Sorry, I know it's been awhile since I have posted anything new. I have to admit that I have been a little depressed about politics and have felt like I was banging my head against the proverbial wall, so I needed to take a little break. I am now re-energized and I am so concerned for the future of our country. We are clearly headed in the wrong direction as a nation and to my shock and awe, the latest Rasmussen poll shows that the country is starting to agree with my assessment. Check it out: http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/right_direction_or_wrong_track
I have finally put my finger on why the proposed healthcare reforms have been so troublesome to me, (besides being an obviously HUGE step toward socialism) we are looking at the number of uninsured Americans as the problem, when in reality they are a symptom of the real problem which the sky rocketing costs of healthcare in this country.
I did some preliminary research this morning about why healthcare in this country is so expensive. Some of the reasons were not surprising. The first reason is something that I have known about for a long time, the high costs of liability insurance that doctors, hospitals and healthcare networks pass on to their patients.
The second reason I found was also not a shock, Americans are not living healthy, active lifestyles and as a result we are developing debilitating, expensive chronic conditions.
The third reason has been swept under the rug a little better. The system of how doctors in hospitals are paid needs to be overhauled. A doctor makes more money based on a patient's length of stay and procedures completed. This gives doctors the incentive to keep you in the hospital longer while you rack up a bigger bill.
One of the other issues will be compounded greatly by covering the uninsured. When people have coverage, they tend to seek more medical attention and demand more costly tests and procedures.
Another widely known issue is the cost of prescription medications. We definitely need to pressure the pharmaceutical companies in America to lower their costs. Other countries have the same medications for much lower prices. Why? Pharmaceutical companies know that Americans will pay the extra money. We need to demand better prices!
The last issue I discovered was the ineffective processes and paperwork currently bogging down the healthcare industry. I am sure that there are better ways to handle medical records and billing that could be implemented in a relatively short time-frame, that is of course unless the government gets too involved. Have you ever thought of the US Government as being a model of efficiency? I just picture miles and miles of red tape.
What was new information to me was that the lack of Tort Reform in this country cost us more because doctors now openly admit to practicing "defensive medicine" which means they order unnecessary tests and do unnecessary procedures so that patients will be less likely to litigate if there are problems down the road. The overuse and misuse of medical supplies, tests, labs and procedures add up to a staggering $500 Billion a year. Our health costs are going up because we are being treated TOO MUCH! There seems to be less concern by patients in this country who have insurance to be concerned with the costs of treatments, tests and procedures because the Insurance Company is footing the bill. Adding millions of additional patients to the insurance rolls, public or private without addressing the issues of increasing costs will only make this problem worse. Think about it, if you have not had health insurance, won't you immediately go to the doctor, who will probably be paranoid because you haven't had a physical in years, so a bunch of tests will be ran to protect the doctor legally? Ca-ching! We are in for a bigger nightmare than I think any of us could have imagined.
The Obama Administration and the Democratically run Congress know that time is ticking before 2010, when it is likely that the Democrats will lose the super-majority and the votes necessary to pass their reform measures. That's why Pres. Obama is on TV everyday sounding his warning cry that we have to have to act now, even though the bill that the Democrats are pushing has been analyzed by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to basically be a failure and the CBO estimates will increase the Federal Deficit by $239 Billion.
I do not want our healthcare system to move in the direction of Canada. I read a very interesting article about the realities of the Canadian system this morning written by David Gratzer, a former Canadian medical student who quit medical school after being a witness to the rationing and waiting lists that exist in Canada. Have you heard that Canada is trying to go more "free market" with their health care? It was news to me! You might want to read Mr. Gratzer's article. http://www.city-journal.org/html/17_3_canadian_healthcare.html
I don't want to see millions of Americans without access to healthcare; no one does. But, we need to make rational, logical decisions and not rush to passing legislation that has the potential to bankrupt our country and cripple our current medical system. We are truly putting the cart before the horse on this issue. We need to solve the actual problems before enrolling more people in a system that is limping along.
A great article I found while researching was published in the AARP magazine. It is a definite must read! Knowledge is power! http://www.aarpmagazine.org/health/health_care_costs.html
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