Originally posted by: JSt0rm01
Originally posted by: Fern
Originally posted by: lsd
On the other side of the coin you've got to ask WTH a visit costs $1000.
I recently had an OJI where I cut my finger pretty badly. For two visits (they said coming back to the ER was okay) the total cost was $1600. Workers comp insurance paid for it so I didn't care. The total time I waited + treatment/sutures removal was less than 1 hour.
Yeah, that's effin ridiculous.
Many of these so-called 'emergencies', perhaps even yours, could be handles with an out-patient clinic stafed by physicians assistants at a far lower costs. Our local hospital has those, however they are never never the actual hospital - you have to 'know' about them. IMO, that's the hospitals' own fault. They could locate an out-patient type facility within the hospital or very close. A $3 million savibng would pay for a nereby building easily.
Seems to me the hospitals
like making $3 M off a few repeat users. That needs to change.
Fern
It costs $1000 because they know they aren't going to pay. So 10x1000=10000 1 person pays you get $100 per person considering the people who dont pay. With uhc we won't have this problem and we should demand prices go down. Nobody wants to believe thaqt this is true or wants to believe that this would work but it will.
It makes little sense to believe that the cost of healthcare would go down for the average individual,...
first costs will be similar,... costs are costs unless you mandate less access, outpatient treatment, etc, which is not necessarily going to be appropriate in all situations,... if you don't mandate it,... the costs will be the same
second,... the government is inefficient and seems to be more so the larger the project,...
third,.... there is always some corruption, some amount that is siphoned from the best bang for the buck to special interests
fourth,.. instead of healthcare insurance premiums, you have higher taxes that will be hidden/bundled with others, so the true cost to the average individual is unknown, but it should be the same or higher,... it won't be less due to 2nd and 3rd points
fifth,.. a healthy young person who wants to save money and take the risk of no insurance as many do,... will now be forced to pay for it, taking away a choice, a freedom to decide what is best for them,... they have less discretionary spending
we can also debate about too much government dicatating too much to the individual,... kinda hand in hand with 5th point, though separate
While nobel in thought, it is not a better way,... just like true socialism and communism in thought are nice,... are not practical in real life as it takes away from freedom of choice, determination and other qualities that America has,... or at least used to have.