2012 Election

[CatNamedManny]

Yeah, there are some good insurance alternatives out there, but you have to be careful; one of the Christian cooperatives is being sued by a family who said they reneged on their commitment to pay for her cancer treatments. It's a risk, which is why the employer-based system is so pernicious. Health care costs are so high, you need insurance of some kind, and once you get it, you're pretty much locked into your job unless you can find one that offers benefits. So starting your own business is out, taking a job at a small startup is out, etc. It's sapping the American dream.

But that's why I'm leery of the HSA-based plans. I agree it makes you more aware of what you're paying for services, but that's because you're actually paying for them, which is fine if you can afford it. My wife and I have been paying off hospital bills for three straight years because of various pregnancies and emergency room visits. Thankfully, I have a good enough job that we can afford to do that and still own a home and feed our two children (and a third on the way). Many, many people cannot, however, and that number has increased sharply because of the recession. HSA-based plans don't do them much good when they can't afford the high deductible.

I agree that the less insurance in the marketplace, the better. Exe's story is a perfect example of why the private health care system is a disaster, but I can't agree with the blanket statement that "government will just make it worse" when the example from nearly every other industrialized nation is that government involvement makes it better. Satisfaction from both doctors and patients is higher, costs are lower and outcomes are more desirable in nations with more government involvement in their health care system. It doesn't have to be single-payer like Canada or socialized health care like Britain. But exchanges and minimum requirements with an individual mandate to prevent freeloading (all conservative ideas, by the way) is a great start. A public option would be ideal, I think, and speculation about what's coming 25 years from now aside, I do think a public option is only a matter of time; considering the economics of the marketplace, it makes too much sense not to have a large pool of patients exerting downward pressure on the market.

[executioner]

After talking with my sister I got more info on what they are in.
They are in a cooperative in which they pay a straight monthly fee of $103 no matter if they see the doctor or not. Everything is taken care of from that; this also includes half price on all prescriptions.
One thing about the program is last yr they were paying $111 but because more joined up on the cooperative their rates went down. This cooperative is ran completely by one family practice which has 6 MDs.
The only drawback is you still have to find some type of insurance for major medical(ER and hospital) which they have at a rate of $330 per month for a family of 4. Their insurance company pays 80% of all fees. So I'm looking into this because this would save me about $250 per month in fees with the insurance I had through my employer.

[Dan]

I haven't been in the US long enough to have an opinion on this subject, my wife is a MD this doesn't help.