House passes health care bill on 219-212 vote

[PiKA2001]

Kevin I don't see how this is going to work for us without a public option. How about Stopping hospitals charging $40 for an aspirin or $300 for an xray of my wrist or me having to pay $30 out of pocket with my insurance picking up $70 for a three minute consultation with a Dr. That might lower costs.

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

Kevin I don't see how this is going to work for us without a public option. How about Stopping hospitals charging $40 for an aspirin or $300 for an xray of my wrist or me having to pay $30 out of pocket with my insurance picking up $70 for a three minute consultation with a Dr. That might lower costs.

Dude, you forgot, Kevin will always have a job so healthcare should be no big whup for him.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

Kevin I don't see how this is going to work for us without a public option. How about Stopping hospitals charging $40 for an aspirin or $300 for an xray of my wrist or me having to pay $30 out of pocket with my insurance picking up $70 for a three minute consultation with a Dr. That might lower costs.

You have to understand why hospitals charge $40 for that aspirin and $300 for the xray. It isn't just the pill or the film you are paying for. You are paying for the charge for the actual item, the pharmacist who dispenses the pill, the pharm tech who brings the pills to the floor and the nurse who dispenses the pill to you. For an xray, you get a technical and a professional fee so you get charged for the cost of the room and xray equipment, as well as the xray technologist who performs your procedure. Your professional fee is the actual cost of the radiologist reading your film. Your consulting physician fee of $70 may only cover a physician seeing you for 3 minutes, but they have to actually write a fairly long note that covers a strict number of points about your health and physical exam. To do this, the physician will have to review your entire chart which will take 15 minutes to an hour to perform. This will also include taking a medical risk that goes against a fairly high medical malpractice premium carried by this physician. Trust me, there isn't a physician out there that makes $70 for 3 minutes work.
Also, did you go to the ER? That is the most expensive place you can go for medical care, and where the majority of the uninsured people in this country go for their medical care. The majority don't pay for this care, but this loss is turned around in higher costs to people with insurance and to tax payers.

[ZTA72]

^^^from my thoughts to your keyboard!

[PiKA2001]

Hospital for the x-Ray but the $105 consultation was at an urgent care. And I forgot to add that after making me pay a $30 copayment before seeing the Dr, then charging my insurance $70 they sent me a bill for $5.

I understand that healthcare is expensive due to equiptment and personnel costs but I fail to see how insurance reform is going to lower the total cost of healthcare. You'd think the best way to lower the total cost is to cap what the providers can charge you ( i.e. Dentist legally cannot charge more than $300 for a root canal, $70 for a cleaning).

[PM_Mama00]

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

Hospital for the x-Ray but the $105 consultation was at an urgent care. And I forgot to add that after making me pay a $30 copayment before seeing the Dr, then charging my insurance $70 they sent me a bill for $5.

I understand that healthcare is expensive due to equiptment and personnel costs but I fail to see how insurance reform is going to lower the total cost of healthcare. You'd think the best way to lower the total cost is to cap what the providers can charge you ( i.e. Dentist legally cannot charge more than $300 for a root canal, $70 for a cleaning).

They charge you the $70 for a cleaning but then add on unnecessary xrays and whatever else so then you're walking out the door with $270 less in your pocket. I think more people would get their 6 month cleaning if dentists didn't keep adding on services to rack up the bill. The last time I got mine cleaned they took me over to do xrays and, admittingly, I thought it was an automatic thing because I don't get to the dentist enough. (I keep up with brushing, have never had a cavity, and go whenever I absolutely need to because of how expensive it is) I didn't realize that I could refuse the xray because of course my regular dentist didn't see me (who I've been seeing since I was a young child), but his younger partner did. Funny too because he never mentioned that my wisdom teeth needed to come out, yet our family friend who did an xray for free soon after said "you better get those out like next week". Makes it seem like that xray at the dentist was completely pointless.

Ok that was longer than I expected lol

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

Hospital for the x-Ray but the $105 consultation was at an urgent care. And I forgot to add that after making me pay a $30 copayment before seeing the Dr, then charging my insurance $70 they sent me a bill for $5.

I understand that healthcare is expensive due to equiptment and personnel costs but I fail to see how insurance reform is going to lower the total cost of healthcare. You'd think the best way to lower the total cost is to cap what the providers can charge you ( i.e. Dentist legally cannot charge more than $300 for a root canal, $70 for a cleaning).

But think of how much you would have been charged if you had NO coverage.

[PiKA2001]

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

But think of how much you would have been charged if you had NO coverage.

Probably the same, maybe less. I've been without insurance before man, I know how it works. I've been to clinics that had discounted pricing for non insured patients.

Also, my current Derma doesn't accept my insurance but I still see him and only pay between $40-80 per visit, depending on the treatment.

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by Kevin

I don't like the bill itself. It doesn't go far enough. I do think that it's good in that it creates an entitlement which will never go away. My prediction is that the insurers will do what big companies with monopolies do and continue to drive prices up and coverage down forcing Congress to act later on to restructure costs, create a public option and all of those things we all know would really make a difference here.

For now though, baby steps work for me.

I agree. I'm settling for this one now because we have to start somewhere. I feel confident that we won't stop here.

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

Kevin I don't see how this is going to work for us without a public option. How about Stopping hospitals charging $40 for an aspirin or $300 for an xray of my wrist or me having to pay $30 out of pocket with my insurance picking up $70 for a three minute consultation with a Dr. That might lower costs.

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

Hospital for the x-Ray but the $105 consultation was at an urgent care. And I forgot to add that after making me pay a $30 copayment before seeing the Dr, then charging my insurance $70 they sent me a bill for $5.

I understand that healthcare is expensive due to equiptment and personnel costs but I fail to see how insurance reform is going to lower the total cost of healthcare. You'd think the best way to lower the total cost is to cap what the providers can charge you ( i.e. Dentist legally cannot charge more than $300 for a root canal, $70 for a cleaning).

Part of what you're paying for when you pay for your healthcare are the reimbursed costs that the hospital/medical center is having to absorb under the current system. If they are only paid for 30% of the treatment they provide, they have to make enough money off of those 30% to cover their costs. If everybody has insurance, everybody's health care costs will go down.

Ultimately, I'd still like to see health insurance completely removed from the employer. Hopefully we'll get there someday.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

Hospital for the x-Ray but the $105 consultation was at an urgent care. And I forgot to add that after making me pay a $30 copayment before seeing the Dr, then charging my insurance $70 they sent me a bill for $5.

I understand that healthcare is expensive due to equiptment and personnel costs but I fail to see how insurance reform is going to lower the total cost of healthcare. You'd think the best way to lower the total cost is to cap what the providers can charge you ( i.e. Dentist legally cannot charge more than $300 for a root canal, $70 for a cleaning).

That consultation fee is for the ability to go to an afterhours style urgent care facility and see a doctor. You pay more for that convenience. The doctor doesn't actually get that money. The physician is an employee of that center and gets paid somewhere between $50 and $75 and hour to staff the center depending on the contract. A business runs the center and will shut down, leaving you with no convenient place to see a doctor for your broken wrist, if they cut back on the fee allowable.

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

That consultation fee is for the ability to go to an afterhours style urgent care facility and see a doctor. You pay more for that convenience. The doctor doesn't actually get that money. The physician is an employee of that center and gets paid somewhere between $50 and $75 and hour to staff the center depending on the contract. A business runs the center and will shut down, leaving you with no convenient place to see a doctor for your broken wrist, if they cut back on the fee allowable.

Also he went o an urgent care center and not the ER...so he probably spent less time there too.

[aggieAXO]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

That consultation fee is for the ability to go to an afterhours style urgent care facility and see a doctor. You pay more for that convenience. The doctor doesn't actually get that money. The physician is an employee of that center and gets paid somewhere between $50 and $75 and hour to staff the center depending on the contract. A business runs the center and will shut down, leaving you with no convenient place to see a doctor for your broken wrist, if they cut back on the fee allowable.

Not to try and compare veterinary medicine to human medicine but this is exactly what I try tell my clients that see me at the ER. Yes we are more expensive but at least we are here at 2 AM to see Fluffy who has been very sick for a week- then I ask "why again didn't you take her to your regular vet?" I love the blank stares I get when I ask that question. I am so sick of people bithcing about the prices we charge when 80% of the things i see are preventable or could have been dealt with for a lower cost by their regular veterinarian.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by aggieAXO

Not to try and compare veterinary medicine to human medicine but this is exactly what I try tell my clients that see me at the ER. Yes we are more expensive but at least we are here at 2 AM to see Fluffy who has been very sick for a week- then I ask "why again didn't you take her to your regular vet?" I love the blank stares I get when I ask that question. I am so sick of people bithcing about the prices we charge when 80% of the things i see are preventable or could have been dealt with for a lower cost by their regular veterinarian.

It's an apt comparison! The same thing happens at your 24hr pharmacy. They jack up the prices for the convenience. Talk to your plumber or air conditioner repair man at MN...they charge you double to fix something in the middle of the night, as well!

[Beryana]

As someone who HAS insurance, I am actually moving away from going to a doctor where my visits and tests will definitely be covered because I'm not actually being having my illness treated there. I am hypothyroid and my current doctor prescribes medication according to a blood test only. I had to call her office to see when I had to come back and have the test run again because I was given a year's worth of medication and no even so much as a 'we'll see you in x months to make sure we have the correct dosage.' When I made that call to see when I was coming back (actually it was returning the call because the nurse made the appointment without even seeing what time of day works for me - 4pm doesn't work very well when you work 3rd shift!), I had to ask if I were ever going to see the doctor about the symptoms that are still very present - which the medication is not resolving! The funny thing is that when I first started going to this doctor I made it clear that I wanted to be involved in my healthcare, especially with hypothyroidism. Needless to say, I am going to go to an MD recommended by my chiropractor where my insurance probably will not cover much more than the tests, if that. So despite having insurance (as will be required by law soon enough to avoid paying a fine!) that does not guarantee good healthcare - or rather healthcare that will actually take care of problems versus simply prescribing medication according to tests and ignoring symptoms, or simply treating symptoms and not dealing with what is actually causing those symptoms.

Needless to say, this healthcare 'reform' is actually not doing anything to change the quality of treatment available, only who pays what bill - so once again, the patient is actually the one being thrown under the bus again.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by Beryana

As someone who HAS insurance, I am actually moving away from going to a doctor where my visits and tests will definitely be covered because I'm not actually being having my illness treated there. I am hypothyroid and my current doctor prescribes medication according to a blood test only. I had to call her office to see when I had to come back and have the test run again because I was given a year's worth of medication and no even so much as a 'we'll see you in x months to make sure we have the correct dosage.' When I made that call to see when I was coming back (actually it was returning the call because the nurse made the appointment without even seeing what time of day works for me - 4pm doesn't work very well when you work 3rd shift!), I had to ask if I were ever going to see the doctor about the symptoms that are still very present - which the medication is not resolving! The funny thing is that when I first started going to this doctor I made it clear that I wanted to be involved in my healthcare, especially with hypothyroidism. Needless to say, I am going to go to an MD recommended by my chiropractor where my insurance probably will not cover much more than the tests, if that. So despite having insurance (as will be required by law soon enough to avoid paying a fine!) that does not guarantee good healthcare - or rather healthcare that will actually take care of problems versus simply prescribing medication according to tests and ignoring symptoms, or simply treating symptoms and not dealing with what is actually causing those symptoms.

Needless to say, this healthcare 'reform' is actually not doing anything to change the quality of treatment available, only who pays what bill - so once again, the patient is actually the one being thrown under the bus again.

Have you looked into seeing any other physicians who are in network? There are other solutions than going to a physician who isn't covered by your insurance policy. One imporant part of any health care reform will include cost containment, and that WILL include limiting which physicians you can go to, what tests you can have and what medications you can take that the plan will cover. Otherwise, costs skyrocket. I think finding the right doctor sometimes takes trial and error. It took me several physicians to find the right neurologist for me. Just like with every other profession, we're human. Not all of us are good. Not all of us are going to mesh well with you. Not all of us really care that you want to have a say in your health care. Find the one that does. Don't give up, but try working within the system so you don't throw away good money.