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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: koan who wrote (991671)	1/4/2017 2:39:26 AM
From: RMF	Respond to of 1570744

Quit putting out so much of your history. I'm setting up a podcast with you and inode. If you actually read the posts here you'd know what was going on. Start Paying Attention. I want to get your Family stuff in the Pod Cast.

To: koan who wrote (991671)	1/4/2017 7:23:17 AM
From: POKERSAM	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1570744

Just curious about your knowledge of medicare. How much will the elderly person on medicare have to pay for that hip replacement? Yo seem to believe that medicare will pick up the entire bill.

To: koan who wrote (991671)	1/4/2017 9:42:09 AM
From: Taro	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1570744

You guys have no more idea how to make medicare better through a voucher system then (THAN?) I know how to build a rocket to the moon. So, you have no idea how to build a rocket to the moon? Well, I believe you finally exposed your weak point to us all :). And little stupid me, who truly believed you were a genius!

To: koan who wrote (991671)	1/4/2017 5:34:53 PM
From: i-node	1 Recommendation Recommended By gamesmistress Respond to of 1570744

>> Here's how Medicare works: an old person needs a hip replacement, or knee replacement, so they go to their doctor he recommends a surgeon you go to the hospital, get it done and you are so happy because now you can walk. >> And you have better system-lol?? After 25 years developing and supporting health care payments systems I am going to declare myself, for the purposes of this post, an expert on the subject of Medicare payments. If you have anyone to challenge that, bring them on. Now, I'm going to tell YOU how it works. And old person needs a hip replacement -- or knee -- so they get the surgery done and may be able to walk better when it is over. But you left out significant portions of the process. Notably, how variously entities get paid for their services. First you should understand that Medicare doesn't come close to paying the entire bill. They pay a government established fee that does not cover the cost of the surgery. And in fact, most Medicare beneficiaries have to have a "supplement" to cover the costs that are not covered by the basic plan. Medicare dutifully pays for the surgery under Parts A and B. However, what it pays is a fraction of what a joint replacement actually costs. As a result, a phenomenon known as "cost shifting" occurs -- in which private insurance companies (AETNA, BCBS, CIGNA, etc) end up picking up the balance. Which, of course, results in higher premiums for those of us (like me) who pay for their own health insurance and ultimately make health care unaffordable for the country. So, as of today, Medicare is about 40 Trillion dollars in the hole. It has promised to pay $40T for surgeries it has no money to perform. And no statutory ability to raise that money. And no tax base from which to raise it due to other tax increases the public is facing. What this means is that you and I can get OUR knees and hips replaced. But my kids, in their 30s, will not have that nice benefit. When their knees are old an decrepit, there will be no money for THEIR knee surgeries. And that is some bullshit. It is about the most morally bankrupt thing a generation can do to its offspring: Leave them broke and hopeless. Now, I have hopes that Trump will begin to turn this shithole around. But it is a very long shot. Maybe a 1 in 20 that he will be able to accomplish this. Do not presume to understand how Medicare works. You do not. And you understand even less about how Medicaid works. Social Science? It is bullshit. It is a joke amongst the intelligent. You cannot point to a Social Science department at any university with a highly intelligent person teaching the subject. It is, basically, what you teach when you can't do math. It is, simply put, a bullshit subject. Boring as hell. The only real science of socialism in the last 50 years was "The Bell Curve" and you laughed it off as nothing. The only way to make Medicare better is to make other health care worse, unless you're willing to eliminate the government's management of it. This so far over your head I'm not even going to try. As long as you refuse to open your mind to less government you are never going to be worth three cents as far as solving problems. Government does not have a record of solving large problems. They can definitely create them.