Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : A US National Health Care System? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lane3 who wrote (24579)	8/21/2012 11:27:24 AM
From: i-node	Respond to of 42652

I don't doubt that, but I don't see them ever making decisions on an individual level, do you? They will ration by excluding coverage of this or that or setting conditions for coverage or compensating at such a low level that the treatment becomes less available or is wait-listed but they will never pick and choose individual winners and losers as many charge. No, I agree with you -- I think that's precisely what will happen. There are, of course, procedures they won't cover today, so there isn't anything new there. I think the difference is that as the money shortage becomes greater, consumers of health care will feel this pinch, not on the basis of reasonable medical care decisions, but based on the fact that the government doesn't have the money. If a private insurer faces this dilemma of not being able to pay its bills, the company faces legal and market forces. If Medicare faces it, health care consumers are pretty much stuck with it. In the end private insurance will have to pick up the tab (as they've done for years) at increased cost to ALL insureds and costs will continue to spiral out of control. So, everyone will have expensive Medicare supplements that take care of what the government can't and everyone will pay for it. I'd just rather have a more organized approach to dealing with the money shortfall; if we had some real leadership on this issue I think there is a way of resolving it in a reasonable fashion.