Medical insurance changes on the way
The Department of Health and Human Services has developed a website to educate the public on the new medical insurance bill going through congress now. Pundits on the left and right have been discussing this bill for the last two months but no one has taken the time to actually write down what to expect from the changes to our health insurance. Regardless of where you stand on the issue changes must be made because medical costs are rising faster than we are able to pay for them. While most Americans do not appear to want a government run health care system, we do pay significantly more per patient than Britain, Canada or Switzerland. We expect that the latest and greatest drugs and procedures will be used when older, well established procedures work just as well. Those alternate procedures tend to cost a fraction of the latest and greatest, dramatically ballooning our medical costs without seeing the same increase in life expectancy or positive results from procedures. Doctors need to have specific rules to follow so we get the type of care we all expect at a price we can afford. This will is going to be changed as it makes it’s way through the house and senate and we need to add our requirements in as well. To start this, we all need to read what will change and what will be removed from healthcare. That means we all need to read this and then call your congressman and senators so they know what we want. (Source: JFActivist)
We have seen or read about the town hall meetings on healthcare and the yelling matches they have turned into. While it is easy to see why everyone is upset at the possible changes that will be made to our medical system, working to get things fixed is a better place to put your energy. We all want medical care that is affordable, safe and effective. Some stores like Walmart have made deals with the drug companies to reduce the cost of their medications and we should have the government do the same. The drug companies need to make money so they can research new drugs, but the spiraling costs are going to make it impossible for an of us to afford them. The disabled are in the worst possible situation because most are on SSDI and cannot afford the more expensive drugs with the already existing plan. Add that to the doughnut hole and we have a need to do dramatic changes so that everyone has access to the drugs and services they need.
Not changing anything is guaranteeing that thousands of people will die because they cannot afford their medication after hitting the doughnut hole. The new plan has worked out a deal for the drug companies to charge 50% of the cost while in the doughnut hole. That is a good place to start, but more work needs to be done. When you need to spend two thousand of your own dollars before you can get out of the hole and into catastrophic care something needs to be done. Most in SSDI cannot afford thousands of dollars let alone hundreds. The doughnut hole needs to be removed so that those that run out of benefits under medicare automatically move into catastrophic care without a giant outlay of money. People on heart medication only take it six months out of the year because they run out of benefits and don’t have the money to pay for it themselves. That is something worthy of being fixed and should be agreeable to everyone. No one should have to die before changes are made so that those that need medical care can get it at a price they can afford. Having world class care that we all can afford is a worthy endeavor we can all work toward.
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