More than 80% of Americans want overhaul of health system

[ThriftoRama]

Jim $400 out of pocket? I pad $3000 out of pocket for my one non-intensive care baby and 2 days in the hospital and I have "good" insurance.

Our insurance system is a major drag on the country. For small businesses and for individuals. How many entrepreneurs aren't starting businesses because they have to stay at their desk job for insurance???

I fear it will never change. The insurance lobby is just too big.

[moanymoany]

Actually it's switzerland that has the best european drug discovery but they are heavy collarborators with the US. Most Pharma are in the US because the talent is here. But China is catching up FAST. They are opening plants like Merck, Roche, and Pfizer because the talent can't come to the US and they don't like Europe.

Europe lags far behind for sure in Biotech. Big pharma is more Swiss based but Biotech started here. There is a difference bewteen pharma and biotech too pharma is more chemistry based research, while biotech is biologically based drug design.

I disagree with you.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Why? Give reasons why not swizterland and how biotech isn't in the US and why china isn't growing the fastest? Right now my DH manages a group of outsourced chinese workers, about 20 people on his project in pharma. And we know friends from all the companies I listed moving to china in about 2 years when the sites finish up opening. And I'm quoting from Chinese people's mouths about not liking Europe, did you not see this recent photo in Spain????

So why should the Chinese want to go to Europe? I have to admit the Chinese like the US because they can congregate. Have you seen most of CA and Vancouver? The west coast?

And traditionally pharma is small molecule drug design (chemistry - Pfizer, Roche, Merck) and biotech is biologically based (amgen, genentech, biogen).

[jIM_Ohio]

Jim $400 out of pocket? I pad $3000 out of pocket for my one non-intensive care baby and 2 days in the hospital and I have "good" insurance.

Our insurance system is a major drag on the country. For small businesses and for individuals. How many entrepreneurs aren't starting businesses because they have to stay at their desk job for insurance???

I fear it will never change. The insurance lobby is just too big.

My wife has EXCELLENT insurance and pays for it every month (I don't know what her premiums are, but she upped to higher insurance in November open enrollment because of the pregnancy).

[geojen]

I am in the 80%. I really dislike the idea of health insurance for several reasons:
1) No one should profit from someone's ill health.

2) Insurance companies have different economic priorities than all other companies. usually, to attract and keep customers, a company will try to provide the most services for the cheapest price. Insurance companies try to provide the least amount of service for the highest price. Doesn't seem right.

3) I REALLY dislike a company, any company, telling my doctor what is and isn't considered medically necessary or in my best interest.

[disneysteve]

1) No one should profit from someone's ill health.

What about doctors?

How about pharmaceutical companies? Medical supply companies? Nothing would ever get made if there were no profit in it. We wouldn't have medications, pacemakers, prosthetic joints or even Band-Aids if there were no money to be made selling those items.

[Gruntina]

I have excellent healthcare insurance, vision and dental plans. Only 60 dollars are taken out of my monthly paychecks for a family plan. Co-payments are between 5-15 dollars and often get a three month supply for a 5 dollar payment on my prescriptions.

With that being said, I have to say I am one of the 80%. It breaks my heart when I see my mom pay 10 times more than I do on prescriptions and high doctor bills. She does have diabetes and Manic Depression. Been through 4-6 strokes and 3 heart attacks and has an ICUV implant and has mountains of health debts that she will never be able to repay back all in her lifetime.

I have a friend who has to pay the full amount on migraines prescriptions which is often around 200 dollars for only 9 pills. (I pay 5 - 20 dollars on mine). She has a lower paying job.

I have good health insurance plan because I work for a global high tech company with several thousand employees and the company pays out of pocket cost additional to the insurance payments so the employees do not have to pay much. This is part of an incentive for employees as the company is looking for best talent and retaining them.

While I am happy to be working at my company and having great insurance plans, it just a bad deal for those who do not have those perks and seems so wrong as there got to be a way to achieve a plan similar that is available to others as well. It does seem like those who are well off or working for the right company fare better and making others seem not as important. It breaks my heart.

[cptacek]

I am in the 80%. I really dislike the idea of health insurance for several reasons:
1) No one should profit from someone's ill health.

2) Insurance companies have different economic priorities than all other companies. usually, to attract and keep customers, a company will try to provide the most services for the cheapest price. Insurance companies try to provide the least amount of service for the highest price. Doesn't seem right.

3) I REALLY dislike a company, any company, telling my doctor what is and isn't considered medically necessary or in my best interest.

1) No one should profit from someone's ill health, but if that person is going to get better (or more comfortable in the case of a terminal illness), there is nothing wrong with the people doing the fixing or the comforting making a profit.

2) All companies try to make money. For a lot of them, the way to do that is keep their customers happy. Others don't give a rip about the customers because their goods/services are needed and the customers will always be there. I do agree with you a bit, here, though, because if everyone had to buy their own health insurance instead of most people going through their company, the health insurance companies would have to compete for your money. As it is, you really don't have a choice when going through your company unless the company negotiates with multiple insurers. If they were competing for your business, the rates should go down like life insurance has lately.

3) If we don't have health insurance, then who will pay for the treatment we receive? If you are suggesting each person will pay for their own care, good luck with that. How many more people will be destroyed by medical bills and have to declare bankruptcy? If you are suggesting the government, good luck with that too:
The Ugly Truth About Canadian Health Care by David Gratzer, City Journal Summer 2007

[ZenQueen50]

Gotta go 100% with geojen's #3. Health insurance companies are in it for the profits, which essentially is lining their shareholders' pockets.

I buy my own health insurance (HDHP w/HSA) and Unicare(less) has me over a barrel. I've been to see my doctor for things that have come up - read, problems that were NOT previously diagnosed. But just because I had checked off that I've had a history of headaches when I filled in the insurance forms, in that same block with headaches was issues regarding back, neck, fibromyalgia, joint pain, etc. I get diagnosed with fibro a few months after my policy takes effect and they say they will not cover it. The same goes for labs. They sent me an EOB saying that the cost of labs would not be applied to my deductible because of pre-existing problems. This was routine blood work. No where on my policy did they indicate that there was a rider on labs.

If this isn't a way to get out of doing what's obligated of them, then I'm the Queen of England. Oh, and my premiums will have gone up TWICE this year, in the meantime. As stated previously, geojen hit it on the nail regarding a company who takes it upon itself to decide treatment.

Insurance companies of virtually any kind are nothing more than a racket.

[DebtFreeMe2]

You are mistaken if you think the USA creates all the new drugs! I think you will find that drug companies are multinationals and that many new drugs are created in the UK and in France amongst other places. France has an exemplary reputation in the field of healthcare and medical discoveries. It was the French who isolated the HIV virus and shared the knowledge with - as they thought - their partners in the search - the USA - who promply said THEY had made the discovery! Antibiotics were a British invention, as was DNA. We here in Europe have made - and continue to make - our share of medical discoveries.

The French have the best healthcare system in the world. Here in the UK we are way behind them, but still ahead of the USA. The WHO rates the French number 1, the UK number 18 and the USA number 27th. They take into account many factors including the access of the people to healthcare.

In the UK, if you have to stay in hospital when pregnant - PAID, a baby born early with need for considerable medical care - PAID. I have connections with the USA and the healthcare we get here is every bit as good as in the USA.

My mother spent her last 2 weeks in hospital with pneumonia. The care she received was fantastic - specialist nursing care for the dying - PAID.

We here in Europe believe in caring for each other. There is not one European country that does not have an excellent healthcare system. Americans have consistently said no to any kind of national health care system. I have seen the idea described as 'Communistic' we call it 'love thy neighbour'.

I think you may need to re-read my previous post, I never said the US created ALL NEW DRUGS, I said we end up paying for most of their creation.

Let’s take a little look shall we? According to a MedAdNews report that just came out for their September issue of the top 20 pharmaceutical companies 12 are US based. Also of all the research money spent 55 percent comes from these US based companies. Along with that according to swivel dot com a data and research company people in the US pay nearly 69% more for their drugs then the rest of the world.

Just for good measure, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry shows that in 2007 of the top 100 prescription medications worldwide 54% came from where?? France, No. Maybe any country in Europe, no, oh how about from all of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, nope wrong again. Oh ya that other place the United States Of America.

As to the question of socializing our medical system, all I can say is no thanks. There is no doubt that we need to change some things, like cutting down on paperwork, and protecting doctors better from frivolous law suits, but letting the government control my health care is not an option. The government has enough problems building a simple fence; I can't imagine what they would do about getting people emergency medical care.

Hope this finds everyone well medicated and happy!

DebtFreeMe2

[Coleroo]

I don't like how reliant people nowadays are on WORK place health insurance. I know many women who work JUST for the benefits. Back when I worked in management, we had superb health care insurance at an excellent price (for employee plus one it was $62 biweekly with a $250 a year deductible). My husband's work provides free insurance for the employee (with a $2,500 yearly deductable) but to add a person on costs about $95 per week and even higher for "family" (WITH a $2,500 deductible per person!!!).

When I was 2 months pregnant, my company moved out of state and I was laid off. We learned of the layoff about 8 weeks before we closed. And wouldn't you know it ...my pregnancy "happened" at the same time as the announcement of the layoff. Being pregnant and LOSING HEALTH INSURANCE wasn't something that I enjoyed.

And mentioning itemization...my dad once found a tylenol (that he had received during a hospitalization for a heart attack) itemized for $90.

A $90 tylenol???

Geez.

I know nothing about free socialized health care of other countries, but I do know that it would be nice to have some sort of "affordable" health care in the US. I'd like to be able to pay for my care out of pocket, without being reliant on insurance OR the government.

Anywho....

[cptacek]

I don't like how reliant people nowadays are on WORK place health insurance.

I know nothing about free socialized health care of other countries, but I do know that it would be nice to have some sort of "affordable" health care in the US. I'd like to be able to pay for my care out of pocket, without being reliant on insurance OR the government.

Anywho....

I agree with you Coleroo. Work place health insurance has stifled competition because people who have health insurance at work don't shop around.

[disneysteve]

I know nothing about free socialized health care of other countries, but I do know that it would be nice to have some sort of "affordable" health care in the US.

I don't believe there is such a thing as "free socialized health care" anywhere in the world. Look at the tax rates in the countries with socialized care and you'll see that it most certainly isn't free. Not saying that's good or bad, just pointing out that there definitely is a cost to the plan.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Yes, but many people in the US, work solely for medical. They barely earn enough to bring home but I work with many women who don't have to work because their husbands bring home lots of bacon. Problem? Well they usually are self-employed and own their own business. So they need to "self-insure".

Sounds cheap right? Wrong. Especially if you had a preexisting condition like diabetes or something. It's impossible to get insurance. So quite a few work so they can cover their families though according to every calculation out there, they basically are working for medical insurance and not much else.

And another one has a disabled child. Well tough, without work provided insurance they'd be screwed. She can't stand the thought that if she's ever laid off they'd be buying Cobra and she'd be looking for another job though her husband makes very good money independently.

Uninsurable is how some of them describe it.

I wonder how fair it is that we all cling to our jobs because we fear being uninsured for even 1 day could come back to haunt us? If we have a "lapse" in coverage that could be construed as the time when our "preexisiting" conditions occur.

[Coleroo]

She can't stand the thought that if she's ever laid off they'd be buying Cobra

Uninsurable is how some of them describe it..

What's bad is that various literature and people make Cobra sound so "good".

When I was laid off, the quote for my Cobra (employee plus one) was $1,150 per month.

Who were they kidding?? There was NO way we could afford that.