Government,particularly Hillary, has supported HMO's. This system has single handedly destroyed the nations health care system by skimming the cream(working people) from the pool of patients The private hospitals can not pay for the charity they have been forced to provide because of the HMO's.
The three advantages of HMO's over the private sector:
1. they only take care of working people ie paying people.
2. they can not be sued for malpractice the ERISA BS
3. The retired people are deemed legally worthless, because they have no income loss, in the event of bad medical treatment.
and a 4th. delay or denial has become an art form for the HMO's.
Hillary was assigned the task of setting up HMO's when it became clear national health insurance would not fly. Sacramento, CA was the test bed for HMO's. It placed a huge burden on the private community hospitals by skimming the paying patients off the local hospitals. At the same time the locals were forced to provide care to nonpaying people because of 'government support' of the locals.
Marble Cake
You seem misinformed, I do not agree with your opinion.
da_hal
hmm, i'm not following how this is somehow hillary's fault.
i'm assuming this has something to do with when she was first lady, but the first lady was never a political office.
kenbgray
Just by being involved in it.
Greg
Hillary Clinton was just 26 years old when the HMO Act (a legislation promoted by the Nixon Administration as a free market solution to the then current health care crisis) was enacted.
She didn't even marry Bill until the following year. She didn't graduate from Yale until after the legislation was enacted.
Ruth S
There is absolutely nothing wrong with HMO's for certain individuals and their families! You say "working people"! Don't you mean the RICH working people!? THEY are the only ones who can afford to visit Private Doctors and Hospitals! I am sure these Movie Stars don't get their faces lifted and any other part of their bodies by belonging to an HMO!!! The ordinary working class person, like you and me, couldn't afford to put that kind of money out! I for one, have had no problems with belonging to an HMO! And YES! I have HAD devastating illnesses in the family!
As a matter of fact, an HMO doctor CAN be sued! It is usually the Insurance company they work for, but they are still on the hook for any mistakes they make! They all carry malpractice insurance!!
As for the retired people! thank GOD I belonged to a great company, and I am still covered by them! BUT! that could change, if Obama starts messing with things that work!
The only problem I see is, doctors today, have become specialists! The good old General Practice Doctor is a thing of the past! THAT is one of the reasons Healcare cost so much! You start off at your Primary Doctor, you COULD call HIM a receptionist! and HE gets to direct you to the right specialist! Then, it's a round of going from one place to another, to get an x-ray, a blood test, etc etc. Then you play the waiting game, and it anything is found in your tests, there you go again, until weeks later, you MAY just land up in some strange doctor's office! I can remember, not too long ago, if I went to the doctors, all the tests barring MRI's and CAT scans, were done right there in the office! The insurance company didn't have to process all these little bills and analyse them, NOW, the insurance companies have to hire more people to take care of all this crap, making OUR premiums sky rocket!! The system stinks! Right! Something else we forget! We are multiplying! There's MORE people to take care of! SOMEBODY has to be at the other end to do that! It's a vicious circle, and it's only going to get bigger.
What I would like to know, is, who in the Government is qualified to take care of the books if this Plan of theirs goes through!?
Bill G
It goes much deeper than that.
During World War II there were federally mandated strict freezes on salaries but not on employee benefits. Therefore, in order to attract and retain employees companies created more and more attractive employee benefit plans, some of which are crippling companies today.
This led to an explosion of employer provided health insurance in the decades following the war which had the completely predictable effect of leading to very rapid health care inflation, far in excess of what was ever possible in the prior patient pays, fee for service, health care system. This inflation has led to all kinds of cost containment measures one of which is the HMO and another is refusing coverage to people with preexisting conditions.
The entire mess was a direct result of the salary caps from World War II.
Had government simply left things alone and let salaries float naturally employer provided health care would be much rarer and the resultant health care inflation would not have occurred.
Joe S
Another rarely considered factor is prohibition of price discrimination. It used to be common practice for local doctors to charge higher fees to more affluent patients and to accept lower fees or even provide care for free to patients with fewer means. Now, such a practice is a sure invitation to lawsuit. The result is that all patients must be charged the same higher fees.
Daisy
Who was supposed to pay for the nonpaying people? were they just to not get health care. Are we a third world country? where people die in the streets and contamination occurs because without health care some diseases would spread .
A big problem is the hospitals going bankrupt and closing their doors. Also many doctors have quit being doctors because of malpractice insurance and paper work needed to get paid. I had a family physician when I was younger who was asked why do you have medicaid patients he replied," I am guaranteed payment".
As far as Hillary goes she should have been listened to her way back when.
HMO are not just for working people, ask ARP, they use HMO for the retired. to supplement medicare
Orignal From: Q&A: How has government itself destroyed the health care system in America?
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