Defending the Truth

The United States has the least efficient and most expensive health care in comparison to those countries in the developed world who offer universal health care coverage. Common sense dictates that we should offer universal health care coverage because it is more economically efficient than our current healthcare system. Sounds to me that Guilani is simply bought and paid for by the insurance companies.



Exactly, next thing you know, Guilani is going to tell us to privatize the US Marines or outsource them to a foreign country or privatize the police department. We wouldn't want to be like our European friends would we? Save it for birds Guili. We are not buying into your scam.

For the most part, your first prediction has already been taken care of by the Bush administration. The second largest armed force in Iraq isn't the British forces but private contractors. The total number of private contractors (including un-armed) out number the total number of US military in Iraq. It's a primary reason why this war turned into a money sink hole and a quagmire. Anyone who believes they can outsource war to the private sector is doomed to failure.

I definately agree Kat. I would never want to be a mercenary soldier. Mercenary soldiers only fight for profit and greed and not ideas. They have no spirit.

just want to add my two cents worth here.

I think it is absolutely AMAZING that a bunch of americans are able to see through the propoganda against universal healthcare.

What i think is surprising that on one hand you have diefied your nation, your military and your government.. people will go on and on about how amazing and fantastic the US is and how practical and efficient its administrative structure is, and how much better than any other nation it is.. yet every time somebody talks of making the government responsible for anything, the default position of the most die-hard patriots is always that government is incompetent and dishonest. I consider that to be a glaring self contradiction.

You will lay down your lives in a ridiculous war imposed upon you and your loved ones by your government.. you consider them competent enough to make such decisions that sends your youth to their deaths.. but you refuse to give them responsibility for anything that may actually improve your quality of life.

And yes it is ridiculous that SOME things are ok to be funded and managed by government, but healthcare isn't.. sounds like some serious lobbying in the right quarters to me.

Your current healthcare system currently means that you pay for a buttload of nurses, doctors, hospitals etc.. i=of course it ALSO means that you pay to support an entire parrallel industry called the INSURANCE industry..

Now say you took all of that money you spend to pay the salaries and provide PROFIT to insurance companies and put it into your healthcare system.. wouldn't it just be the same thing?? Yes it would.. and it would also mean that you will EXPECT MORE FROM YOUR GOVERNMENT.. and i think its about time you do.

If a presidential hopeful can stand up on stage and declare that education and healthcare isn't his responsibility ( Tom Tancredo ) , then you are really setting the bar very low.

TO me it just sounds like your political elite would prefer not to be responsible for the wellbeing of your citizens. They would like to be able to take your rights from you for your *ahem* "security" , but prefer it if you didn't expect them to take care of your most basic needs.

I wonder what multimillionaire Guiliani would say to this pinko socialist guy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=http:...?v=aMCiakXSSfc

I think you have just defined what it is to be American better than most Americans could!

The blind patriot is indeed very confusing and is what is preventing this country from greater things. How can you trust a government to conduct this war but not universal health care?

First of all, well said hkbajwa.


I don't think many Americans still trust this war to this administration. It goes beyond blaming individuals though. It is rooted deeply into our systems of congress.
The problem, once again, is lobbiests. They control the votes. Insurance Companies, Pharmacutical Companies, and even the American Medical Association's lobbiests make sure that the political 'donations', and all the perks, are large. Until we do away with lobbiests, Universal Health care, and many other laws we all know should be changed, legalizing hemp, for instance, are a pipe dream.
Like it or not, we the common people, are what our leaders are, in the eyes of the international community.

Tell Guiliani to come talk to me about the perils of socialism and welfare after he does away with socialism and welfare for corporations.

RHS is right, abuse will occur because the system is already being abused.

Currently in regards to Medicare/Medicaid there is no difference between the copay that is being paid between a visit to the Doctor's office and a visit to the Emergency Room. SO what does that mean??? Someone like me who has insurance coverage will pay a $50 copay for a doctors visit or a $20o copay for an ER visit. So if I get sick on Monday, and the doctor cannot see me until Tuesday, I can pay $200 and go to the ER of I can wait a day and pay $50 to go to my doctor. Someone on Medicare/Medicare who gets sick on a Monday but cannot get in to see their doctor until Tuesday will go to the ER, because there is no difference in the charges they will incur. As a result, our ERs are turning into nothing more than Acute Care Clinics, tell me is a sore throat at 2 AM an emergency?????

But this is the problem, the ER visit will cost anywhere from 5 - 10 times the cost of a Doctor office visit. That cost is paid by the tax payer. Everytime someone comes to the ER for a cold, or sore throat or some minor problem because the have no financial incentive not to, they are costing the taxpayer thousands of dollars in unnecessary benefits. Magnify these few people at each hospital by the thousands of hospitals, and we see the untold millions that are being wasted on treating the less fortunate.

Universal health care will not fix the problem, but only make it worse. There are already too few doctors, nurses, and other medical related specialists in this country. I live in a small island community, and even here there are not enough doctors to serve the community as a whole. Some doctors have so many patients on their roles that they are not accepting new patients. As a result, these patients without a primary care physician (PCP) are forced to use the ER as their PCP.

Medicare/Medicaid dictate to providers what they can charge for certain procedures, what procedures they can offer for specific diagnosis, and if they do not cover these costs, the costs are then passed onto the patient. Often times, the costs are ultimately covered by the providers themselves. Since it is against federal law for a provider to deny someone treatment, they have no course of action against those who do not pay for the services rendered.

People wonder why medicine in this country costs so much, simple, in order to survive doctors and hospitals must charge more to those who pay their bills so that they can remain in business. Not only do those of us who pay our bills pay more for our medicine, but then we must also see our taxes go to pay for the treatment of those who do not pay their own way.

There is a simple fix to the problem. Place a financial incentive on the recipients of free health care. Increase the copay of ER visits and force the recipients to make a financial decision like the rest of us do. We would immediately see a decrease in the cost of the program.

Tonight alone I have been at work for 6 hours and in that time, of the 10 patients that we have seen in the ER only 1 (one) has been a true emergency, the rest have been here because of colds, and sore throats. Surprise, surprise, all 9 of those patients are Medicare/Medicaid recipients. Go figure.

The current system under government control is broke, and no we want government to control it all. We would not see better healthcare for all, but rather worse. Because once government controls something that means they set the cost for the items. That would mean a decrease in salary for many in the field, and as a result, we would see a decrease in the number of people who enter the field as well as a decrease in the number in the field because there is no longer a better pay off for our services. Less providers, longer wait times, and a less healthier country.

There are several things I find amazing when it comes to healthcare. The United States alone pays 50% of all cost with medicines in the world. Perhaps that explains why all new drugs in the most recent years have been founded in the US. We pay a higher percentage of our GDP for healthcare than all other nations, perhaps that is why most new technologies and procedures are developed in this country as well.

But if those of you who want our healthcare to mimic those of the rest of the world, well, why not. But becareful for what you wish for, you may just get it.

Remember, in the end you get what you pay for......the same is true even in medicine.

dmk