
1. You are trying to herd cats
2. FTC frowns (to the threat of lawsuits) any concerted action of private physicians, while insurance companies take a pass on FTC restraint of trade action.
3. Half of the docs at least are employed -- they don't care what insurances they accept