tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post4005961479146777971..comments2023-09-29T06:58:20.125-07:00Comments on Badtux the Snarky Penguin: The elephant in the health care roomBadTuxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01345749557330760251noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post-56216659044745150952008-02-29T15:36:00.000-08:002008-02-29T15:36:00.000-08:00Yes, your math is wrong. Old people are the most e...Yes, your math is wrong. Old people are the most expensive people to cover with health insurance, because they're old and sick a lot. Young people are the cheapest to cover. All in all, health care spending accounts for 15% of the U.S. GDP, of which 7.5% is already taken care of either via direct taxation or Medicare/Medicaid. What that means is that covering the other half, generally the less expensive half to insure, would require doubling the current Medicare/Medicaid tax from its current 2.9% to 5.8%, and require Medicare insurance fees of approximately the same amount as the current Medicare fee of $96 to $238 a month on a sliding scale according to income. That combined with the lower administrative expenses of Medicare For All would suffice to pay for medical care for all Americans for no more out of pocket than is currently paid (since the money is already being taken out of our pockets for health insurance, it's just being taken out by our employer or by the insurance company, not by the government... but really, it isn't in my pocket anyhow, so why do I care <I>who</I> takes it out?!).<BR/><BR/>- Badtux the Health Care PenguinBadTuxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01345749557330760251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post-74032240266789086512008-02-29T14:46:00.000-08:002008-02-29T14:46:00.000-08:00I did some quick math on this... and quick math is...I did some quick math on this... and quick math is usually wrong... but here goes...<BR/><BR/>Current medicare costs are about $350B/year. And that covers about 11% of the population. So, to cover the rest it will cost us roughly $3.2 trillion. Trillion. Take a look at your last paycheck and multiply the Medicare tax by 10... YIKES!<BR/><BR/>Plus, medicare A only covers "most" of the first 100 days of a hospital stay. I guess we would be hoping people die off in the first 99.Dan Seawelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17441292013937966069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post-16261122450147028562007-09-16T22:00:00.000-07:002007-09-16T22:00:00.000-07:00Well, Bryan, the farmers are saying they have a sh...Well, Bryan, the farmers are saying they have a shortage of laborers to pick their crops. I say we send all these medical records coders to the fields to harvest guacamole and spinach, that ought to solve that labor shortage nicely :-).<BR/><BR/>- Badtux the Snarky PenguinBadTuxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01345749557330760251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post-39204546235347055712007-09-16T20:55:00.000-07:002007-09-16T20:55:00.000-07:00It can't possibly work because it is too simple, w...It can't possibly work because it is too simple, would save too much money, has very little room for graft, and would cost politicians too much in insurance pac donations.<BR/><BR/>Oh, yeah, it would also prevent the looming autoworkers strike, provide funding to non-profit health care facilities, and allow doctors to work for themselves instead of insurance companies.<BR/><BR/>It's obviously totally unworkable.<BR/><BR/>Who would hire the thousands of people who do nothing all day but code medical claims for the different companies and plans?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post-78279314512156156522007-09-15T20:54:00.000-07:002007-09-15T20:54:00.000-07:00Thanks for that evaluation. I'll keep it in mind ...Thanks for that evaluation. I'll keep it in mind when my time finally comes of age to receive it. I'll have to hope that I make it as an old fart in decent condition and not make use of it much. My husband provides good insurance for us now...if he cacks on me...I'm so screwed!sumohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03668836906276970398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post-46053970138478074332007-09-15T20:24:00.000-07:002007-09-15T20:24:00.000-07:00Long post and I don't have time to read it all. Th...Long post and I don't have time to read it all. The reason Medicare is here is because older people have the time to work on making sure it is in the system. <BR/><BR/>But old people are afraid of dying so they want the younger tax payers to keep them alive for as long as they can. <BR/><BR/>Yup, this country is full of old people that are as worthless as tits on bore hogs, but hey, they are still alive, and the younger folks are paying for it all. <BR/><BR/>All of that will have to end someday though. How? I don't know, but I do know that I don't want anyone or any system to try to keep me alive if all I can do is sit around on my ass anyway. <BR/><BR/>That is not living, that is just sitting on your ass.BBChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15323188240580782454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9612609.post-79999710465940520002007-09-15T19:03:00.000-07:002007-09-15T19:03:00.000-07:00Interesting post. Lots of reading:) Yes, I agree...Interesting post. Lots of reading:) Yes, I agree. Medicare is a universal healthcare system. <BR/><BR/>The program has bugs, though. Of the medical bill, they decide what they're going to pay on what, disallow another portion, then the consumer gets a bill for their remaining percentage of the amout medicare allows. Now, if the provider doesn't participate in the medicare assignment, they get to charge the consumer for the disallowed amount along with their percentage, too - I'm just thinking about medicare part B that handles outpatient. I'm sure Inpatient (part A) is a different story. I think that has an extreme deductible.<BR/><BR/>Of course, so many insurance companies do the same thing if the consumer didn't go to an approved medical facility, if it wasn't pre-approved, etc.<BR/><BR/>Following the medicare idea would be a good start, anyway.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com