Paying for health insurance

Single payer (think Medicare) can work as it mostly eliminates greedy costly insurance companies and it controls costs as now you have a large group that can dictate what the greedy medical industry will be paid.

And providers will line up like they do for Medicare.

The present system is broken.

We are retiring at the age of 56, so we have a long time to purchase health care.

westernrvparkowner wrote:
Why would anyone assume a single payer system would be cheaper or better? All that would happen is the costs would be born by Taxpayers. All those employer paid plans, which cover 80+ percent of the population would go away and taxes would rise significantly to cover the costs of shifting medical coverage to the government. Your choices would go away and you would get whatever the government decided you should have. Sure, some of us older than the average working person, yet not old enough for Medicare might surf the change and make out fine. But for the bulk of the population it wouldn't be a net advantage, more like taking the money out of the left pocket to pay instead of the right.
Fact is, insuring people in their 50s and 60s, a large number of whom need to buy their own insurance because they are not working (often due to medical reasons) is very expensive. The only way those costs go down is to cut the care they currently receive or drastically change the medical system, neither of which is actually being discussed. Anyone who thinks there is a simple, or even a complex, solution that doesn't hurt as many people as it helps is living in a dreamworld.

You are wrong sir. Look up the facts. The US spends far more per capita on health care than any other industrialized country and has worse results. People going bankrupt because they get sick. That is immoral. The same for people afraid to take children to medical care because they can't afford it. Single payer universal coverage is proven to lower costs and provide better care for all the nation's population. I don't know any insurance company execs that have cured a single patient.

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WOW, I thought the amount I pay for the wife and I was high. Guess the $525 a month and deductible of 1200 each a year is cheap. That is without any reimbursement from ACA. But the only reason I am paying this much is because the wife is only 54 y.o even though we both have Medicare. If she was at retirement age I could get both of us insurance cheaper yet to cover the part B gap. But I am still covered by the employer insurance coverage after retiring so that helps a lot. Sorry to hear about all the increased costs. Mine did double after ACA went into affect though. I should add that the wife is covered by Medicare because of disability. That is why she qualifies at her age.

wildtoad wrote:
Hey foreigner.... that would a MONTH. Deductibles are what WE pay on a claim before insurance pays a dime. In my case I have a $3,800 deductible. Yes we get the discounted “insurance rate” for the procedure or drugs but we have to pay it first. So in addition to my $13,000 in premiums I have to pay $3,800 then insurance starts to pay.

Thanks for the clarification. Always interesting to see how other cultures and countries do things. I imagine all systems have pros and cons. Thanks again.

Happy trails.

^^^^This^^^^^

well said WRVPO

Mike

Why would anyone assume a single payer system would be cheaper or better? All that would happen is the costs would be born by Taxpayers. All those employer paid plans, which cover 80+ percent of the population would go away and taxes would rise significantly to cover the costs of shifting medical coverage to the government. Your choices would go away and you would get whatever the government decided you should have. Sure, some of us older than the average working person, yet not old enough for Medicare might surf the change and make out fine. But for the bulk of the population it wouldn't be a net advantage, more like taking the money out of the left pocket to pay instead of the right.
Fact is, insuring people in their 50s and 60s, a large number of whom need to buy their own insurance because they are not working (often due to medical reasons) is very expensive. The only way those costs go down is to cut the care they currently receive or drastically change the medical system, neither of which is actually being discussed. Anyone who thinks there is a simple, or even a complex, solution that doesn't hurt as many people as it helps is living in a dreamworld.

Hey foreigner.... that would a MONTH. Deductibles are what WE pay on a claim before insurance pays a dime. In my case I have a $3,800 deductible. Yes we get the discounted “insurance rate” for the procedure or drugs but we have to pay it first. So in addition to my $13,000 in premiums I have to pay $3,800 then insurance starts to pay.

64 and paying $1,098 a month for me. No taxpayer subsidy. Wife on Medicare. Same plan next year is $1,300. Changing plans.