Simple Problems or Simple Minds
My husband had a total knee replacement today. Like so many of the people in this country the surgery was done by good doctors in a clean hospital and he was cared for by at least a dozen well trained people. We have insurance which we pay for ourselves. It costs us a lot, but health insurance is certainly more valuable to us than anything else we could buy with that money. So my point is?
I have a dear friend who lives not five miles from the hospital and she told me to come over to her house after Tom was out of surgery and in recovery. The minute the doctor told me all was well and Tom would be in a room when he finally came around I became the most useless person in the hospital, so I told Susan I would be there seeking tea and sympathy. I got both. But, since the subject was health care and both of us will be turning 65 this year, it also included a discussion of medicare.
Both of us had horror stories of hospital bills that were padded with extra charges that no one was supposed to challenge because, "...the insurance (or Medicare) will take care of it." My Mother is still disputing a charge made for blood transfusion she never got and the hospital keeps insisting Mom shouldn't worry about it because Medicare paid for it. They seem oblivious to the fact that all of us are paying for that non-existent blood donation--Mom included; and that what they are doing is no different than theft. The worst part of this story is that when the dispute finally got to the government Mom was told that it would be cheaper for Medicare to pay the claim than fight the fight. Don't tell me that hospitals don't know that and pad accordingly!
No part of this systemized looting of the tax payer if going to be made better by expanding government health care. Score one for the Tea Party. But wait....
Our conversation also drifted into searching for the appropriate Medicare supplement. All of us are college educated, well read and motivated to research and select the best option. With all of our intellectual efforts in play we were still confused, perplexed and genuinely boomfoozled. If our heads were spinning, what about the host of people out there who simply don't have the mental resources to make a good choice in the open market. They will be--in health insurance, as in all things--victims of clever and self-serving marketing. Score one for Big Brother. But wait...
My point is this: Both the left and the right continue to debate health care in this country while trying to ignore any facts that hurt their side. Here are a few facts that hurt everybody. 1. By definition all entitlement programs will continue to grow with the population. 2. Because entitlements have infinite growth but finite resources they will always outrun their supply lines. 3. When your wants are greater than your resources you have to make choices. 4. Every choice, again by definition, leaves an unfulfilled option behind. None of these choices are easy and they will not be accomplished by people who want to make political hay more than finding a solution, nor will they be accepted by people who just want their way with no consequences.
Simply answers only work for two things simple problems or simple minds. Which one do you have?
I have a dear friend who lives not five miles from the hospital and she told me to come over to her house after Tom was out of surgery and in recovery. The minute the doctor told me all was well and Tom would be in a room when he finally came around I became the most useless person in the hospital, so I told Susan I would be there seeking tea and sympathy. I got both. But, since the subject was health care and both of us will be turning 65 this year, it also included a discussion of medicare.
Both of us had horror stories of hospital bills that were padded with extra charges that no one was supposed to challenge because, "...the insurance (or Medicare) will take care of it." My Mother is still disputing a charge made for blood transfusion she never got and the hospital keeps insisting Mom shouldn't worry about it because Medicare paid for it. They seem oblivious to the fact that all of us are paying for that non-existent blood donation--Mom included; and that what they are doing is no different than theft. The worst part of this story is that when the dispute finally got to the government Mom was told that it would be cheaper for Medicare to pay the claim than fight the fight. Don't tell me that hospitals don't know that and pad accordingly!
No part of this systemized looting of the tax payer if going to be made better by expanding government health care. Score one for the Tea Party. But wait....
Our conversation also drifted into searching for the appropriate Medicare supplement. All of us are college educated, well read and motivated to research and select the best option. With all of our intellectual efforts in play we were still confused, perplexed and genuinely boomfoozled. If our heads were spinning, what about the host of people out there who simply don't have the mental resources to make a good choice in the open market. They will be--in health insurance, as in all things--victims of clever and self-serving marketing. Score one for Big Brother. But wait...
My point is this: Both the left and the right continue to debate health care in this country while trying to ignore any facts that hurt their side. Here are a few facts that hurt everybody. 1. By definition all entitlement programs will continue to grow with the population. 2. Because entitlements have infinite growth but finite resources they will always outrun their supply lines. 3. When your wants are greater than your resources you have to make choices. 4. Every choice, again by definition, leaves an unfulfilled option behind. None of these choices are easy and they will not be accomplished by people who want to make political hay more than finding a solution, nor will they be accepted by people who just want their way with no consequences.
Simply answers only work for two things simple problems or simple minds. Which one do you have?
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