What drives up medical costs?
- Thread starter WATU2
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No. The driver of medical cost is the aging population and the desire for everyone to obtain the most recent technology which continues to explode. There is no free market in health care. The government through Medicare, Medicaid, and the va sets the prices payed for all healthcare. The other insurance companies and payers are all following the government prices.
I'm waiting for the next time a lawyer gets really sick. He can then call another lawyer to make him well. Secondly, should an ambulance chasing lawyer actually have a qualified doctor to, ya know, make him well again? Maybe it would be better to just let nature take its course.
Yeah, good things doctors don't work that way. I haven't done much med mal. Not my thing.
But I have enough experience to know that there are a few bad doctors taking risks and making mistakes that they shouldn't make. I don't think that has much relationship to insurance premiums or the legal system. They have a good lobby, I guess. And I'm not surprised you believe that crap.
But I have enough experience to know that there are a few bad doctors taking risks and making mistakes that they shouldn't make. I don't think that has much relationship to insurance premiums or the legal system. They have a good lobby, I guess. And I'm not surprised you believe that crap.
I spent 4 hours in an ER our second week in Houston. Saw a triage nurse who took my vitals and listened to my issue. 2 minutes then back out in the waiting room. Eventually gave up and left without being treated.
They billed my insurance $1075. Insurance is covering about $60, I pay $30 and the rest is too bad. Less than 10% of the bill will be paid.
I can't even wrap my head around this. Uninsured wouldn't be paying that $1075 a hospital is billing for 2 minutes either.
So the thing is broken from more than one angle.
And on topic, I don't think pharma companies should be charities. That dude is a smarmy piece of work though.
They billed my insurance $1075. Insurance is covering about $60, I pay $30 and the rest is too bad. Less than 10% of the bill will be paid.
I can't even wrap my head around this. Uninsured wouldn't be paying that $1075 a hospital is billing for 2 minutes either.
So the thing is broken from more than one angle.
And on topic, I don't think pharma companies should be charities. That dude is a smarmy piece of work though.
It's a silly system. There's really no argument not to regulate it. We just got caught in a billing fiasco after the baby came. They revised the bill multiple times and then tried to charge us, even though we have this insurance plan that pays for everything. That has nothing to do with lawyers. It's just an industry that handles its business inefficiently and often unethically.
What really drives in the point that we need some regulatory system is that often times, the uninsured are going to end up filing bankruptcy after they receive care. I think the hospitals get a write off. But we subsidize the hell out of it without regulations. We might as well try do something to curtail the costs while we are it.
What really drives in the point that we need some regulatory system is that often times, the uninsured are going to end up filing bankruptcy after they receive care. I think the hospitals get a write off. But we subsidize the hell out of it without regulations. We might as well try do something to curtail the costs while we are it.
If you want to read about alternative health care systems in a very readable format, this book is for you. It does require that one accept that we can learn from other countries' experience, and it does pop the balloon that all other systems are socialistic failures. Actually there is a wide variety of approaches; some work more efficiently with better outcomes than ours.
As for Medicare vs. private insurance, my wife spends hours correcting her Blue Cross bills while I spend about zero time on Medicare corrections.
As for Medicare vs. private insurance, my wife spends hours correcting her Blue Cross bills while I spend about zero time on Medicare corrections.
Yes, I just saw a revision on my insurance this week for surgery that was done and paid for in early February.
One thing that is not often talked about is medical equipment. Under the Obamacare law a tax was added to that area. Things like durable knee braces, CPAP equipment, and home equipment for the elder or injured have gone up significantly in price.
Bingo! The instant someone goes on medicare, they are bombarded with "testing" which runs into thousands of dollars. For instance, you brought up the "CPAP" so called therapy and the expensive night stays in a "sleep center" which runs in the thousands of dollars. Then if the result isn't what the doctor wants, another night and then another if need be and at the end of all that a machine prescribed to breath into that costs thousands more.
No, medical costs are driven by an unlimited amount of money provided by insurers and govt run medicare - the biggest insurer of all. And then there are the lawyers who advertise their "services" continuously on the tube. They always act like their "clients" will profit and not themselves. That's just deception and the lawyers know it.
Everyone has their Medicare problems. Mine was CPAP. The first four years were okay, I hated it but put up with it. 2014 Medicare cut the list of approved providers. All Saints was through St. Francis & St. John. Medicare quit using them and fixed me up with some outfit in OKC. It was supposed to be automatic switch. When I didn't get anything I called them. Never heard of me. New Tulsa rep would get with me Another month or two there was no Tulsa rep. We will get you parts you need. Oh, no you have to have your doctor approve. Oh, Ok we will ship it, what size? Wrong size came. Now it's been 4 or 5 months at that point. I haven't been wearing my CPAP. I just quit. A year later I haven't died or fallen asleep driving. F*** CPAP my grandma snored and she live to be 86.
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Your point about attorneys has nothing to do with anything. Yes, contingent few cases in personal injury cases are often not great deals. (The vast majority of which have nothing to do with medical insurance rates because they aren't med mal cases, but rather just injuries.) Keep in mind that medical providers usually have liens, often at their bull crap off the rack rates, that must be paid before anyone gets a dime.
Then again, given the cost it takes to bring a med mal claim, hire an expert, and so on, it's the best option for most people and has long been a protected practice under the ethics rules.
Most of the guys you see on tv aren't really an issue -- they are more like middle men for insurance companies that often settle at less than they should. There are a couple of local guys who advertise that are actually really good, though. I don't like tv attorney ads, either, but after Citizens United, it's tough to imagine a world without them.
If anything, medical providers clog the courts with collection cases, at their usury rates for uninsured. See the recent EMSA class action case in Tulsa.
That's a very good analysis. Thanks!
Would you be for any kind of tort reform? And I agree about many of the TV adds. It makes the profession look petty and a bit dishonest. BTW I like my lawyer and he is a very nice guy. I'm not against all lawyers, but the few bad ones out there can do great harm, not only to individuals, but society in general.
Would you be for any kind of tort reform? And I agree about many of the TV adds. It makes the profession look petty and a bit dishonest. BTW I like my lawyer and he is a very nice guy. I'm not against all lawyers, but the few bad ones out there can do great harm, not only to individuals, but society in general.
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I think the entire tort reform movement is a scam. The movie Hot Coffee gives a good explanation that I endorse. Briefly, most of the recent efforts in Oklahoma are nothing but a futile attempt to make life difficult on low level ambulance chasing attorneys, most of whom do dirty work that no one else will do, like $10,000 personal injury cases where the proceeds will be consumed by medical and other liens.
A specific example of that is the new requirement that we have a certifying expert affidavit before filing a negligence claim. All that did is drive up the cost for filing the case, and in many cases there are ways around that. I had to file a personal injury case recently and we just alleged other torts to keep them from dismissing the case.
The issue should be about court reform rather than tort reform. Oklahoma spends less than one half a percent of its budget (about $67 million I understand) to fund a branch of government. We have athletic programs in our conference that spend more every year. The lack of funding means it is harder to keep good judges (most associate attorneys quickly earn more) and that there are fewer good judges to adjudicate cases. This means a lot of cases aren't process expediently or fairly.
A few weeks back I had to try a divorce issue. The case had been pending for awhile and this particular matter had to be be decided by the court that day. But there were a dozen other cases that had to be handled. We kept starting and stopping. Something that should have taken 90 minutes tops took all day. That dramatically increases the cost to my clients.
We rely too much on fees from filing. They need to spend more to attract more and better judges to process back logged cases. As things stand now, we are starting to refer a lot of our cases to arbitration just because it goes faster. But that is an extra cost that people shouldn't have to bear.
There are many other rings that can improve to (getting an appellate court that works harder), but funding is a good start.
A specific example of that is the new requirement that we have a certifying expert affidavit before filing a negligence claim. All that did is drive up the cost for filing the case, and in many cases there are ways around that. I had to file a personal injury case recently and we just alleged other torts to keep them from dismissing the case.
The issue should be about court reform rather than tort reform. Oklahoma spends less than one half a percent of its budget (about $67 million I understand) to fund a branch of government. We have athletic programs in our conference that spend more every year. The lack of funding means it is harder to keep good judges (most associate attorneys quickly earn more) and that there are fewer good judges to adjudicate cases. This means a lot of cases aren't process expediently or fairly.
A few weeks back I had to try a divorce issue. The case had been pending for awhile and this particular matter had to be be decided by the court that day. But there were a dozen other cases that had to be handled. We kept starting and stopping. Something that should have taken 90 minutes tops took all day. That dramatically increases the cost to my clients.
We rely too much on fees from filing. They need to spend more to attract more and better judges to process back logged cases. As things stand now, we are starting to refer a lot of our cases to arbitration just because it goes faster. But that is an extra cost that people shouldn't have to bear.
There are many other rings that can improve to (getting an appellate court that works harder), but funding is a good start.
Oh please. We are the only industrialized country in the world that lets pharmaceutical companies price their own drugs. If anything we have too much of a free market on health care costs. #Sanders2016
So you would prefer the poor die from preventable illnesses rather than get health care? I bet you like to call yourself a Christian too.
Mrs. Sepp and I just got back from Germany. While there she had an accident and suffered a hair line fracture on the tibia head just below the left knee. We went to the ER and she had x-rays and a CT scan. The ER doctors recommended surgery. They then gave her a knee brace and a shot for thinning her blood to prevent clotting. This was on a Saturday, her Health Choice Ins. doesn't cover out of country, but does reimburse for expenses you pay out of pocket. We ended up getting a prescription for blood thinning shots and some crutches. Monday we went to the hospital to find out what we needed to do to pay our bill. They said all bills must be pre-paid before surgery, but didn't tell me what I already owed. Tuesday we went to see the chief orthopedic surgeon and he said no surgery was required. Went back to pay the bill and the head of the hospital said there was no bill. Said something to the effect that our case was mishandled on how we were to pay, so the hospital was going to absorb the cost. I said we owe for the ER visit, but they said we were treated poorly by the billing department and there would be no cost. We took flowers and small gifts to all involved and said thank you. I am pretty sure that this doesn't happen in America.
Congrats!
BTW There''s a great book titled The Healing of America that explains how other countries' health care system works better and costs less than ours.
Most Americans has been brain washed into thinking there are only TWO health care systems: ours and socialism. There are at least 5: ours and the four that other developed countries use.
But the huge money that big pharma, big insurance, and big hospitals puts into the system makes sure than we don't know about them.
BTW There''s a great book titled The Healing of America that explains how other countries' health care system works better and costs less than ours.
Most Americans has been brain washed into thinking there are only TWO health care systems: ours and socialism. There are at least 5: ours and the four that other developed countries use.
But the huge money that big pharma, big insurance, and big hospitals puts into the system makes sure than we don't know about them.
The book was written before Obamacare and was cheering for it to be passed. It was. Also, the book discusses such things as government programs ran by the VA. Since then, things have came out that might one not think that the VA is a good model. Five year old pro Obamacare book.
To answer the original question, its all of the above. But the system is corrupted by the vast amount of money in it both before and after Obamacare. Medical costs are driven when money is injected into the system, period. Every govt entitlement like medicare or medicaid means more money as well as any govt mandate or even new drugs that "MAY" have side effects (the lawyers can sue over). Bad doctors increase costs - when they overprescribe. Patients who run to the doctor at the drop of a hat. Even second opinions or the worker that wants that "day off" from the sniffles. All that distracts healthcare from preforming its job.
Follow the money. There is no incentive to keep costs down, especially when the govt gets involved since they have an endless amount of paper in the treasury.
Follow the money. There is no incentive to keep costs down, especially when the govt gets involved since they have an endless amount of paper in the treasury.
Yes, the root problem is money, but until we get rid of big money in our political system along with a "head in the sand" approach that limits our understanding of how other countries manage their healthcare better than we do, there won't be meaningful change.
Have you ever heard a politician said "Country X covers 100% of its population with better outcomes for about half of what we pay to cover a fraction of our population. Let's see what we can learn from them?" I haven't.
Have you ever heard a politician said "Country X covers 100% of its population with better outcomes for about half of what we pay to cover a fraction of our population. Let's see what we can learn from them?" I haven't.
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