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In Reply to: RE: Medicare is... posted by Victor Khomenko on February 12, 2021 at 12:00:55
'For true "public health systems"'
you appear to be defining what constitutes a public health care system based on it's delivery mechanism of services which removes it from the proper context; basically redefining the terminology involved
'Medicare' is a publicly funded [via the FICA tax] publicly administered [via Gov't] program with services provided via private contractor participation in said public program subject to Gov't oversight ... this meets all criteria for being a 'public health care system' ... it just doesn't cover all of 'the public'
best regards,
Follow Ups:
Private providers is what gives us the exceptional medical care that we get.There is no other driving mechanism for excellence. Remove it, and you will get second, then third, then forth rate service.
Give our doctors Russian salaries, and see who is left there to treat you.
Once again - fortunately, Medicare covers only a portion of our health care. No good private system would be able to survive on its rates.
And BTW - I am currently being shafted by Medicare to the tune of $7K, and dealing with them is like nothing you have seen. If you think dealing with a private insurance can be hard... think again.
Edits: 02/12/21 02/12/21
I'm sorry to hear that you're having problems with the system
on the other hand, there's at least a system to have problems with
the 'least' part of that is, of course, a problem in itself
of course since Medicare is an 'opt in' program, if someone can afford private medical coverage they're not required to sign on ... conversely, if one could afford to pay cash they wouldn't need either one
'exceptional medical' care being tethered to private practice hasn't really been studied / examined very thoroughly since it's not widely available, usually only to those who can afford that cash option
what has been studied and examined very closely is socialized medicine and those results point to a much higher comparative degree of efficacy in populations / societies where it's available
I don't think pure reward factors drive people into medical fields, so competition in this area doesn't give us 'pacers' vs. 'racers' as far as practicing their craft ... maybe in the more specialized area of plastic surgery, but overall ... ? I'm not sure ... those I know didn't get into it for the $$ though ... of course they expect as much compensation for their efforts possible, but like anything else that's a component of life style choices [where they practice: small town vs. city etc.] and work environment
well, I certainly didn't mean to write a short story responding but hey, this health coverage stuff is really complex
thanks for expanding on your other post I can see where you're coming from and the element of frustration you're dealing with ... it's unfortunate that health insurance matters have become so conflated with the care itself
with regards,
A few weeks ago we received - out of blue - a letter, from the Treasury Department, that we owe them $7K in Medicare bills.Long story short - back in 2016 I was hit by another car. I had a couple of visits to my family doc, and maybe 10 visits to a chiropractor. That's it. All were charged under the car insurance PIP portion.
The letter, however, stated, that all the visits on the list were related to that car accident.
There were 26 pages of charges, from 2016 to 2019, none of which was related to the accident - just some routine visits and some surgeries.
My wife spent a lot of time on the phone, and all she managed to get was: write us a letter. So we did.
We received a form reply that we will be given a response in 60 days.
In the meantime, in about 3 weeks, they told us, they will start withholding up to 15% of my SS benefits.
There is no one to talk, to discuss... just one huge impersonal machine.
And if you think this is all about $7K - you are wrong... because there is absolutely no telling that this accumulation of debt stopped in 2019.
For all we know it might still be counting... perhaps forever. We were not able to get ANY answer to this question.
Prior to my getting on Medicare I spent about 36 years on private insurances... and there was never anything even close to this.
Edits: 02/12/21
I sent a pair of speakers from Detroit to neighborhood of Toronto (Canada), so over the river.The charge was $250 for a pair. Each speaker was 50lbs. After a week I was notified that the speakers are being returned to the sender. The confusion was the reason for return. At first they quoted lack of custom form then they reversed to "natural disaster" (covid). One of the speakers arrived on the porch .The other one was lost. After the inquiry they located the second one and delivered it. I was promptly charged $1200 for "overweight package" A nice customer support lady told me that the charge is for 150 Lbs and it is only the first of the two since they have to charge the same amount (another $1200) for a return shipping. There was no arguing since the "internal investigation" revealed that the package was scanned 4 times along the way and each time it confirmed 150 Lbs.
I had to report my credit card missing to avoid the extorsion and my relationship with fedex ended. I still "owe" them that money.
a timeline and you can appeal any decision. What's the problem?
There was no such a word anywhere in their correspondence.
But I get it... the government bureaucrats can do no wrong.
There was not even a word of apology.
Exactly how much do you think your care would have cost you w/out Medicare, overall, since you've both been Medicare eligible. Under "Vic-Care," it would be privatized, completely, right? No contributions "paying it forward." If you think Americans would pay for expected services in advance, willingly, you haven't followed Obamacare very well.
damn ... let me chew on this a bit and revert, I've got a few ideas rattling around to explore first
best regards,
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