health insurance

[Bill Barber]

semi retired, wife and i are 60 ish, no medicare yet, 7 grand a year for bluecross.

5 K deductable, no dental or vision, anyone know of a better plan?

am gettin killed, have never had a claim. the rates keep going up.

am self employed.

 

[Rob Allen]

Wow!



I live in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Here's a copy from the Calgary Herald. (Calgary's Also In Alberta)

-----------

Scott Hennig, For The Calgary Herald

Published: Wednesday, April 23, 2008



When the Canadian Taxpayers Federation started its campaign to have Alberta's health-care premium tax eliminated in 2003, no one knew how or when it might end. Yesterday's 2008-09 Alberta budget brought our campaign to a successful conclusion with the announcement of the full elimination of health-care premiums by Jan. 1, 2009.

------------



Right now, I pay $30 a month I think is. Last month when I had the joy of a kidney stone, I went into the emergency room. Had a CT Scan, x-rays, drugs, a bed and out patient follow ups with a urologist. $30 bucks a month, doesn't matter what you do.

 

[Gypsy me]

Mr B, I found this website, as I was looking for insurance for myself and daughter.



It lists most of the major companies, rates by state and age. Some have deductibles some do not. Check it out they also list dental insurances too. I don't know if it will be of any use to you but it doesn't hurt to take a look.

 

[Gerald Pierce]

Bill, this is a delima that faces our country and congress refuses to do anything other than token efforts, but that is a topic for a whole other thread.



I have been aware of healthcare costs as my late wife worked for BCBS, even though it does not impact me as military. I often called her when talking to young guys with wives/kids that were griping about how little they are paid and would get a quote for the cost of caring for his family after the military -- 70 pct would change their mind.



Good luck in your quest.

 

[Bill Barber]

Thx GM, will ck it out.

C, have worked in the med prof for over 40 yrs (and still do, part time)

There is so much waste in the Hospital system, it borders on bizzare.

I was taught that cost containment was top priority, that is no longer true in my local.

Granted technology is a good thing, but hospitals are in major compitition with each other to get the latest and greatest toys, most not even proven to be better than less costly things and proceedures.

I have seen a surgeon have the Hosp buy him the latest laser device (because he had to have it, 125k) he got it and used it twice) than it was sold for scrap.

have seen a new cardiac surgeon get zillions of bux of new toys, only to leave a year later, and all the neat toys get scraped.

Not knocking nurses but I know some that make 150K per yr.

We are paying big time for a system that is Broken bigtime.Only upside for the self employed is Your Health is now 100% tax deductable, but you have to pay it up front to get it back later:angry:

 

[TomT]

I can sympathize with you Bill. I'm retired from one career but still working full time mainly because of health benefits. Could afford the $1500 a month for family coverage on my retirement income. Guess I'll be working until I'm eligible for Medicare but that's several years away. I don't know how anyone can afford to retire early these days.

 

[A S]

aparently ..you guys haven't been listening to Rush Limbaugh or Bush....you are supposed to be self sufficient and don't rely on anyone but yourself...we don't need National Health Care....the guy from Canada is:blink: full of it...but hey...at least we get to keep our guns and ban gay marriage...that makes me feel alot healthier already...thats whats really important to my family....and them darn Democrats are going to raise our taxes....guess what folks....1 month's worth of the money spent in Iraq could buy us all health insurance.....get it?

 

[Bud Williams]

Denouce your citizen ship, drop your insurance and just go the Emergency room.

You'll have to work on your accent alittle bit, See Senor...:lol:

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Trakster we absolutely don't need national health care. We do need to get healthcare costs under control, but we can do that without having the government run (or pay for) healthcare.



TJR

 

[2]

Wow!



I live in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Here's a copy from the Calgary Herald. (Calgary's Also In Alberta)

Snip

Right now, I pay $30 a month I think is. Last month when I had the joy of a kidney stone, I went into the emergency room. Had a CT Scan, x-rays, drugs, a bed and out patient follow ups with a urologist. $30 bucks a month, doesn't matter what you do.

I hate to tell you, you are NOT paying $30 a month, how much of your federal and provincial tax dollars are being pored into the black hole called "free health care"? There are provinces like Nova Scotia that are putting nearly all of their provincial tax money into health care to try and sustain the system.



From an alberta gov website:



Improving the health care system

Spending on health care has doubled over the last ten years, but people still wait too long for some essential services. Health care costs are growing faster than the province’s total income. We spend close to 40% of the province’s budget on health care. That’s more than all the money Albertans pay in personal income taxes, corporate income taxes, and health care premiums combined. How do we make sure quality health services are available and affordable?



So much for $30 a month. BTW, I am an Albertan and I pay $44 a month in addition to all my taxes.

 

[Tom Schindler]

Trakster we absolutely don't need national health care. We do need to get healthcare costs under control, but we can do that without having the government run (or pay for) healthcare.

We do need a single payer system.



As long as profit is involved in insurance, the prices will always go up.





Tom

 

[Kevin Lang]

It's interesting that rates are so high when the life expectancy is so long....I'd hate to see the rates if the life expectancy went back down to 60 years



Perhaps if we stopped all these retarded "malpractice" suits, the doctors wouldn't have to pay insurance out their orifices and then rates could decrease...but even if they didn't, I would personally feel better about America, as these get-rich-quick lawsuits are despicable, and they have and will continue to drive doctors out of the medical field.



If those who insure the doctors also insure the private citizen, then the rate increase could partially be (hopefully) them covering themselves from having to pay the citizens who sue the doctors for malpractice...in case some loser that they insure decides to call those infomercial lawyers to get rich, they preemptively milk both the doctors and citizens for $ so that when the lawsuits come, after the settlement they still make a profit.

 

[TomT]

True if we could get control of lawyers and insurance companies then we could solve the problem. But with most of our politicians being lawyers and insurance companies paying them off then I'm afraid it ain't going to happen.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Caymen,



You are CORRECT. We are in AGREEMENT.



Get insurance companies out of the middle. If we simply had catastrophic health insurance, that people could purchase that kicks in at certain levels (joe six-pack might want it to kick in at $5k and above incidents, while daddy war bucks would have it kick in at $30k and above), and have most everything else paid out of pocket (rx, emergency room, well care), then I submit that the majority of people would have more money in their pockets, be more active in and scrutinizing of their care; all while the the cost of procedures, and regular care would go down.



TJR

 

[Tom Schindler]

TJR,



Many states have tried to enact a Single Payer System. Those against it calls it socialized or governemtn insurance. Something it isn't.



Too many people are too stupid to look into it with an open mind.



If anyone calls a Single Payer System socialized health care, they might as well come to grips that we already have it.





Tom

 

[Gypsy me]

Has anyone ever look over an itemized bill for a hospital stay for themselves or a family member? I did back in 79 for my son. All 36 pages of it!



Hospitals over charge for things big time! Doctor offices do the same. Price a simple bandaid. When my son had his surgery as a little kid I could not believe the charges! One band aid (not a wrap or gauze type just a simple bandaid) was 35 dollars! (this was in 79)



I am sure it would be more today!



Insurance rates might go down if they didn't have to pay out so much to hospitals and doctors, IF there were not such an abuse in charges from those facilities and doctors.

It's rediculous!



If the Gov' would get a grip on those things and stopped the excesive charges of things...All things might get alot more reasonable and companies would still make more money because more people could afford to buy and use the services such as Insurance, Hospitals, Doctors etc...



just my op.

 

[TomT]

The reason hospitals are over charging you is to recoup from the people that don't pay anything, like illegal aliens. Like it or not your paying for their healthcare with your taxes and insurance.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

GM costs and abuses are out of control because it has all become an insurance racket. You and I with insurance pay more than we should to help offset the costs associated with those without. I pay a $25 co-pay for a wellcare visit for my kids, the pediatrician then charges the insurance company about 3 times that. The total cost for a wellcare visit is about $100...somebody is paying that.



Our last visit had a 1 hour wait, though we were scheduled, and we ended up getting Rx for stuff that we could find over-the-counter equivs. My son was seen by the doc for maybe 10 minutes.



Going to a CVS wellness center would have cost $45. I justify NOT doing that because I saved $20....but did I really? CVS could have gotten us in, and out, and probably would have given us a nice coupon for the Rxs.



The same is true with dentist, eye doctors, etc. A majority of the costs, I suspect are inflated wellness care.



Yes, we pay inflated prices because others aren't paying; but we also pay inflated prices so that we keep the insurance companies in business. By having them as the middle man we seem to not even question why things cost so much, or even consider cheaper alternatives.



TJR

 

[Roger Batts]

Health insurance is a sore spot with me right now. Our company's health insurance provider informed me that even though there are other companies cover it, they don't cover bariatric surgery to help control my type II diabetes. Yes, it's an expensive procedure, and, in most cases, done for cosmetic reasons, but when you look at the overall costs of treating diabetes over the years, it's a bargain. Even the American Diabetes Association says it works in over 80% of the cases. I wasn't considering the by-pass, but the lap band, which is cheaper and less invasive. I meet all the criteria and am a prime candidate, but the I can't get the help that I am paying about 1/2 my income for--insurance and taxes that is.

 

[Tom Schindler]

Birth control is another.



Fortunatly my insurance covers it. Many otherd don't. I figure the cost of pills is MUCH cheaper than the cost of delivering a baby.





Tom