If you freelance, something you deal with 24/7 is the subject of healthcare. Now that the issue has blown up in friendly town hall get-togethers, it’s interesting to see how nobody was taking the issue seriously before the election. Not anymore.
If people want to do the faux rage Nazi meme, hey, go for it. Bush got his fair share of der treatment, so all’s fair. But damn, the GOP sure has taken post-Gore defeatism from 2000 and upgraded it for the release of Obamazi 2.0.
Which leads you to Palin’s interpretation of the proposed healthcare coverage.
The idea of the plan being this kind of evil, death panel review board, like an episode from the original Star Trek, is not only insane beyond words, but demonstrates the party’s strategy to get back in power.
They’re using media channels and social outreach the way Obama did, but the difference is they still repeat the same message of fear, albeit louder.
So I respond this way to both sides.
For over half my working adult life, I have had to pay for benefits for either myself or my family. The times I didn’t were mostly taken care of by various agencies I worked for.
Regardless of who was paying though, I know the waiting times I’ve had to endure to see doctors or specialists: “Earliest appointment is six weeks sir.” Sound familiar?
Emergency room waits? An average of four hours over the years for essentially non-emergency care. Yes, I actually sat down and recalled the visits. Maybe try a walk-in center instead. Okay. Half that time and throw it on your credit card.
Sweet. Now I’m contributing to the nation’s healthcare mess and credit problems.
Glamorous anecdotes aside, there’s this notion that you only find the best, most immediate healthcare right here in the U.S. and not, say, France. You know, the country we’ll supposedly be modeling our healthcare system after?
It always bugged me when both candidates relied on the
*CUE RABID APPLAUSE AND WHOOTS!*
Of course, who wouldn’t go along with that. ALL people should have that access. But the nuance both parties skip is that having access is not the same as paying for it.
I have access right now to the best doctors in the world. I just have to wait months to see them. I also need to shell out a lot of money. But hey, I have access.
So when I see “dead Down Syndrome babies and 8-month long hip replacement socialist nightmare” scenarios thrown together in a twisted SEO fear-mongering orgy, I have to ask how is that worse than what we have now?
Those decision aren’t being made by insurance companies every single day with pre-existing conditions? Then, to have the person who perpetrates the fear say “We need to step back and calm down?” Sorry, but you don’t get to do that without someone calling you on it.
I pay close to $12,000 a year for coverage plus deductibles and limited prescription co-pays. I likely wait weeks to see someone, unless it’s urgent, and even then, ER visits have annoying deductibles for even minor things. It’s no better for follow-ups.
I can get in faster to have an oil change at the dealer.
Here’s the mindset I have now, which I’m sure others have: Beyond a simple cold, if you have a family in this country and are self-employed, you can not afford to get sick.
Exaggeration, sure, but it’s not as bad as a Down Syndrome reference though. The next question you have to ask a U.S. senator or Sarah Palin: How much did they pay for healthcare last year?
Maybe ask the taxpayers who picked up the tab instead.
3 comments:
Bill, I've thought this over, and the real problem is we have 46 million uninsured people in this country, and the rest of us will have to pay more to cover them. That would require us to share and might ration resources, and no one likes that.
So the obvious answer is to eat uninsured people.
If we just use a little cannibalism, we won't have to worry about them. This would also take pressure off our food supplies, infrastructure, traffic, pollution, and would leave a lot more room for the rest of us. Heck, if we eat old people too, the Social Security funding problem goes away.
I'm thinking barbecue sauce.
Sounds like you are the exception to the rule. I don't know anyone that pays $1200 on medical insurance a year. And what you don't seem to realize, with Obama's plan you will not only be paying for your $1200 insurance policy but you will be paying for the guy down the street with no job and bum that roams the trash near the supper market. Obama want to give out free healthcare. Any time the government used the words "free" that means more taxes out of our pockets. Thats me and you buddy.
Blue Cross family plan. Not sure if that's a typo on your part, but yes, my premiums are in the $1,200 per month range and $12+K per year.
As for paying for others, it's likely, but the big problem I have is this notion that wait times and quality of care will suddenly get worse relative to cost once/if it's signed into law.
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