Obama Damages Dems

[JohnR! 5,495]

And that's here I think this administration went wrong. They should have gone all the say to the single payer option and make the GnOP stfu once and for all.

[Teddy B 17,252]

And that's here I think this administration went wrong. They should have gone all the say to the single payer option and make the GnOP stfu once and for all.

There wasn't enough support for a single payer system. The ACA barely made it and even then it was with smoke and mirrors.

[Boiler 46,338]

There wasn't enough support for a single payer system. The ACA barely made it and even then it was with smoke and mirrors.

Not enough money in it for the Dems financial supporters.

[GandD 5,966]

I'm still not sure why the ACA was pushed by Democrats. It seems like so much more of a Republican approach to healthcare.

[Teddy B 17,252]

I'm still not sure why the ACA was pushed by Democrats. It seems like so much more of a Republican approach to healthcare.

Seeing the ACA is a mirror image of Romney care, you'd be right.

Not enough money in it for the Dems financial supporters.

Not enough money for everybody on both sides.

[Teddy B 17,252]

Not enough money in it for the Dems financial supporters.

I honestly believe the stigma of being labeled "socialist" scared a lot of politicians away from a single payer system as well.

[JohnR! 5,495]

It was similar to Romney's plan, until Obama decided to go with it, and then GnOP turned against it. Partisanship at its best.

I'm still not sure why the ACA was pushed by Democrats. It seems like so much more of a Republican approach to healthcare.

Another instance where unawareness and disinformation pave the way to unjustified phobias.

I honestly believe the stigma of being labeled "socialist" scared a lot of politicians away from a single payer system as well.

[Póg mo 1,749]

One of the red herrings about health care in Canada, or in other developed countries, surrounds the wait to see a doctor. While it is true that you may need to wait to see a specialist, it is also reasonable to expect that a lifetime of preventative health care will drastically augment the chances that a serious illness or chronic condition be caught in its early stages.

My wife had to wait over a month to see a specialist here in the US, my mother-in-law had wait over two months. My wife and I have awesome insurance, but it still didn't matter, she still had to wait. Getting to see a competent doctor in a small town, is no easy task either. I wouldn't mind, but considering how money my health insurance premiums are, I do expect better.

[Dakine10 5,452]

One of the red herrings about health care in Canada, or in other developed countries, surrounds the wait to see a doctor. While it is true that you may need to wait to see a specialist, it is also reasonable to expect that a lifetime of preventative health care will drastically augment the chances that a serious illness or chronic condition be caught in its early stages.

The wait right now in primary care is due to a shortage of doctors. It's not built into the system but it does occur in some areas.

My sister just left a great job in Cranbrook because she can't get a primary care physician. There are two openings for primary care doctors with no applicants. The other primary care doc's in the area are completely full. People without a primary care doc are told to go to urgent care or walk in clinics. The level of continuing care is not adequate for someone with a chronic condition that needs follow up. She was there for about a year but before she decided to transfer to a bigger city.

As far as specialists, when my dad was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma he saw a lung specialist the next day. They made room for him. At least he doesn't have to worry about medical bankruptcy as many in the USA would with this diagnosis.

[decocker 7,198]

there is nothing more satisfying than paying your insurance premiums dutifully for years upon years and when you finally need to cash in your chips, all that money paid in means nothing but a meager percentage of the cost incurred. stay sick and struggle, bankruptcy is always an option, do not pass go, no $200.00 for you.

Edited November 6, 2015 by decocker

[Boiler 46,338]

In my County there is no Doctor, a couple of Nurse Practitioners, that is it.

Years ago there used to be a County Hospital, no more.

In the UK, the Hospital emergency admissions are overwhelmed by people with minor issues who can not get in to see their GP.

[Dakine10 5,452]

there is nothing more satisfying than paying your insurance premiums dutifully for years upon years and when you finally need to cash in your chips, all that money paid in means nothing but a meager percentage of the cost incurred. stay sick and struggle, bankruptcy is always an option, do not pass go, no $200.00 for you.

You might get lucky and hit your out of pocket spending limit.

[Transborderwife 4,666]

In my County there is no Doctor, a couple of Nurse Practitioners, that is it.

Years ago there used to be a County Hospital, no more.

In the UK, the Hospital emergency admissions are overwhelmed by people with minor issues who can not get in to see their GP.

This last thing I believe is an issue in Canada, Especially for new immigrants that don't have access to a family doctor yet. Our emergency rooms get clogged up with bumps and scrapes.

Even the maternity process is so differently done here in the U.S. In Canada I had to make an appointment with an ultrasound tech for scams, here the doctors office does them. Not sure which is better as I was erroneously told that I was having a boy in Canada.

My sister at the tender age of 30 had a quick brain cancer diagnosis. She was promptly seen by a specialist and started on radiation therapy zero waiting

[Expat1 971]

You might get lucky and hit your out of pocket spending limit.

How. The new insurance trick is to only apply the spending limit to some services. We had AETNA ppo in the states. My daughter got sick, so we took her to a walk-in clinic (couldn't get into the Dr office) where the doctor immediately diagnosed her with appendicitis and said to take her immediately to the hospital. Only way to get in the hospital was through emergency. They took her straight to surgery, did the appendectomy, kept her for two nights, and sent her home. My part of the bill after insurance was $5500 JUST for the hospital and I paid for an anesthiologist, surgeon, laboratory charges, all separate bills.

Not a cent of that was applied to the annual out of pocket. Emergency doesn't count towards out of pocket max. They said had she been "admitted" instead of in "emergency under observation" it would have been applied. I told them she went in through emergency yes, but she had surgery, got a room on one of the main floors, so how was that not "admission". They blamed the hospital, and the hospital blamed the insurance company. My out of pocket per family member under that policy was $5000, family $10000.

Other than an occasional visit here and there that year that was the only time we really needed the insurance. Basically at our age and kids age the only major need for insurance IS something like that anyway but they have it set up so that if it's accident or trauma or appendicitis or anything else that starts as an emergency it's on us, no limit.

US healthcare and US health insurance is a ripoff. The cash price of an appendectomy anywhere else on the planet is less than my "20%". This started happening when insurance companies went public, sold stock, and were expected to pay money they collect as premiums to cover healthcare costs to shareholders. It started in the 80's and health insurance costs/coverage has declined ever since.

Splitting premiums between shareholders and payments to providers is NOT a sustainable model to assure quality coverage, all it assures is that a cut goes into fund managers and investors pockets. I like single payer because if you multiply what you pay X 2-5 (most companies pay 80% of the premium for you) that's what REALLY comes out of your pocket anyway. Single payer works here, and in many other countries, and it should work in the US as well.

Edited November 7, 2015 by Expat1

[Dakine10 5,452]

How. The new insurance trick is to only apply the spending limit to some services.

I was mostly being sarcastic. Although it worked out OK for us this year. We have tier one and tier two "in network" facilities. The tier one out of pocket max is $4000, which is the same as the family deductible limit for tier two and the amounts spent apply to both.

My daughter was in ER on January 5th. She fainted at school and they took her to the closest ER which happened to be tier two. Hit our tier one out of pocket limit with that one visit.

On the bright side, now that we are getting 100% coverage, I'me catching up on all the things I couldn't afford to do before. I'm learning a lot too. For example, never write "butt hurt" as the reason for visiting a proctologist. Things will only get worse from there.