Is this an accurate depiction of how the medical system in the USA works?

[skunkd0c]

Sorry I cannot be around posting every minute of the day but unlike some people, I work for a living....

Wage slave or hero .. can't decide.

 

[UncleBuck]

First people have got to understand that Healthcare is not a right. It cannot be a right because if it is, it infringes upon other people's rights.

Secondly, people have to understand that they have to pay for their own healthcare. And it is going to be a big expense over the course of their lives.

So, anyone going to the emergency room of the hospital is going to be required to pay for their own care. If they cannot afford to pay for their own care then the government will pay for their care and send them a bill. The person is required to pay the bill and if they dont, eventually a portion of their wages would automatically be garnished to pay back whatever they owe. If a person owes money when they die then their major assets should be sold to pay the bill.

If a person has no money and no income then they dont have to pay the bill.

Then I would remove competition blocking legislation such as the requirement to get healthcare in your own state and allow medical companies to set up botique businesses targeting specific things that people need. A good example is if you need an MRI. You would be able to go to a number of companies who have to advertise their charges up front. You would pick and choose who you went to for healthcare and what treatments you wanted or didnt want.

Prices would plummet as people worked to cut costs on procedures and services and specialized in certain things.

Torte reform would have to be instituted as well.

If you did this and allowed people to price shop it would help out alot.

Insurance would go back to being optional and you could choose to buy it or not as you want.

completely and utterly retarded.

 

[canndo]

yep.

the original poster of this image doesnt know what is involved in his hospitalization though.

he didnt pay $7,500 for 2 hours in a "recovery room" he paid for the constant observation of his condition by highly skilled medical professionals in his post surgical period when he could have turned blue and flatlined, or popped his stitches turning his Entrails into Extrails at a moment's notice.

he didnt pay $500 for the drugs that put him under for the surgery, he paid for the second specialist physician who administered and monitored his anesthesia and made sure he didnt go into the light and hug grandma during his surgery.

"Room and Board" at $4800 a night may sound like a lot, but hospitals arent the Motel 6, nobody is gonna come running in with a crash cart, or bump you into an emergency spa time is you take a turn for the worse at the Hyatt. also, if you ever really examined a hotel room at check-in, you would understand why hospitals dont have "housekeeping" staff, they have sanitizers scrubbers and disinfectors. that shit doesnt come cheap.

his bill also included the costs of a bunch of other cats who DIDNT pay their bills, and a generous padding in case they get sued by the next guy who doesnt like the jello, or thinks his nurse isnt cute enough.

yeah, it all adds up.

hospitals have to charge to cover their ACTUAL EXPENSES (especially the un-remitted ones they incurr) not just what your individual treatment costs, since they are STILL SERVING YOU even when your arent in the hospital.
their presence, and their constant operation is a reverse "Externality" which costs the hospital and benefits you.

good points all, but not entirely accurate. There is no excuse for an eight dollar aspirin. We all know that the prices are inflated because they know that some people will pay. It they actually needed that level of pricing they would not be able to negotiate far lower prices for insurance companies. And of course that twenty million a year CEO salary plays a part as well. I can negotiate a lower rate simply by demanding one, a lower rate still by having the line items explained and lower still by having my laser ask the same questions.

there is a book that most hospitals base their fees on, and no one can explain the cost basis. Further, if you take that bill to oh. Say Canada, the folks there will scratch their heads in wonder.

 

[UncleBuck]

in germany, japan, and other nations, the government is heavily involved with health care and negotiates the rates and costs of procedures on an annual basis. insurance companies are non-profit (because of the government getting involved in health care again) yet compete fiercely for customers nonetheless because it is not in their best interests to go out of business.

all this government involvement drives down costs and allows for all citizens to get care at a lower cost than here in the united states.

every single nation that pays less than we do yet covers all their citizens has much, much more government involvement in health care.

this is called reality, and the republicans absolutely fucking hate it. and reality hates them right the fuck back.

 

[beenthere]

in germany, japan, and other nations, the government is heavily involved with health care and negotiates the rates and costs of procedures on an annual basis.

all this government involvement drives down costs and allows for all citizens to get care at a lower cost than here in the united states.

 

[canndo]

Oh there you go Beenthere. Anyone who thinks that perhaps they should have the opportunity to have decent medical care at a decent price must surely be a nazi or a jap or a communist. Never mind that lots of folks in civilized nations manage to not only get reasonable medical care upon demand but still maintain a reasonable if not dominant economy. Somehow we are proud of our currently low brow, retarded system of health care because, well, we have the bestest damn health care system on earth, except of course for all the others. In THIS country, if you get sick and want to live, you may have to bankrupt yourself and perhaps your children's future (all the while crying and nashing our teeth over the nationa debt we are burdening our children with).

In this country, unless you are rich, if you are sick, fuck you, you didn't take care of yourself, you bought into the corporate line, you were a good consumer, you ate that daily mcmuffin, you swallowed that growth hormone and antibiotic beef patty that industry claimed was fine, or worse, that the "jury was still out", you ate those pop tarts and now, take it like a man, be a patriot, the free market knows best and if you don't like being fodder for that particular system then you can't really be an American now can you?

Jesus the right is just one compartmentalized disaster after another and you sir, seem to be yet another poster child for their lunacy.

 

[Beefbisquit]

yep.

the original poster of this image doesnt know what is involved in his hospitalization though.

he didnt pay $7,500 for 2 hours in a "recovery room" he paid for the constant observation of his condition by highly skilled medical professionals in his post surgical period when he could have turned blue and flatlined, or popped his stitches turning his Entrails into Extrails at a moment's notice.

he didnt pay $500 for the drugs that put him under for the surgery, he paid for the second specialist physician who administered and monitored his anesthesia and made sure he didnt go into the light and hug grandma during his surgery.

"Room and Board" at $4800 a night may sound like a lot, but hospitals arent the Motel 6, nobody is gonna come running in with a crash cart, or bump you into an emergency spa time is you take a turn for the worse at the Hyatt. also, if you ever really examined a hotel room at check-in, you would understand why hospitals dont have "housekeeping" staff, they have sanitizers scrubbers and disinfectors. that shit doesnt come cheap.

his bill also included the costs of a bunch of other cats who DIDNT pay their bills, and a generous padding in case they get sued by the next guy who doesnt like the jello, or thinks his nurse isnt cute enough.

yeah, it all adds up.

hospitals have to charge to cover their ACTUAL EXPENSES (especially the un-remitted ones they incurr) not just what your individual treatment costs, since they are STILL SERVING YOU even when your arent in the hospital.
their presence, and their constant operation is a reverse "Externality" which costs the hospital and benefits you.

I'm aware there are costs associated with the treatment that aren't on the bill. You are sadly mistaken if you don't think the prices of hospital treatments aren't grossly inflated.

Businesses have to make money, but making people filthy rich off of the pain and suffering of others is, at least 'morally' questionable. Your point about people not paying their bills is a catch 22. If it was more affordable, more people could pay for the services, which would lower the amount of accounts in AR.

 

[ChesusRice]

I'm aware there are costs associated with the treatment that aren't on the bill. You are sadly mistaken if you don't think the prices of hospital treatments aren't grossly inflated.

Businesses have to make money, but making people filthy rich off of the pain and suffering of others is, at least 'morally' questionable. Your point about people not paying their bills is a catch 22. If it was more affordable, more people could pay for the services, which would lower the amount of accounts in AR.

LOL Funny but
Those without insurance actually get a higher bill for the same procedure as someone who has insurance

 

[NLXSK1]

LOL Funny but
Those without insurance actually get a higher bill for the same procedure as someone who has insurance

Unless they offer to pay cash and then they get a discount...

Shocking, I know...

 

[canndo]

Not always.who would turn down a two year payment plan ta 12 percent?

 

[Dr Kynes]

LOL Funny but
Those without insurance actually get a higher bill for the same procedure as someone who has insurance

cash customers get a 40-60% discount.

is sacramento dentists routinely offer 60% off for those who are paying their own bills not using insurance.

doctors do the same.

when an insurance company is paying the doc has to pay the clerks to file the claims, wait for the insurance company to pay out (if they ever do) and even then, the insurance companies will only pay what medicare will pay for that procedure, thus medicare's maximum payment for a service becomes the de-facto cost for that service when insurance companies or medicare is footing the bill.

docs know it's bullshit, but they gotta work within the system, and the system is fucked.

 

[Dr Kynes]

I'm aware there are costs associated with the treatment that aren't on the bill. You are sadly mistaken if you don't think the prices of hospital treatments aren't grossly inflated.

Businesses have to make money, but making people filthy rich off of the pain and suffering of others is, at least 'morally' questionable. Your point about people not paying their bills is a catch 22. If it was more affordable, more people could pay for the services, which would lower the amount of accounts in AR.

so thats how you think of doctors?

or is that how you think of insurance companies?

or is that how you think of the politicians who want to control the medical system through their dopey ineffective programs chock full of graft and corruption?

 

[twostrokenut]

I know walter chilchott makes a drug that was supposed to have a generic come out in 2013....400 bucks a month in patent protected r and d recovery form so 7 years go by and now its 3 dollar wal mart generic time yay.....but wait....walter chilchott literally takes the pill and puts a gelcap around it, calls it something new and renames it and their lawyers somehow successfully pull it off.......stock tip for y'all your welcome.

 

[Beefbisquit]

so thats how you think of doctors?

or is that how you think of insurance companies?

or is that how you think of the politicians who want to control the medical system through their dopey ineffective programs chock full of graft and corruption?

I was thinking more along the lines of CEO's and administrators of hospitals. Doctors should make good money, they're the ones doing the work.

 

[Dr Kynes]

I was thinking more along the lines of CEO's and administrators of hospitals. Doctors should make good money, they're the ones doing the work.

but if somebody develops a magic health potion that eliminates all disease and aging, doctors will be out of business since they too "become filthy rich" only when somebody else is suffering.

same goes for medical examiners, mortuaries, grave diggers, coffin makers, homicide detectives, hospice care workers, and members of the clergy who perform funerary rituals (and weddings, lol suffering is their business)

 

[schuylaar]

let me just say i like chis christie and would like to believe him..

 

[schuylaar]

but if somebody develops a magic health potion that eliminates all disease and aging, doctors will be out of business since they too "become filthy rich" only when somebody else is suffering.

same goes for medical examiners, mortuaries, grave diggers, coffin makers, homicide detectives, hospice care workers, and members of the clergy who perform funerary rituals (and weddings, lol suffering is their business)

kynes, do you do that? shomer or yarzeit for extra cash?..if so, how much is the going rate?

 

[Dr Kynes]

kynes, do you do that? shomer or yarzeit for extra cash?..if so, how much is the going rate?

so i'm a rabbi now?

Oy Gevault!

They dont let you live, they dont let you breathe!


it's a shanda!

 

[schuylaar]

do you think those guys bring wine with them while they sit & recite the torah..betchya they make some bucks..you should look into it

 

[Dr Kynes]

do you think those guys bring wine with them while they sit & recite the torah..betchya they make some bucks..you should look into it

1) convert to judaism
2) give up bacon
3) get part of my dick chopped off
4) learn hebrew
5) attend yeshivah, study the torah and talmud for 8-10 years
6) ?????????
7) Profit!

i think i will just grow weed instead.