Originally posted by: Gonad the Barbarian
Originally posted by: chucky2
Originally posted by: Gonad the Barbarian
Your two problems or worse still exist if no action is taken. 2 isn't happening either way, lawsuit reform has been shown time again not to make any substantial difference, and your lost wages in 1 will be worse with health care costs increasing as they are. Reform can be far from perfect and still be a massive improvement over the mess we have now.
BS 2 can't happen. If the Fed. is going to nationalize HC, then they can nationalize Dr. and RN programs or provide heavy subsidies...even have their own schools. If the current institutions are output limited, which I doubt, but still, even if they are, then more programs will need to open up.
And as far as 1, I have employer based HC, so no, it won't be worse. What will be worse is UHC passes based on increased taxing, my employer drops HC, I get no or meaningless raise, and my taxes skyrocket to pay for HC now, and increased cost as costs go up: See 2.
That's worse. What's not worse is keeping my employer based HC and having small increases.
Chuck
2 is certainly not happening on its own. We're no worse off if current reform doesn't address it, but it would of course be an improvement if it did.
I am not even sure how you can say this. We currently have a shortage of HC professionals in the country, one of the many reasons our current HC system costs $$$. A UHC type bill is going to either mandate or allow everyone access to the same amount - no greater - of HC professionals we have now. So, same supply, double the demand. What is going to happen to price and quality? Why would you ever expect price to go down in this situation and quality to - at minimum - stay the same?
1 will be worse without reform as your wages are curtailed to cover ever increasing insurance costs or your employer drops your coverage altogether. Insurance costs are outpacing wage increases by a large amount. Taking that trend to its extreme absurd end you'll end up paying your employer to work to keep your insurance. Getting insurance from your employer doesn't make you immune from the very problems that are in large part prompting reform. At the very least you're one layoff away from being without it.
Yes, but for a large amount of people in the US right now, we do have employer paid HC. So when that goes away, where does all that money go to that the employer way paying? The current employees get large raises? Somehow I don't think these companies are going to do that. Hire more people? Possibly to some degree...but only to the degree they feel needed. Or, pocket the $$$. That seems much more likely.
I understand what you're saying...I'm saying I really don't trust companies to be freed from paying for HC and magically just give their employees all that money they've been paying. So what's the advantage to me if the employers don't pay for HC again?
Chuck