[LOCKED]WTF

With the health issues I had, I searched high and low to find the root cause. I am glad I did find the root cause, as fourteen months later, I was on death's doorstep... The root cause of my health issues and living a stress-laden life, almost killed me.

If yourselves are wondering what the root cause of your own health issues are, start your research. Just maybe, you would be able to get healthy enough to not require the medicine anymore. Ergo, not feed big pharma your money.

Big pharma relies on people being sick. People being sick, keeps big pharma in business. If society chose to find the root cause of their health issues, get healthy and get off of big pharma's medicine, then big pharma would be forced to lower their price on medication and be forced to do 'honest business.'

"I spent 24 hours in an ER last summer and the doctors (2 of them) couldn’t figure out what was wrong and simply kept me doped up on pain meds"

That sounds more like incompetent doctors than a hospital/ER trying to defraud an insurance company.

Federal legislators are in fact required to get their insurance through the ACA (Obamacare). They pay about 1/4 the cost, and you pick up the rest.

The healthcare industry in this country will never “be fixed or fair” until we the people make our senators and congressmen be on the same healthcare plan that we are on.
Until then it’s an idiotic game of numbers.
I spent 24 hours in an ER last summer and the doctors (2 of them) couldn’t figure out what was wrong and simply kept me doped up on pain meds (not saying that was a bad thing). I’m a follow up visit to my PCP he took one look at my blood work and said “you had an intestinal virus”. 2,TWO ER doctors couldn’t determine that. But they damn sure billed my insurance for $65,000.00 worth of treatment. They got paid $6,500.00…….

"The VA health care is not free, it is paid for in full by 20 Plus years of service OR sever service-connected disabilities."

Partially true. When I got out the first time after 5 yrs with an Honorable Discharge, I was eligible for some medical care with a 0% rating.

When I got out the second time, I was given a "TDRL" separation and 30% VA rating. After going back for a couple of annual medical reviews at Nellis AFB, NV, I was given a Perm. Medical Retirement.

I went to 60% and 90% and eventually 100%. That's when I qualified for 100% care, which included dental and vision.

For those that are unhappy about their VA care, in my opinion, it's not designed to be your Primary Care. That's where your current employer or out of pocket medical plan bridges the gap.

In warm areas, the VA seems to be over-burdened by snowbirds. That's what I encountered in Phoenix.

"My first gut reaction is that this is some racist shit. But - eh. Sort of. The tone still acts like black people are not even the same species, at least at first."

The documentary was reportedly commissioned by Ebony Magazine and meant to attract advertisers to its pages. It's actually a really effective piece of marketing, bringing the viewer from seeing Black people as other to potentially viewing them as enough like as a group to be easy to sell to without making any special effort beyond respect and honesty.

As an artifact of its time, it's pretty progressive.

If I had to pick a state with the highest % of seniors, as a guess, Florida would likely be it. It would seem to make sense that Florida health care would be stretched a bit thinner than a number of other states as a result.

So, I did look it up and my gut was correct, but the #2 state with the highest % of seniors was Maine. Not something I would have guessed. Kind of a WTF that people would want to retire in Maine. If you're OK with the winters, it would seem NH would be a better choice. Maine borders NH and NH has no state income or sales tax like Maine.

Also, you can be reltively close to Maine and Boston living in NH, where you have better health care options. At least Florida also has no state income tax and has mild winters.

I'm proud to hear some are receiving great health care through the VA. My VA health care experiences are not stellar.

A waiting list to be accepted to the closest clinic of in excess of one year.

It takes 4 to 6 weeks to get a requested appointment. Primary doctor turnover is frequent.

They do set up Community care appointments when they can't see you in a timely manner, cover all associated expenses including travel allowance and prescriptions.

The VA health care is not free, it is paid for in full by 20 Plus years of service OR sever service-connected disabilities.

So - not to distract from the health care discussion, which I find interesting because that's what my business is about

But.

Did you need these tips from 1954 about how to sell to negroes?

youtu.be/PYnvWQXxShY?si=ZrvHb7D4ARSVrOjM

My first gut reaction is that this is some racist shit. But - eh. Sort of. The tone still acts like black people are not even the same species, at least at first. Then you come to realize it's really explaining to white people that black people are pretty much like anyone else. A weird dichotomy. Almost like the narrator himself seemed unaware until that very day that black people are - well - people. But he knows now and he's here to explain the new reality to you.

I've said this many times on here, however my quad bypass with an out of network provider (Kaiser doesn't have a cardiology ward in San Diego) didn't cost me a dime...

VA is probably better than most govt programs here in CA. When I had to relocate from TX back to CA about 5 years ago, I had to go on Medi-Cal while I was on unemployment before I started up my company and got enough income to dump the shitty coverage, which was frickin' awful. My PCP doc was a cardiologist who put me on low-dose aspirin just out of habit, and had me on a full once a day's dose of my beta-blocker meds. And getting info about my health was like pulling teeth. The incompetent ass would just throw meds at your problems without doing diddly squat for testing. Not to mention that I felt like shit all the time and still had health issues.

When I switched over to Kaiser, my PCP actually freaked out when he saw the records for my meds. The aspirin was frankly, dangerous for me to take, and the beta-blockers needed to be spread out in smaller doses three times a day. Once my body adjusted, I felt a lot better. Still have some issues but they're minor in comparison. Well worth the $800/mo I'm paying now for my individual policy.

There are too many things to quote.

I cannot speak highly enough of the VA in Reno/Sparks. They were my dad's healthcare provider for decades and in spite of his refusal to drink water or stop smoking, they kept him healthy and thriving until the end. And when he indicated he didn't want to continue treatment for an emergency, they kept him comfortable and let him die in peace. The only hiccup was a Monty Pythonesque interchange where VA staffers and my little brother kept repeating that only immediate family were allowed and "son, not grandson."

I had Kaiser coverage for awhile but Kaiser didn't have a presence in Bellingham, so they just processed my few medical bills and regularly encouraged me to get a colonoscopy.

It's not that we lack the will to eliminate the health insurance industry. It's that too much money and lobbying have been poured into the public discourse and, encouraged by the politicians who benefit from lavish corporate donations, we routinely vote against our own best interests. For profit health insurance is the devil and Medicaid for all is probably a better option, along with better training in medical school.

Well said LAGRA

"The VA healthcare system for veterans is a prime example of government run healthcare in the U.S.. If the Veterans, which in my opinion, are a special group are treated poorly, how do we collectively think the average person will be treated?"

You don't speak for us satisfied Veterans. My VA care was fine in Cali, Alaska, Georgia. Not as good in Phoenix.

And fucking incredible here in Wisconsin. So great that Vets come here from Michigan and Illinois.

Nothing but great care while on Active Duty from 1992-1997 and 2002-2008. What the VA could not do, was referred to local hospital facilities or specialists and doesn't cost me a nickel.

I don't purchase medical plans on my current government job. Rely completely on the VA system. Pocketing mucho denero by turning down the plan from our medical provider at work.

My question was in regards to your statement that government health care is less efficient.

"The most/best for the least cost/effort is a general take on efficiency.

One caveat. Humans generally want things when they want things, especially when they have a real or imagined health issue. There are not enough doctors or hospitals to treat everyone for everything they want right now.

Medicare has a very low administrative cost, in the neighborhood of 2%. The problem there is the population. Old people get sick, and something like 80% of medical expenses are in the last year/couple of years of life.

The VA has very high customer satisfaction. Around 92% of VA patients have trust in the VA health care. 79% of customer surveys give the VA a 4 or 5 star rating.

Canada has some problems, sure. But everyone is covered. About half of Canadians are satisfied with their health care coverage, a little bit higher than the US, but Canada spends half per patient.

It is well documented that the US spends twice what other countries spend as a percent of GDP.

There are models in this country that work. My health insurance is an example. I have the lowest cost health insurance available by my employer, Kaiser. Granted, I work for the state, and my employer is very generous with the coverage. It costs them about $2,600 a month to cover my family.

But for that, I have no premium, no deductible, no copays. Generally, the only thing I pay for is copays for medication, which are ridiculously low. I take Ozempic for diabetes, and pay $10 a month for a $1,200 pen. So they are not making very much money off of me. ;-)

The other side of the story is that Kaiser has a 4% administrative cost, and a service denial rate of 6% in 2023, compared to an average 12% average admin cost and a 32% denial rate for United Health Care.

So your assertion that government run health care is false by your metric. And there are ways to improve health care here.

The bottom line is that if you want to do it, it is possible. All we lack is the will.

"What metric are you using for efficiency?"

The most/best for the least cost/effort is a general take on efficiency. We already know that health care provided through a for profit entity will tend to be more expensive to fund the profits of that entity.

Adding this entity also adds to complexity. Everyone has their horror stories of how difficult it can be to deal with insurance companies, myself included. Are you trying to argue that US health care couldn't be significantly more efficient/user friendly?

By comparison, while in Austria on a cruise, the Mrs had an allergic reaction. With no appointment, we were able to see a doctor and paid 40 euros for the visit, and < 14 euros for 3 prescriptions. This was all out of pocket (no insurance).

Are there places that are worse, sure, but it's kind of a WTF if someone DOESN'T see how broken US health care is. FWIW - The insurance industry in the US is second only to the US government in terms of holdings/employees, so I don't expect any significant changes any time soon.

The VA healthcare system for veterans is a prime example of government run healthcare in the U.S..
If the Veterans, which in my opinion, are a special group are treated poorly, how do we collectively think the average person will be treated?

One thats why they all come to Florida to get better health care , no waits while in town and escape as your new educated PHD Guy said that "dumb".. snow LOL

You just cant make this stuff up can you!

Just got a contact on a different web site by a male with no pics and says his education is PhD/MD/Post doctorate. He calls the snow DUMB. Really? With all that education you can't come up with something more intelligent than DUMB?

I would say Canada is a good example of poor health care being run by a govt agency. Unless you have private healthcare in Cananda you could be waiting years to get some types of care. We have friends that live there and that is info from them.

"Government run programs tend to be less efficient, so there is no guarantee that government managed health care would be much better, but sometimes it feels like it couldn't be any worse. At least with government managed health care it would remove the profit motive. IMHO, health care shouldn't be managed by any entity with a profit motive."

What metric are you using for efficiency?

Unfortunately, health insurance companies in the US are middlemen with the goal of turning a profit. Not to say that they are the sole problem with health care in the US, but any time you have a middleman with a profit motive, it is almost guaranteed that it's going to cost you more and be more of a hassle.

Government run programs tend to be less efficient, so there is no guarantee that government managed health care would be much better, but sometimes it feels like it couldn't be any worse. At least with government managed health care it would remove the profit motive. IMHO, health care shouldn't be managed by any entity with a profit motive.

With insurance red tape, you pretty much have to dismember yourself on the job or be on death's doorstep in order for the insurance companies to pay out for what you have taken out of your paycheck!

I of course don't know your situation Melvin, and certainly there are instances where insurers dick everyone around.

But sometimes for some treatments there are specific criteria that need to be met, and if the documentation doesn't demonstrate that criteria, then it's no bueno, regardless of how much documentation they submit or how much they assert that you need it.

I'm not saying anyone's right or wrong here. Just that the issue is - in my experience - most often due to a lack of documentation supporting the criteria required.

And yes, it's pretty common for a lot of doctors to not understand this.

@MB….. I couldn’t agree more; insurance companies are getting worse and worse. My policy changed 1-1-25; the premium doubled, the deductible went up and the first prescription I went to fill they denied it without “prior authorization”. This is a med that I’ve bet on for two years and now they want more paperwork from the Dr…..