This hits rather close to home. My husband started receiving Medicare a little over a year ago and I will be on Medicare starting December 1st. In the past, other than for about 8 years working at Costco, we have paid for our own private insurance. It was high deductible and so we paid for all our appointments, check-ups, etc."We had some favorite forty-somethings over for Thanksgiving dinner who were shocked to learn that those on Medicare actually pay for coverage. They thought it was free – for life, and we can’t blame them. If you listen to the discussions about Medicare, I believe the goal is to give the impression that coverage is free. It isn’t free and it isn’t even almost free. During the discussion over turkey, dressing and the best sweet potatoes to be served on any table, anywhere, it was determined that a couple will pay just under $700 per month per couple for coverage." read the rest including Maggie's common sense solutions
We're not real excited about being on Medicare but the way the system is devised, only the extremely wealthy can self-insure. One of my husband's students is a doctor who accepts Medicare patients and has agreed to be our doctor. It is doubtful if we could find a doctor within 100 miles who would be willing to take on any Medicare patients. And why should they?! Medicare doesn't pay them squat and is trying to cut that amount by 23%. It's beyond comprehension why any doctor would treat Medicare patients.
I was a bit shocked to read in Maggie's article that there are actually people who think Medicare is free. Trust me - it's far from free. If we opted for prescription coverage (which we didn't) it would be costing us about 7 to 8 hundred dollars per month. This is in addition to the amount of money we've contributed since the beginning of Medicare. The only insurance payment that was ever made on my behalf was wrist and hand surgery while I worked at Costco. I'd say the insurance company did just fine, considering they received approximately $10K per year for 8 years and only had to pay for a few operations that totaled about 3K.
Aside from the common sense approaches presented by Maggie, another area of health insurance that should be addressed is employer-provided coverage. It is time for this anachronism to be stopped. Individuals and families should provide their own insurance rather than have it tied to employment. Employers are not "giving" you anything when they provide benefits. It is factored in as part of your salary. It is not "free."
More:
The Foundry: Time to Clean Up the Medicare Doctor Payment Mess
Jammie Wearing Fool: Democrats' Scheme to Fund Obamacare By Gutting Medicare Like a Fish Proceeds Apace
The Blog Prof: Obama - the Black Knight of socialized medicine
The Lonely Conservative: SEIU Dumps Insurance Policies for Workers’ Kids
While cruising around the internet looking for some figures I stumbled upon Dr. Wes.
Westby G. Fisher, MD, FACC is a board certified internist, cardiologist, and cardiac electrophysiologist (doctor specializing in heart rhythm disorders) practicing at North Shore University Health System, Evanston, IL and is a Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at University of Chicago's Pritzker School of Medicine. He entered the blog-o-sphere in November, 2005.
An Open Letter To Patients Regarding Health Reform
Dear Mr. and Ms. Patient,
It has come to my attention that in order for you to enjoy success as patients in the new era of health care reform, you must start working now to prevent illnesses that might befall you. Do not, under any circumstances, eat or drink too much. Fast food might as well be considered illegal. Exercise three, four, five times a day, even if it means take time off from work. It goes without saying that you should not smoke. The government has data that demonstrates how you have become fat, lazy, and a huge burden on our health care system. Your non-compliance threatens the very fiber of our economy. Even employers realize this, and are using calculators to figure your financial burden to them. read the rest (link fixed - sorry)
5 comments:
Medical insurance isn't really insurance. Insurance is to guard against unexpected or unforeseen eventualities. Somebody rear-ending my car, my house being flooded, my garage struck by lightning, my workshop burning down. All of these things could happen, but they probably won't. Insuring those sorts of possessions against those sorts of events makes sense because of that simple fact.
My body is going to fall apart. That is simply part of the natural process of aging. I will also undoubtedly be injured in a variety of ways. Those things are definitely going to happen. How those realities manifest themselves specifically vary from person to person, but as the sun rises in the morning, I can guarantee that each person on this planet will at some point need medical care.
Thus, we aren't insuring against an unforeseen or unexpected possibility. We are insuring against a definite reality. And that means that it isn't insurance. It is a transfer program from present payers to present payees. That's it.
The sooner this is understood, the sooner we can have a realistic discussion about real health care reform in this society.
Its not free? Well shazammmm.
Adrienne, thanks so much! I was so shocked at my guests that my sister-in-law's fabulous sweet potatoes almost got cold before I could make myself shut-up!
So many know so little about the reality of the mess we are in.
I haven't finished the Doctor's advice, but will. I can see where he's going and it is another ignored reality.
Hope you had a splendid Thanksgiving! I was wishing it for all my blogging friends even though I didn't get around to saying so.
I had no idea that Medicare was that much per month! Jeeze, it's ridiclious, how can senior citizens on "FIxed income" afford such high priced insurance?
As you know, dh was laid off and hence we lost our insurance. I bought the boys an "accident" policy through the school. Next month, I'm going to get a high deductible policy for our family. We will pay out of pocket for scripts, doctor's appointments and mammos. The cost per month will be around 150. I cannot believe that we were paying 600/month w/a 1500 per person deducitlbe with my dh's old work. WTH? We were supposed to get the "reduced rate" since we were with a large group. Stupid.
Adrienne, you words were ringing in my head when I was trying to decide what to do about insurance.
Motherhen - Everyone is on a "fixed" income. You will never hear those words coming from this "senior." Redd earns a "fixed" salary. Isn't that a fixed income?
A high deductible policy and paying your way is the most economical way to go. You can get lots of mammograms for $600.00 per month. :-)
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