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• Monday, March 31, 2008 04:50 PM

  Health Care

  Thanks for the responses Fester, Sugarman, Sue & Maddie (and anyone else who posts subsequently).

  It's a complex and tricky business. I have a herniated disc that took over a year and visits to 4 different doctors to diagnose. Why? Because the affected nerve caused both back and abdominal pain. So the first 3 doctors sent me for cheap (but quite unpleasant) abdominal tests. The 4th doctor (a female, btw, who actually believed I had pain, but I digress) was the only one willing to fight the insurance company in order to get me the more expensive MRI. There are certainly more horrible stories than mine, but I'm well aware that the system is broken.

  Fester

  The US may still have the coolest toys and most innovative techniques, but we're falling behind on basic quality of life measurements for the population as a whole.

  Except if those toys and techniques save your life, you might not be so eager to give them up. I sometimes wonder if those countries with socialized medicine rely on the fact that the US does not so if there is really a need for that "innovative stuff", we can always go to the US for it. Just my natural skepticism at work.

  Sugarman

  it would probably be a floor-level health care system, better than we have now, but not boutique health care with very expensive tests, transplants and such

  Same as above. So, does that mean if you need a transplant you just die? Or, if additional coverage can be purchased, then only the poor who need a transplant dies? I realize that might not be much different than the current system, but it still makes reform tricky.

  Other considerations would be coverage for preventive care so high blood pressure could be treated more cheaply than the inevitable stroke, and some reasonable co-pay so that hang-nails could be treated with a 99 cent nail clipper rather than a trip to the doctor, etc.

  Tort reform is also a tricky balance. Somewhere between getting zillions for spilling hot coffee in your lap, and getting $100 for having the wrong limb amputated. Some way to crack down on and/or expose serial malpracticers might help too.

  Lastly, I really don't understand how Obama's plan could work. Assuming private insurance, not single payer, if the risk pool doesn't include young, healthy people, who can opt out, how do we keep costs from going through the roof?

  Ah well, to be continued I guess. Thanks again y'all.

  —RealityCounts Read RealityCounts's other letters
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