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Non-Tech : Kirk's Market Thoughts -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Elroy who wrote (11837)	8/25/2021 8:23:50 PM
From: Kirk ©	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 26834

You should reconsider this: Why in the world can hospitals charge different people different amounts for the same service? Oops... answered the wrong question. Think of it as having coupons. I often get 50% or more discounts on meat at Safeway using their loyalty app.... Until the recent surge of inflation, I'd often come out with $60 worth of NY Steaks for $22.50! As to why prices vary so much over a city: Why does McDonalds charge so much less than Los Altos Grill for a cheese burger? $21 plus tip and you have to wait longer to get served: losaltosgrill.com It looks like you have to add another $6 for fries. Probably $35 with tax and tip assuming you drink tap water. I haven't been to McDonalds in maybe 10 years but I bet you can get a burger and fries for $5 and not have to pay a tip. Why is a bag $0.25 at Safeway but $2,500 or more at Nordstroms? They both hold the same amount of stuff. My issue with hospitals is price transparency. You can't look up prices online like I just did for burgers. Also, I've heard nightmare stories where people go in for surgery "in network" then they call an out of network anesthesiologist and not cover it. It happens so often you have to wonder if they exchange anesthesiologists to so both can ring up high charges. Have you looked into ACA? If you don't have any income and are living on savings, CA and Obama will probably pick most of the cost up for you.

To: Elroy who wrote (11837)	8/26/2021 12:29:03 AM
From: wilywilly	1 Recommendation Recommended By John Koligman Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 26834

The solution is to get old and go on Medicare, specifically Medicare Advantage if you live a healthy life style and have no chronic conditions. My wife and I have a plan that covers Scripps Clinic in La Jolla (world class) and pay $0 monthly premiums. Annual physicals, including all lab work is free, most generic prescription drugs are free, all preventative care (colonoscopy, etc) is free. We have a $10 co-pay to see our PCP for other than annual physicals, $35 co-pay for a specialist. In a good year we literally pay $0 for medical care (other than the Part B premium that all Medicare recipients pay.) I had hernia repair surgery for a $300 co-pay plus $35 to see the specialist beforehand. And it reimbursed a visit to the ER in Ireland in full (normally an ER visit has a $90 co-pay.) That ER visit cost only 100 €, and there was an ophthalmologist on site in the middle of the night. If you're not a geezer and have a family, as previously mentioned ACA may be cheap, and if you are so inclined, there are Christian medi-share programs that some friends swear by - they are healthy like we are, and rarely see a doctor. In short, we love Medicare Advantage, European health care, and would vote for Medicare for all.