Alternatives to Obamacare

[Master Chief]

Erich posted the following:

Originally Posted by loooooongcat

That's an interesting question, and a fair one. I've thought about it a lot, and I didn't come to my decision lightly. There is no perfect solution to healthcare, and there are going to have to be some trade-offs.

And for the record, I don't oppose more pieces every time we talk. Like you said, I've been pretty consistent the whole time.

I can live with the insurance issue, even though I don't necessarily agree with it. The way the system is set up, it's impossible for an alternative to be effective. If you want to say you can't deny coverage for pre-existing conditions, you have to come up with a way to stop people from gaming the system. That's why they're saying you have to buy insurance, so you don't just wait till you get sick then buy insurance, then drop it when you're well. The system can't be sustained in that way.

I'd be genuinely interested to hear if you guys have other theories as to how the system could work without denying pre-existing conditions. Not to argue, but to have an honest dialog.

Let the debate begin.

[Master Chief]

Why I Oppose Obamacare

My first reaction is to point out the fact that going ahead with bad legislation is not preferable to doing nothing.

Past that, insurance companies, to remain profitable, cannot accept people with pre-existing conditions. Cancer patients, people with incurable diseases, etc. represent a life long line of expenses, usually quite high ones at that, even for healthcare.

Now yes, it is always necessary to preserve life, and that's why we have a network of hundreds of specialty hospitals, charities, and research funds that work every day to see that these people can receive the health care they need. Do they help everyone? Probably not, but I would say they help the vast majority, certainly everyone they possibly can.

The question you have to ask yourself is; would a Government run system help more, or less. Now granted, said system would not likely completely eliminate that network of hospitals, but when you consider almost all of their resources are donations from insurance companies and the medical establishment in general, you have to accept they're going to take a hit.

Further, said system would then operate on tax dollars. Assuming that Obama sticks to his own word, that means a LOT more taxes, and that means less money going to said charities. Between now and 2014, the market for those needing healthcare from that network is going to get very, very bleak.

And finally, one must consider the fact that the Government's track record for operating humanitarian programs is, well, less than stellar. Social Security, for example, is now massively in debt, yet no one can repeal it. I would bet every penny I'll ever have that Obamacare will be in the same situation, if not far, far worse, by 2018 at the latest.

The thing about this type of legislation is that once it's passed, it's nearly impossible to repeal. Not even for any legal reason, only because it's political suicide to come out saying that you think any social program should be shut down, or even cut back. These programs operate on the Government Ratchet; they only get bigger.

My Alternative Plan

Our current medical system is flawless, in my view. We have healthcare that is the envy of the world. We lead in almost every aspect of research, in every standard of care. If you ask me, we should not even sneeze on our medical system.

Medical finance, however, is a whole other deal. Our insurance system is downright retarded in many ways; especially where insurance companies can't sell across state lines. That's the first step; make it legal for companies to sell insurance across state lines. More competition always yields lower prices for consumers, it's a fundamental value of capitalism.

The insurance system, as it's written out now, is self-taxing, meaning that the very existence and use of insurance ensures only that costs go up. The amount of paperwork and bureaucratic red tape needed to file even the simplest claims is staggering; I know this, I've worked in an eye clinic and spent a lot of time arguing with insurance companies and filing out hundreds if not thousands of pages of paperwork and legalese junk.

Most of this is because of lawsuits, both frivolous and justified, that plague hospitals. One of a doctor's biggest expenses is malpractice insurance. That is why I support and have always supported both tighter restrictions on the filing of lawsuits, and caps on the awards that can be awarded for any given circumstance. This will lower the paper requirements of insurance, and the cost of doctor's insurance, thusly lowering the cost of healthcare overall.

Finally, the last part of my plan: Enact laws that prevent any insurance company from dropping any customer due to new conditions, such as cancers and other diseases, calling it the Insuree's Bill of Rights. This document should outline the responsibilities of the Insurance company, in the event of the unforeseen.

In tandem with this, enact the Insurer's Bill of Rights, which will give an insurance company the legal authority to drop patients who exercise high risk behaviors, such as repeated DUI's, speeding tickets, weigh over 300 pounds, etc. Getting people who insist on living like this will lower the chance of high cost people ending up on insurance companies bills.

[Dr. Madd]

How I oppose Obamacare, let me count the ways:

1. No one can legally be made to buy anything, and before anyone mentions car insurance, not everyone drives and those who don't don't have car insurance.

2. A public option will cause employers to drop coverage and force people onto plans they don't like.

3. This is not about healthcare.. it's about control. Control of where Doctors work, and for how much. Control of people and what they can have for care. This is essentially the government mastering our very lives. No thanks.

4. This is a gateway for gun control , sin taxes, prohibition- The moment the gov't feels its paying for healthcare, they'll begin trying to save money at the expense of our rights.

5. The bill is too large and no one knows whats in it.

6. Not one of its proponents , including Looongcat, can point out where the gov't has a right to do this.

[NonConformist]

forcing one to buy services is unacceptable, thats why Im against it in as short as I can state

[Dag]

Why I oppose Obama care:
I have posted this way too many times...

What alternatives do I think would work:
Again, I have posted them way too many times... if they weren't heard then...why would they be heard now?