Re: Re: Fw: Arc Action Alert Call Today on Health Care Reform

[Guest guest]

Some months ago, I read an interesting article.  I will find the link if I

can.  It was written by a Democrat and called for total a

restructuring/rethinking of the way we approach health insurance and health care

in this country.  He puts forth that the fundamental problem with the system

is that we are not using our health insurance like insurance and that this

misuse is what is driving up its cost.

Insurance was designed to protect against catastrophic (or at least very

damaging), unpredictable events.  For instance, we buy auto insurance to

protect against the event of a serious collission.  We buy homeowners

insurance in a case we are robbed or the victim of a fire or hurricane.  We

do not use our auto insurance to pay for an oil change or new brakes.  We do

not use our homeowner's insurance to paint our house or service the furnace. 

If we used our insurance to pay all these routine, predictable expenses, the

premiums would certainly rise because the insurance companies would know for

certain that every policy holder would have claims every six months.  Moreover,

the insurance companies would either have to accept the policy holder's claim

that s/he had gottent the best estimate or hire a whole lot of new adjustors to

double check every claim for routine maintainance.

His went on to say that everyone should have catastrophic health insurance and

that the government should subsidize that for those who could not afford it. 

Otherwise, individuals should pay out of pocket for all routine medical care but

the government should use income tax breaks, sliding/subsidized fee scales and

other means to make sure that people with low incomes could afford routine

care.   If people were responsible for paying for their own routine care, even

if the money to do so was given them by the government, they would have real

consumer choice and power and the health care system would have to compete for

their buisness.  This, in turn, would force providers of medical services to be

much more transparent in their pricing which would give consumers even more

leverage.

It's worth thinking about.

For the record, my support of this arguement is personal and does not necesarily

reflect the views of L'Arche as an entity.

Thanks

andra Conroy

Executive Director and Community Leader

L'Arche Chicago 1049 S Austin Blvd Chicago IL

60644                     

Office:312-226-1273 Home: 773-287-8249

 

 

" The secret to l'Arche is relationship: meeting people...heart to heart " .  Jean

Vanier

Visit us on the 2nd Thursday of each month!

________________________________

From: ELLEN BRONFELD <egskb@...>

IPADDUnite

Sent: Sat, March 20, 2010 6:14:08 PM

Subject: Re: Re: Fw: Arc Action Alert Call Today on Health Care

Reform

 

Anyone care to respond to ? He paints a pretty bleak picture... an

apocalyptic diatribe on the dangers of governmental control of health care...

Is this realistic?

Ellen

Ellen Garber Bronfeld

egskbsbcglobal (DOT) net

Arc Action Alert Call Today on Health Care Reform

>

> The Arc of Illinois

>

> March 17, 2010

>

> Leaders in The Arc:

>

> We have been waiting for this opportunity forever.

>

> Call your U.S. House members today!

>

> Information below.

>

> Tony auski

>

> The Arc of Illinois

>

> 815-464-1832

>

> Call Your Representative NOW

> Take Action!

>

> Let's Get Health Care Reform Across the Finish Line!

>

>

>

> It is finally here! After decades of waiting and over a year of

> negotiating, the vote to pass final health reform is now upon us.

>

> The House of Representatives will vote to pass the Senate health reform

> bill at the end of this week. If that vote fails, health reform is dead

for

> this year and likely for years to come. We cannot let that happen.

>

> We are too close to finally passing real reform and too much is at stake

> for people with disabilities. Click here to see the provisions that are

most

> important to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

>

> Even though the House and the Senate have both passed their versions of

> health care reform, the only way forward for the bill is for the House

to

> vote on the Senate version of the bill.

>

> Some representative in the House are debating on whether to vote for or

> against the bill. Even if they voted for the House bill in the past,

many are

> still weighing their options.

>

> Your voice matters now more than ever. Call TOLL FREE 1-888-876-6242

> Click on the " Take Action " link to check how your representative voted

in

> November. If he/she voted for the bill, say thank you and ask for the

same

> vote this week. If he/she did not vote for the bill, explain how much

> health care reform matters to you and why. Sample talking points are

provided.

>

>

>

> Please click here to be removed from our list. If you still receive

emails

> from us in the future, please ensure it was not forwarded from another

> party or sent to an email address that is different than the one asked

to be

> removed. DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL. Or write us at:

> The Arc of Illinois

> 20901 S. LaGrange Rd. #209

> fort, IL 60423

>

>

[Guest guest]

Some months ago, I read an interesting article.  I will find the link if I

can.  It was written by a Democrat and called for total a

restructuring/rethinking of the way we approach health insurance and health care

in this country.  He puts forth that the fundamental problem with the system

is that we are not using our health insurance like insurance and that this

misuse is what is driving up its cost.

Insurance was designed to protect against catastrophic (or at least very

damaging), unpredictable events.  For instance, we buy auto insurance to

protect against the event of a serious collission.  We buy homeowners

insurance in a case we are robbed or the victim of a fire or hurricane.  We

do not use our auto insurance to pay for an oil change or new brakes.  We do

not use our homeowner's insurance to paint our house or service the furnace. 

If we used our insurance to pay all these routine, predictable expenses, the

premiums would certainly rise because the insurance companies would know for

certain that every policy holder would have claims every six months.  Moreover,

the insurance companies would either have to accept the policy holder's claim

that s/he had gottent the best estimate or hire a whole lot of new adjustors to

double check every claim for routine maintainance.

His went on to say that everyone should have catastrophic health insurance and

that the government should subsidize that for those who could not afford it. 

Otherwise, individuals should pay out of pocket for all routine medical care but

the government should use income tax breaks, sliding/subsidized fee scales and

other means to make sure that people with low incomes could afford routine

care.   If people were responsible for paying for their own routine care, even

if the money to do so was given them by the government, they would have real

consumer choice and power and the health care system would have to compete for

their buisness.  This, in turn, would force providers of medical services to be

much more transparent in their pricing which would give consumers even more

leverage.

It's worth thinking about.

For the record, my support of this arguement is personal and does not necesarily

reflect the views of L'Arche as an entity.

Thanks

andra Conroy

Executive Director and Community Leader

L'Arche Chicago 1049 S Austin Blvd Chicago IL

60644                     

Office:312-226-1273 Home: 773-287-8249

 

 

" The secret to l'Arche is relationship: meeting people...heart to heart " .  Jean

Vanier

Visit us on the 2nd Thursday of each month!

________________________________

From: ELLEN BRONFELD <egskb@...>

IPADDUnite

Sent: Sat, March 20, 2010 6:14:08 PM

Subject: Re: Re: Fw: Arc Action Alert Call Today on Health Care

Reform

 

Anyone care to respond to ? He paints a pretty bleak picture... an

apocalyptic diatribe on the dangers of governmental control of health care...

Is this realistic?

Ellen

Ellen Garber Bronfeld

egskbsbcglobal (DOT) net

Arc Action Alert Call Today on Health Care Reform

>

> The Arc of Illinois

>

> March 17, 2010

>

> Leaders in The Arc:

>

> We have been waiting for this opportunity forever.

>

> Call your U.S. House members today!

>

> Information below.

>

> Tony auski

>

> The Arc of Illinois

>

> 815-464-1832

>

> Call Your Representative NOW

> Take Action!

>

> Let's Get Health Care Reform Across the Finish Line!

>

>

>

> It is finally here! After decades of waiting and over a year of

> negotiating, the vote to pass final health reform is now upon us.

>

> The House of Representatives will vote to pass the Senate health reform

> bill at the end of this week. If that vote fails, health reform is dead

for

> this year and likely for years to come. We cannot let that happen.

>

> We are too close to finally passing real reform and too much is at stake

> for people with disabilities. Click here to see the provisions that are

most

> important to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

>

> Even though the House and the Senate have both passed their versions of

> health care reform, the only way forward for the bill is for the House

to

> vote on the Senate version of the bill.

>

> Some representative in the House are debating on whether to vote for or

> against the bill. Even if they voted for the House bill in the past,

many are

> still weighing their options.

>

> Your voice matters now more than ever. Call TOLL FREE 1-888-876-6242

> Click on the " Take Action " link to check how your representative voted

in

> November. If he/she voted for the bill, say thank you and ask for the

same

> vote this week. If he/she did not vote for the bill, explain how much

> health care reform matters to you and why. Sample talking points are

provided.

>

>

>

> Please click here to be removed from our list. If you still receive

emails

> from us in the future, please ensure it was not forwarded from another

> party or sent to an email address that is different than the one asked

to be

> removed. DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL. Or write us at:

> The Arc of Illinois

> 20901 S. LaGrange Rd. #209

> fort, IL 60423

>

>

[Guest guest]

I think it is naive to assume that insurance companies are not rationing care

now; they just do it quietly and under the table.  It goes on every day.  As

far as the gigantic cost of health care reform for this country, at the end of

the day I would rather see my hard earned dollars going toward health care than

paying for wars all over the world under the guise of national security and

protecting the country from weapons of mass destruction. 

From: Gloria Kern <prentice75@...>

Subject: Re: Fw: Arc Action Alert Call Today on Health Care Reform

IPADDUnite

Date: Monday, March 22, 2010, 2:41 AM

 

Hi, I've been lurking in the background for a while as so much is going on in my

little world that it's hard to sit down and put thoughts on paper. I agree

wholeheartedly with . This bill is a first step in a very slippery slope. It

adds a large group of people to Medicaid, which is already administrated poorly.

At least in my part of the world doctors that will accept Medicaid are few and

far between, and they are not usually the best doctors, and they don't know the

PERSON they are dealing with, the history, etc. I continue to pay a hefty sum to

keep my daughter on my insurance because we have had such bad experiences trying

to use Medicaid. I am retired and on my company plan. I believe that ultimately

they will drop retiree insurance because of this bill, saying that we can get

insurance elsewhere. I have 3 preexisting conditions and my daughter has too

many to even count. This was a major consideration throughout my career - the

benefits

package. Now I foresee it being sucked away. I am an accountant and certainly

not qualified to make decisions on medical practices, but I foresee that will be

the case in the not to far future - administrative staff reviewing and making

decisions. Not enough funding for everyone means there will be allocations. Give

a new liver to a 70 year old " drain on the system " or a productive 35 year old

who can put funds in? Spend limited funds to provide services to make the life

better for a person with disabilities or fund an operation to return a

" productive " employee to the system? Why do I assume limited funds? How much can

we tax our children and grandchildren before there is a revolution of the have

nots vs the haves? We have a system that needs to be upgraded indeed, but this

plan will destroy the greatest medical system in the world (or at least one of

them). I would start by putting some regulation on the ridiculous litigation

rewards, level the

playing field on prescriptions where other countries pay far less than we do

for the drugs developed in this country. (not sure how this works so I don't

know how to do it, but I know there is a way). Why do so many world leaders and

the wealthiest come to America for major medical? Because they don't want to

wait in line for the services with the rest of their societies, and we have the

best. I'd love to see a poll of how many Canadians cross the border for medical

services.

Cutting Medicare at a time when the ranks of seniors is increasing due to the

" boomers " ? How about hiring people to catch the fraud? I know my mom is happy

with Medicare, but she never sees the bills for her stays in hospitals or

nursing homes. When I have tried to get them it has been such a runaround and

finger pointing that I've given up wasting my time, but I guarantee that if we

could see the bills there would be fraud and we would see charges for services

she didn't receive. Yet we've never had anyone ask us to review anything or

verify services. Why can't she bring her meds to the nursing home for them to

provide at appropriate times rather than having Medicare pay ridiculous amounts

per pill for 90 days?

Forcing people to buy insurance? Sorry that sounds wrong. If they don't have

insurance, then they assume responsibility for their bills (there's that nasty

word RESPONSIBILITY) . Hospitals are required to do charity work and I know

personally that many of them would work with people if people asked for the help

instead of ignoring the bills. As a young person working my way through college

I went without insurance, paid for my doctor visits and drugs. I knew I was

taking a risk, but I was young and healthy. That was my right. Now our kids

can't find good paying jobs and often get no benefits and we are going to fine

them for deciding that they can take a risk?

I've probably said more than I should, getting paranoid about " big brother " and

voicing opinions on computers!!!

Gloria

[Guest guest]

I think it is naive to assume that insurance companies are not rationing care

now; they just do it quietly and under the table.  It goes on every day.  As

far as the gigantic cost of health care reform for this country, at the end of

the day I would rather see my hard earned dollars going toward health care than

paying for wars all over the world under the guise of national security and

protecting the country from weapons of mass destruction. 

From: Gloria Kern <prentice75@...>

Subject: Re: Fw: Arc Action Alert Call Today on Health Care Reform

IPADDUnite

Date: Monday, March 22, 2010, 2:41 AM

 

Hi, I've been lurking in the background for a while as so much is going on in my

little world that it's hard to sit down and put thoughts on paper. I agree

wholeheartedly with . This bill is a first step in a very slippery slope. It

adds a large group of people to Medicaid, which is already administrated poorly.

At least in my part of the world doctors that will accept Medicaid are few and

far between, and they are not usually the best doctors, and they don't know the

PERSON they are dealing with, the history, etc. I continue to pay a hefty sum to

keep my daughter on my insurance because we have had such bad experiences trying

to use Medicaid. I am retired and on my company plan. I believe that ultimately

they will drop retiree insurance because of this bill, saying that we can get

insurance elsewhere. I have 3 preexisting conditions and my daughter has too

many to even count. This was a major consideration throughout my career - the

benefits

package. Now I foresee it being sucked away. I am an accountant and certainly

not qualified to make decisions on medical practices, but I foresee that will be

the case in the not to far future - administrative staff reviewing and making

decisions. Not enough funding for everyone means there will be allocations. Give

a new liver to a 70 year old " drain on the system " or a productive 35 year old

who can put funds in? Spend limited funds to provide services to make the life

better for a person with disabilities or fund an operation to return a

" productive " employee to the system? Why do I assume limited funds? How much can

we tax our children and grandchildren before there is a revolution of the have

nots vs the haves? We have a system that needs to be upgraded indeed, but this

plan will destroy the greatest medical system in the world (or at least one of

them). I would start by putting some regulation on the ridiculous litigation

rewards, level the

playing field on prescriptions where other countries pay far less than we do

for the drugs developed in this country. (not sure how this works so I don't

know how to do it, but I know there is a way). Why do so many world leaders and

the wealthiest come to America for major medical? Because they don't want to

wait in line for the services with the rest of their societies, and we have the

best. I'd love to see a poll of how many Canadians cross the border for medical

services.

Cutting Medicare at a time when the ranks of seniors is increasing due to the

" boomers " ? How about hiring people to catch the fraud? I know my mom is happy

with Medicare, but she never sees the bills for her stays in hospitals or

nursing homes. When I have tried to get them it has been such a runaround and

finger pointing that I've given up wasting my time, but I guarantee that if we

could see the bills there would be fraud and we would see charges for services

she didn't receive. Yet we've never had anyone ask us to review anything or

verify services. Why can't she bring her meds to the nursing home for them to

provide at appropriate times rather than having Medicare pay ridiculous amounts

per pill for 90 days?

Forcing people to buy insurance? Sorry that sounds wrong. If they don't have

insurance, then they assume responsibility for their bills (there's that nasty

word RESPONSIBILITY) . Hospitals are required to do charity work and I know

personally that many of them would work with people if people asked for the help

instead of ignoring the bills. As a young person working my way through college

I went without insurance, paid for my doctor visits and drugs. I knew I was

taking a risk, but I was young and healthy. That was my right. Now our kids

can't find good paying jobs and often get no benefits and we are going to fine

them for deciding that they can take a risk?

I've probably said more than I should, getting paranoid about " big brother " and

voicing opinions on computers!!!

Gloria