When Health Insurance Isn't Health Insurance (Cont'd.)

This is why any Senator who leaves the "reform" of the system in the hands of the interests who caused the problem should be subjected to involuntary organ donation. After that, though, just how do we undertake media malpractice reform?

Has Kent Conrad or Ben Nelson seen this? I doubt it. Not surprised CNN has not covered this: perhaps a word to Dr Gupta and Dr Cohen??? They actually have a health segment but I have never seen a serious and prolonged debate on health care in their segment.

KT: If you keep running with this kind story you're going to wind up being center-left. Come over to the Dark Side. We have cookies.

I'd like to ask Kent Conrad, Ben Nelson et al. if they are willing to give up their publicly funded health insurance. And instead of quaking in their boots, and bleating about compromise and bipartisanship, I'd like the Dem leadership to tell those who are threatening to filibuster a reform that is supported by a large majority of the American people, to bring it on.

KT - be ye havin' any numbers regardin' signatures t' Sanders' petition fer' single-pay? Tha' seems t' be existin' in th' blogosphere only...no mention a' all in th' scurvy TeeVee MSM.
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I be thankin' ye, lass!
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Arrgh!

We be havin' cookies??? Whar be they, lad - I were never offered even a crumb! Be they only fer enticin' fair weather leftie-leaners who be then abandonin' ship when th' waves start a-poundin' ('r, in th' case o' th' congress, when th' money starts a-rainin' down)?
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Not speakin' o' KT partic'lar...just musin' 'bout wha' type o' crew we be buildin'...
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Arrgh!

Karen,

This is one way it happens and really egregious, another way is what happened to us:

In 2003 my husband was diagnosed with cancer. He underwent an expensive surgery ($80,000) and returned to work. Six months later his employer (of 10 years) laid him off. Coincidence? There is great pressure on employers to keep health insurance costs down. One way to do that is to make sure you don't employ people who need insurance.

I was a stay at home Mom, so we went on Cobra, paying $800 per month until our savings ran out. Then we went on Minnesota Care for 3 months. We qualified only because we made almost nothing. I found work, but we were afraid to put my husband on the work plan, because if he had a claim they might lay me off, but eventually we had to do it. I talked to my very understanding employer and she agreed to put him on our plan. That was in 2004. Because we went on three different plans during that time we ended up with over $10,000 in out-of-pocket expenses as we moved from one plan to another.

In 2007 his cancer reoccurred. He had another operation. This one was more expensive because he came down with a MRSA staph infection which required even more hospital time.

The insurance premiums at my job doubled. We now pay over $600 per month, with my employer also paying $600. We pay $1500 out-of-pocket and $3500 deductible. My husband's latest CAT scan cost us $1200 and he will need another in 3-4 months because it looks like there is re-growth of his cancer and we have to decide on whether to start Chemo. I don't even want to think about how much that medication is going to cost us.

At this point I make $55,0000 gross per year. We are a family of four. I pay $7200 per year for insurance, plus the additional cost for CAT scans and medicine which varies, but is often our "out of pocket" plus our deductible, which adds an additional $5000. This means our health care costs are about 22% of my gross wages.

It's almost impossible to make ends meet with these kinds of costs. I have had no raises in 3 years because my employer keeps having to pay more and more just to insure me and I feel like that money is acting as my "pay raise." The Obama plan that so many have derided was the first pay increase I've had in that time and the extra $80 is greatly appreciated by our family.

If I were to lose my job or insurance what would we do? This situation is intolerable in a wealthy country like ours. If there is no public option and I lose my health insurance or the small business I work for goes under what insurance plan would we be able to afford and who would insure us? I know that if we do not let our insurance lapse they can't turn us down, but our reserves are gone, and keeping up on insurance premiums without an employer's help would be almost impossible now.

Thanks for your repeated posting on this Karen. (And thanks to you and Jay for getting me back online here)

Great job, KT.
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Crossposted from KT's previous thread, some thoughts from a friend:
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Three points about “health care reform”:
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First, no one is talking about how many Americans are ALREADY on Federal health care, with the government as payer. These would include ALL US military and their families, ALL retired US military and their families, ALL federal employees and their families, active and retired whether Executive, Legislative, or Judicial branches, ALL Medicare and Medicaid recipients, ALL Federal prisoners.
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Toss in ALL state and local government employees, and it's a heck of a large number. NO ONE IS TOTALLING THIS CROWD!
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If you put the UNINSURED on ONE side, and the GOVERNMENTALLY INSURED on the other, who's left? Let's see the numbers!
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Second, the President has already endorsed the Federal Direct Student Loan Program, originated and operated by civil servants in the Department of Education. This is because it's simpler, cheaper, and probably fairer. The parallels with single payer health insurance are PALPABLE, but NO ONE is talking about them. Why not?
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Third, and very important, SENATORS AND CONGRESSMEN receive VERY GENEROUS health care benefits, and are not taxed for them, and they're paid for BY THE GOVERNMENT, and WHO ARE THEY to deny similar benefits to others? Are they THAT MUCH BETTER THAN WE ARE??
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It is important to keep mentioning all three points, especially the last, because we need to open the OVERTON WINDOW to a wider public discussion! Check it out! Get with it!!

It's time to rub the legislators' noses in this. I'm going to sit down tonight, when I will have the time, and send emails and/or letters to my senators, my congressman, Baucus, Nelson, Conrad, and some others whose names I expect to dawn on me between now and then. If the US has "the best health care system in the world," God help the world.
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Those trillion-dollar price tags are scaring everyone, but I'm more scared of finding myself or someone I love bankrupted by medical bills. That's unlikely in my case, as I'm a still-working federal employee old enough to have Medicare as well as the feds' Blue Cross program, but my son may never be able to get insurance to cover his broken leg if his COBRA policy runs out and he can't get full coverage through his next employer.
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The solution (there is one, isn't there?) seems to be to wring the fat out of medical procedures and charges. McAllen, Texas, ought to be a rallying cry for anyone who wants a health care plan that's both comprehensive and affordable. Ordinary American labor unions are frequently excoriated for featherbedding. How about the AMA? Every time someone suggests doing away with unnecessary tests and procedures, the cry of "rationing" goes up. I don't see anything wrong with rationing procedures that do no good. I'd ration them down to zero.
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It sure looks as if our politicians would rather water down the plan than do what needs doing. Maybe it's time for demonstrations in the street. If it can get Iran a new government (and maybe it can), it might get us a real health care system, one that takes care of the patients' well-being instead of the providers' pocketbooks.

KT, I hope you don't mind, but this here post of yours will be cross posted on my "clippings" blog at 11:59 this morning, with a thread focsuing on health care.
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Just trying to get the widest possible audience for this stuff. And it was great for Begala to point out that some people in the media are doing there job (as perceived by the Constitution that is).

pirate wench: The cookie jar in this household is always full. Cookies are handed out freely to all those who crossover (you're there already and entitled to cookies whenever you want). It's the big brick house on top of the hill. You can't miss it. It's the one with all the flowers and windchimes hanging in the trees. Beware, there be REAL libruls here.

I be approachin' despair regardin' health care reform. It be in th' bag fer corporate health, mateys, an' nothin' th' majority o' Americans want be considered on th' horizon.
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We be headin' straight fer th' rocks, an instead o' steerin' th' ship clear, th' crew (an' th' cap'n, I be suspectin'), be guzzlin' th' rum rations an' feedin' th' rest o' us watered-down bilge slop - an' tellin' us t' drink up 'r shut up!
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If only we still be capable o' mutiny, mates, we mi' have a chance, bu' all th' spunk o' th' crew were expended bringin' th' new cap'n aboard an' all tha' be remainin' now be impotent rage typed onto a bloody screen.
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We lost th' will t' take t' th' streets, we lost th' will t' send th' thieves packin' a' th' end o' their enlistment, we lost th' power t' tell 'r hear th' truth, we lost th' will t' do much o' anythin' besides bend over an' take it. We lost pret' much any chance o' a hand on th' tiller t' th' scabrous rum-runnin' corporate privateers!
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I'd be sick abou' it, bu' then me coverage'd only be canceled.
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YARR!

Bobell -
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I were writin' all me representatives - Democratic representatives, th' thole lot - las' week, an' th' only response I were receivin' were a request fer' more money. Tha' be such a bloody acc'rate shot o' th' situation - th' money be callin' th' shots!
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YARR!

KT, I really should remember that you are as passionate about this issue as anyone. Thanks for all you do.

[...] not familiar with it,”Swampland” is the Time Magazine blog site. This morning, a reader had this to say on the topic of health care reform: Three points about “health care reform”:First, no one is talking about how many Americans are [...]

wvng: no elected official should live any better than our meanest citizen.

wvng - just copied ye to me myspace page t' combat th' lies an' distortions a wingnut family member been bombardin' us wi' - thanks, me hearty!
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Arrgh!

Swampcritters:
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Here is a better handle on the uninsured. The 47 million number is old and dates back to late 2006:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/03/04/uninsured.epidemic.obama/

Keep in mind, like here in Washington state, many people are being purged from state subsidized health care plans to save costs. According to this, our uninsured jumped 21%:
http://www.khq.com/global/story.asp?s=10496729

When can we expect to see Time magazine promote the millions of horror stories from victims of socialized medicine in countries with socialized medicine? Answer: Never.

Someone put up a petition t' rescind health insurance for members o' congress until they figure out a way t' extend their privilege t' th' rest o' us (I be lackin th' skills t' do it) - I'll be signin' an' passin' it on!
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O' course, th' corporate interests will pick 'em up t' keep 'em in their pockets...bu' if they be still capable o' bein' shamed, we got t' start shamin' 'em!
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If th' protestors in Iran can be makin effective use o' technology t' be breakin' their plight out o' th' net an' b'fore th' world, we ought t' be capable o' doin' th' same t' make our own gov't pay attention!
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YARR!

53_3: Thanks for that link. And of course many who are "insured" are not actually insured. Kind of like how the jobless numbers exclude a large number of people who can't find a job.

Seems as though there are players throughout the government. The Philadelphia Inquirer had an editorial on Sunday pointing out a finding from this study from the Center for Public Integrity. It seems that drug manufacturers not only treat doctors to trips and expensive meals, they treat the Pentagon as well.
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"The health-care industry paid for 40% of all free trips taken by Pentagon officials in the past decade. ... All told, drug companies and medical device firms spent about $10 million on more than 8,700 trips for Defense Dept doctors, med researchers, pharmacists, and others. ... Pentagon's budget for prescrip medicals tripled from FY 2000 to 2006, to $6.2 billion ... accounting for 2% of all drug sales nationally."
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Trips to such spots as San Diego, Las Vegas, Honolulu, and Venice, Italy were included in trips funded by outside companies as well as pharma including Sony, Nike, and toy-maker Matel.
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http://www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/48667132.html
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http://www.publicintegrity.org/news/entry/1435/

Wha' be th' contributions o' th' industry t' specific members o' Congress, BTW?
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It be seemin' t' me tha' whenever one o' 'em turns up t' spout th' latest in fear-mongerin' there ought t' be full disclosure regardin' where their fundin' be comin from.
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Th' Boner fer instance...how much o' 'is money be comin' fr'm th' interests 'e be shillin' fer? An' th' rest o' 'em? It'd be addin' more'n a grain o' salt t' their message. I be thinkin'.
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Notice how we haven't heard much o' a peep from Daschle followin' th' disclosure regardin' 'is own interests?
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YARR!