I comment as a retired family physician (U of Iowa Col of Medicine 1960s, then practiced in my Iowa home town). The ACA is incredibly important, but essentially Medicare for All is absolutely necessary. The US non system has developed into money extraction, not care for people in need. Health care must by deemed a right. So many people claim to be happy with their insurance--until they need it--and fear losing it. They are thus unnecessarily hesitant. Universal care systems are always criticized for essentially trivialities, such as waiting periods for some elective procedures. No waiting period is longer than not getting it because you can't afford it, or when an insurance company denies it. The biggest problem with universal systems is the example of Britain, where beginning with Thatcher, the Conservative politicians continuously underfunded it. We need Medicare for All with protection against right wing politicians, but those politicians, their billionaire masters, and the Murdoch type propagandists stand in the way. It is those malignant players who have conviced voters that govenment must only function to protect the wealthy, not serve the people.
Thanks, Scott. Such a powerful statement from someone of your background. If you ever want to publish a guest column on the issue I would love to share it. And again, you always provide thoughtful comments so thank you.
Happy Birthday Bob. Wishing you a happy and yes, a healthy year ahead. Health care has been a major issue for as long as I can remember and it was my chosen vocation. Personally I was fortunate to have good BCBS coverage for the most part. Several major “ secondary surgeries “ were denied coverage while in reality they were saving the insurance company money for another hospitalisation that would have been covered- let alone me from that. My surgeons even fought for it but alas insurance won out. The affordable care act has helped many but there are still many major hurdles. I’m glad there are people willing to continue the battle. I for one can not go without my health insurance and will begrudgingly pay the extra $68 a month to maintain it. Thank you for your commitment to bring important issues to the forefront.
Great story about the power of smart government (Affordable Care Act). While Dems dropped the ball on the political work around the law, the effectiveness of the law is solid. It's an incredible foundation to build on. Republicans continue to not only refuse to build on it, they have been intentionally trying to tear it down since Senator Grassley's 2009 lie about death panels for grandma. I rarely disagree with Deep Midwest but I do so here "While no one condones the murder of Thompson, how can we condone the corporate strategy of denying claims that lead to the pain, suffering, and deaths of tens of thousands?" In fact there has been a very troubling condoning of the assassination. I heard it at lunch with a neighbor last week. People are beyond frustrated and angry. And the solution is more smart government not less. Republicans are to blame for this mess by acts of commission. Their votes and policies undermine public health in general and the health of Americans specifically. But Democrats are guilty of acts of omission in the political arena. If people even hint that they "understand" the frustrations of the man who assassinated the insurance executive, and trust me they are, then that energy needs to be channeled politically to use government to create an environment that invests in and empowers Americans to live their fullest, most productive lives. We need to ramp up the rhetoric about we the people using smart government to build the things everyday Americans need built in order to thrive. This event by Progress Iowa is a good start. But when people empathize with an assassin, then it's clear there's room to amplify the rhetoric and channel it into productive action. Republicans are counting on Democrats not to do it. Democrats need to proudly unleash the power of democracy to boldly and proudly claim the political high ground of investing in Americans (people) first and always and forcing businesses (corporations) to comply or get the hell out of the way. The reaction to the murder of former Iowan and health insurance executive Young seems to be a clear indication that the American public would welcome Democrats swinging some political 2x4s at Republicans to create more accountable and affordability when Republicans are invested in doing just the opposite.
Thank you for opening conversation about this topic today, Bob. You say things in a way all of us can hear and understand. Money and power get in the way of so many good things for the lives of people, and fixing it seems beyond my comprehension. Learning more and talking/listening to representatives like Austin Baeth, will be a good start.
I think your parents would be (and are) so proud of you.
Is today your birthday? Happy happy day! May it be relaxing and peaceful. Eat cake! 😊
Just yesterday, visiting with younger, much younger, friends of mine, who have health insurance and because of the insistance of her husband Mary went to the local hospital and they treated her and had her stay overnight to monitor her, since the problem was life threatening. The bill came and she waited for the insurance company to take care of the lions share of the expense. The bill came again, this time it was stil 15,000! Her health insurer was contacted after they sent a letter to her saying they had denied the bill because according to them, they felt the problem wasn't life threatening! Now I would have to say that is practicing medicine without a license! Mary went back to the hospital to gather the evidence that she in fact was following the advice of her doctor, and sent this to the insurance company, they still denied the claim! Mary isn't one to give up easily and has connections in the community so she contacted the hospital administrator directly who interceded with the insurance company and it worked! The next bill she got was for $1,500 and she willingly paid it! Now that is for someone who persisted and has connections, but we all know the usual way for Iowan's to handle this is the same as your parents did, lose all the ground they gained over a lifetime, going bankrupt, just to fill the pockets of that "nice guy", who doesn't turn down his bonus every year for doing exactly what we know is killing people! One of the tools in the tool box for the criminal justice folks is charging people as accessories to a crime. You don't testify against the person you know committed an act that was illegal, and he gets convicted, you will be charged as an accessory to that crime and go to jail as well. Nice guy or not, they don't care! But this is "White Collar Crime" and different than "other people" crime. Other people don't find themselves in the "Club Med" of prisons usually, unless of course you became rich stealing from wealthy people,like Bernie Maddoff! Let's level the playing field, and let's have "equal" justice under "fair" laws! It will improve the jails and eliminate the need for vigilante justice!
I comment as a retired family physician (U of Iowa Col of Medicine 1960s, then practiced in my Iowa home town). The ACA is incredibly important, but essentially Medicare for All is absolutely necessary. The US non system has developed into money extraction, not care for people in need. Health care must by deemed a right. So many people claim to be happy with their insurance--until they need it--and fear losing it. They are thus unnecessarily hesitant. Universal care systems are always criticized for essentially trivialities, such as waiting periods for some elective procedures. No waiting period is longer than not getting it because you can't afford it, or when an insurance company denies it. The biggest problem with universal systems is the example of Britain, where beginning with Thatcher, the Conservative politicians continuously underfunded it. We need Medicare for All with protection against right wing politicians, but those politicians, their billionaire masters, and the Murdoch type propagandists stand in the way. It is those malignant players who have conviced voters that govenment must only function to protect the wealthy, not serve the people.
Thanks, Scott. Such a powerful statement from someone of your background. If you ever want to publish a guest column on the issue I would love to share it. And again, you always provide thoughtful comments so thank you.
Sound of hair being pulled out
Happy Birthday Bob. Wishing you a happy and yes, a healthy year ahead. Health care has been a major issue for as long as I can remember and it was my chosen vocation. Personally I was fortunate to have good BCBS coverage for the most part. Several major “ secondary surgeries “ were denied coverage while in reality they were saving the insurance company money for another hospitalisation that would have been covered- let alone me from that. My surgeons even fought for it but alas insurance won out. The affordable care act has helped many but there are still many major hurdles. I’m glad there are people willing to continue the battle. I for one can not go without my health insurance and will begrudgingly pay the extra $68 a month to maintain it. Thank you for your commitment to bring important issues to the forefront.
I'm afraid people are soon going to feel the very real consequences of voting against their self interests.
Spot on, Bob. Well put.
Great story about the power of smart government (Affordable Care Act). While Dems dropped the ball on the political work around the law, the effectiveness of the law is solid. It's an incredible foundation to build on. Republicans continue to not only refuse to build on it, they have been intentionally trying to tear it down since Senator Grassley's 2009 lie about death panels for grandma. I rarely disagree with Deep Midwest but I do so here "While no one condones the murder of Thompson, how can we condone the corporate strategy of denying claims that lead to the pain, suffering, and deaths of tens of thousands?" In fact there has been a very troubling condoning of the assassination. I heard it at lunch with a neighbor last week. People are beyond frustrated and angry. And the solution is more smart government not less. Republicans are to blame for this mess by acts of commission. Their votes and policies undermine public health in general and the health of Americans specifically. But Democrats are guilty of acts of omission in the political arena. If people even hint that they "understand" the frustrations of the man who assassinated the insurance executive, and trust me they are, then that energy needs to be channeled politically to use government to create an environment that invests in and empowers Americans to live their fullest, most productive lives. We need to ramp up the rhetoric about we the people using smart government to build the things everyday Americans need built in order to thrive. This event by Progress Iowa is a good start. But when people empathize with an assassin, then it's clear there's room to amplify the rhetoric and channel it into productive action. Republicans are counting on Democrats not to do it. Democrats need to proudly unleash the power of democracy to boldly and proudly claim the political high ground of investing in Americans (people) first and always and forcing businesses (corporations) to comply or get the hell out of the way. The reaction to the murder of former Iowan and health insurance executive Young seems to be a clear indication that the American public would welcome Democrats swinging some political 2x4s at Republicans to create more accountable and affordability when Republicans are invested in doing just the opposite.
Agreed.
Thank you for opening conversation about this topic today, Bob. You say things in a way all of us can hear and understand. Money and power get in the way of so many good things for the lives of people, and fixing it seems beyond my comprehension. Learning more and talking/listening to representatives like Austin Baeth, will be a good start.
I think your parents would be (and are) so proud of you.
Is today your birthday? Happy happy day! May it be relaxing and peaceful. Eat cake! 😊
Thanks! Yes, it's my birthday!
Just yesterday, visiting with younger, much younger, friends of mine, who have health insurance and because of the insistance of her husband Mary went to the local hospital and they treated her and had her stay overnight to monitor her, since the problem was life threatening. The bill came and she waited for the insurance company to take care of the lions share of the expense. The bill came again, this time it was stil 15,000! Her health insurer was contacted after they sent a letter to her saying they had denied the bill because according to them, they felt the problem wasn't life threatening! Now I would have to say that is practicing medicine without a license! Mary went back to the hospital to gather the evidence that she in fact was following the advice of her doctor, and sent this to the insurance company, they still denied the claim! Mary isn't one to give up easily and has connections in the community so she contacted the hospital administrator directly who interceded with the insurance company and it worked! The next bill she got was for $1,500 and she willingly paid it! Now that is for someone who persisted and has connections, but we all know the usual way for Iowan's to handle this is the same as your parents did, lose all the ground they gained over a lifetime, going bankrupt, just to fill the pockets of that "nice guy", who doesn't turn down his bonus every year for doing exactly what we know is killing people! One of the tools in the tool box for the criminal justice folks is charging people as accessories to a crime. You don't testify against the person you know committed an act that was illegal, and he gets convicted, you will be charged as an accessory to that crime and go to jail as well. Nice guy or not, they don't care! But this is "White Collar Crime" and different than "other people" crime. Other people don't find themselves in the "Club Med" of prisons usually, unless of course you became rich stealing from wealthy people,like Bernie Maddoff! Let's level the playing field, and let's have "equal" justice under "fair" laws! It will improve the jails and eliminate the need for vigilante justice!
Such an important story to share. Good for Mary. Thanks for sharing.
As always - thank you for sharing this Bob. We have so many issues to address these days.
Word is going around that today is your birthday - wishing for you a day filled with joy!
Thanks Tony. Yes, it's my birthday!