But who is behind the goofy turtle mask?
(whispers) Single Payer
Here’s some positive vibrations for 'ya:
“A bipartisan group of governors issued a joint statement Tuesday urging the Senate to “immediately reject efforts” to repeal the Affordable Care Act and instead have both parties come together and focus on fixing America’s unstable insurance markets.”
“Congress should work to make health insurance more affordable by controlling costs and stabilizing the market, and we are pleased to see a growing number of senators stand up for this approach. The Senate should immediately reject efforts to ‘repeal’ the current system and replace sometime later. This could leave millions of Americans without coverage. The best next step is for both parties to come together and do what we can all agree on: fix our unstable insurance markets. Going forward, it is critically important that governors are brought to the table to provide input, and we stand ready to work with lawmakers in an open, bipartisan way to provide better insurance for all Americans.”
Signed:
John Kasich of Ohio (R); Steve Bullock of Montana (D); Larry Hogan of Maryland (R); John Bel Edwards of Louisiana (D); Bill Walker of Alaska (I); John Hickenlooper of Colorado (D); Charles Baker of Massachusetts (R); Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania (D); Phil Scott of Vermont (R); Terry McAuliffe of Virginia (D); and Brian Sandoval of Nevada (R).
https://www.axios.com/11-gop-and-dem-governors-issue-joint-statement-on-health-care-2461530218.html
Note: Batteries not included
11 people with no say in the national legislative process issue a statement to pretend they have some kind of involvement in the subject.
She looks like a pod person trying to imitate a human smiling.
It’s an “iota” of positive. I’ll take it.
Or it being affordable for most people or that the state has any role whatsoever in paying for it or that we raise taxes (on the people who CAN afford to pay more taxes) to do so. But mostly, they just disliked that a black guy took their idea and ran with it.
It’s goofy turtle masks all the way down?
What is telling is when efforts are made to organize this in red states they often find themselves getting arrested.
You have a choice in getting car insurance. You can go without it – but then you don’t get to have a car.
So yes, I agree they should have a choice, but it should come with not having any health care whatsoever, which is what they should get if they refuse to buy insurance. Doctors and hospitals should turn them away. That way, their utter stupidity in not having insurance would make it a lot cheaper for the rest of us (who are willing to get yearly checkups, find hidden health problems, and not wait to go to the emergency room when a simple problem becomes a major illness).
Of course this could be easily remedied by having single payer universal health care. But alas these numbskulls don’t like that either because reasons.
I have a hard time agreeing with that. Say one of these idiots has a kid that gets sick? Do you turn them away from the ER?
Sorry, I should have indicated that I was being sarcastic. My bad.
Of course we should have health care for all. I view it as a human right. It is only our stupid for-profitgreed health system that makes such absurd things as going to the emergency room for a cold possible. As long as we have this system, I’m willing to let people get health care any way they can. But it’s so damned inefficient and expensive. I get angry at the idiots who make it impossible to give everyone health insurance because of this “I don’t wanna have no gummint telling me what to do” reluctance to elect representatives who will actually do something about it – like have a single payer system that would take care of every kid that gets sick, not just the rich ones.
You need a massive effort to get people into the streets right now.
I have to admit I don’t understand how the US healthcare system works but what does happen if you turn up without health insurance?
Presumably you have to pay from your own funds and if you can’t pay, you will be turned away?
It seems to me that is the only logically consistent way of running a system where individuals are responsible for making their own healthcare provision.
If you can pay, you get treatment. If you can’t, you can only get treated if the medicos are prepared to do it as an act of charity.
I don’t see how one can have a system that says one has to pay for one’s own healthcare but doesn’t have to make provision to be able to fund any healthcare one may need, voluntarily take advantage of that by not buying insurance (i.e. “they don’t want to be required by law to purchase health insurance” indicates they could buy but choose not to) and still insist on any kind of treatment.
There’s a term for people like that - it’s parasite.
If one doesn’t want a system where people (including oneself) are turned away because they can’t afford treatment, the only alternative is one where people get at least some basic standard of treatment regardless of whether they can afford it.
That has to be funded somehow.
You can either fund it through insurance or taxes. Either way, those able to pay will end up funding those who can’t/won’t. That is what being part of a society involves.
If you want some healthcare for all, everyone who can has to pay in. Otherwise it is just horribly inefficient and pointlessly expensive for everyone.
what does happen if you turn up without health insurance?
Typically, you are given excellent care. You are discharged as soon as possible, or possibly moved, but generally you are treated well. US healthcare is expensive, but it’s also generally good.
Presumably you have to pay from your own funds
Yes, you will get a big bill. Lots of these are either written off or sent to collections. Lots of people declare bankruptcy to escape medical bills.
you can only get treated if the medicos are prepared to do it as an act of charity.
Speaking of charity, there are a few very, very good hospitals funded entirely by charity. My family makes an annual donation to https://www.stjude.org/. If people are looking for a charity to support, I would recommend checking out organizations like St. Jude’s. For all of our faults, giving to charity is something Americans excel at.
If one doesn’t want a system where people (including oneself) are turned away because they can’t afford treatment,
So, I think some of the Obamacare opponents are poor, but I don’t think most are. They can pay for their own care and they don’t want to pay for anybody else’s care. Mostly though, they are opposed to being forced to pay. Frankly, I think a universal system would be less idealogically repugnant to them than the current system because even though they are still paying, the bill would be hidden (like defense and other big federal programs).
If you want some healthcare for all
I want that and you want that and I think the majority of Americans want that. But it’s certainly not unanimous. Remember that Obamacare was actually passed and now that the Republicans have control of everything, they’ve been unable to kill it. That says a lot to me.
If you turn up at the emergency room, you will not be turned away. You’ll be asked about insurance, but you aren’t required to pay before being treated; they’ll treat you, but you’ll be sent a very large bill after the fact. Nobody is rejected from emergency care for money reasons. But because most people’s bills are paid by insurance, hospitals massively mark up everything involved in your care; if you’re uninsured, a trip to the ER can run tens of thousands of dollars for something as simple as a broken leg.
I’ve always been put off and insulted by the way it works when friends or I end up at the ER. You’ll get a cursory examination, but before you’re treated, a hospital employee with a computer on a little wheelie cart will come over and get your insurance information before any treatment is given. Thankfully, my visits to the ER have never been because of life-threatening injuries, but it’s always stuck me as avaricious for people dedicated to your health and well being to be so focused on examining your wallet before they examine you.
My wife had to have a couple of operations on her ankle last year and our doctor told us who to pay and who to ignore. We paid the anesthesiology company because they send bills to collection, but we ignored the radiology and surgery center bills because they just write unpaid bills off.
Even for the anesthesiology company, we only paid half of what they were trying to collect because our doctor told us what to say and who to say it to.If everybody were paid what they initially claimed the cost would be, more than $100,000 would have been collected. At the end of everything, our insurance company paid around $8000 and we paid something like $400.
It’s crazy that paying for healthcare is starting to resemble the negotiation you would have at a used car lot.
