I went to the doctor's today
I've had the (swine) flu 10 days now, and the cough is getting stronger. So I went to check in with my doctor, since nobody in the house but me would be able to hear the gurgle of pneumonia using my stethescope. I'll be damned if I'm going to go get looked at for a virus.
As I told the receptionist/biller, insurance is still a scam, so we'll pay cash. It was a doctor visit, and it cost $75. He gave me samples of the antibiotic.
The rules are made by the insurance companies. Your doctor (if you're insured) doesn't work for you- he's subcontracted through your insurance company. They don't sell health, they restrict your access to it and keep the prices high. But now, after finally seeing my doctor after three years of relative health, I'm impressed by the economics.
Last time I paid the racket, they had just jacked me up 20% a third time to $650/month. So this doctor visit would be somehow worth $23,400 in premiums. How many poor people would be insured from this excessive payment? None. Any new drugs discovered? No. Anything innovated, except more efficient billing? Nope.
If I needed an X-ray, which was really commercialized in time for World War I, I'd be impressed that this ancient technology, really unchanged since they stopped burning skin, I'm sure the free market would have assigned a $25 dollar price tag, because that's what an X-Ray is worth. It's worth a few bucks to have it interpreted, but hell- you can lie on a parking lot and receive enough radiation to expose film lying under your body.
Anyway, if it weren't for the absence of a playing field, the playing field wouldn't be level. If you call the insurance agent or if I do, we'll get different quotes because of our zip codes. There is no 'group', but the population is 300,000,000. All at risk for diabetes since you're all lazy sugar addicts. All at risk for high blood pressure. All at risk for unseen heart attacks. All likely to have a car accident.
Insurers should be forced to observe the one single group (300,000,000 Americans), and use population statistics instead of their narrow groupings.
But none of this will make any sense until Congress establishes a national health insurance company, state lines disappear, and the insurers get very finely accounted.
As I told the receptionist/biller, insurance is still a scam, so we'll pay cash. It was a doctor visit, and it cost $75. He gave me samples of the antibiotic.
The rules are made by the insurance companies. Your doctor (if you're insured) doesn't work for you- he's subcontracted through your insurance company. They don't sell health, they restrict your access to it and keep the prices high. But now, after finally seeing my doctor after three years of relative health, I'm impressed by the economics.
Last time I paid the racket, they had just jacked me up 20% a third time to $650/month. So this doctor visit would be somehow worth $23,400 in premiums. How many poor people would be insured from this excessive payment? None. Any new drugs discovered? No. Anything innovated, except more efficient billing? Nope.
If I needed an X-ray, which was really commercialized in time for World War I, I'd be impressed that this ancient technology, really unchanged since they stopped burning skin, I'm sure the free market would have assigned a $25 dollar price tag, because that's what an X-Ray is worth. It's worth a few bucks to have it interpreted, but hell- you can lie on a parking lot and receive enough radiation to expose film lying under your body.
Anyway, if it weren't for the absence of a playing field, the playing field wouldn't be level. If you call the insurance agent or if I do, we'll get different quotes because of our zip codes. There is no 'group', but the population is 300,000,000. All at risk for diabetes since you're all lazy sugar addicts. All at risk for high blood pressure. All at risk for unseen heart attacks. All likely to have a car accident.
Insurers should be forced to observe the one single group (300,000,000 Americans), and use population statistics instead of their narrow groupings.
But none of this will make any sense until Congress establishes a national health insurance company, state lines disappear, and the insurers get very finely accounted.
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Congress is bought and paid for. Unless they learn that no matter how much money they get, we won't vote them in, nothing will happen. Feinstein isn't moved "One whit" by what people think (unless they are paying her big bucks, that is)
She obviously isn't "moved" by the suffering of the millions of people who don't have health care as well. She deserves to be drummed out of office.
June 29, 2009 8:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey, I hope you feel better, soon.
(makes tea with honey and lemon and hands it to the monster)
June 29, 2009 9:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
If you haven't heard of it, try a cap of hydrogen peroxide in each ear for about five minutes per side. I have yet to meet a bug it can't kill in a very short period of time.
Great blog. This sort of argument should resonate for fiscal conservatives and libertarians alike - the remora now steers the shark or the tail is wagging the dog. Whatever metaphor works, but it is clear we can't sustain that sort of scenario.
Someone has to be in charge of the hen house and it can't be the fox.
June 30, 2009 12:45 PM | Reply | Permalink