[kj] [OT] Don't stay overnight in a US hospital!

B. Oliver Sheppard bigblackhair at sbcglobal.net
Tue Jul 3 23:50:56 EDT 2007


The US has an employer-based health care system. Basically, you have to
rely on the noblesse oblige of an employer to provide coverage, not just
for you, but for your whole family. Independent folks are free to shop
around independently and pay exorbitant costs for independent coverage,
sure, but that barely even covers basic necessities (and often with
ludicrous co-pays). For example, my girlfriend, a full-time student at
the University of Texas, who is 23, will lose coverage under her parents
next year even if she continues to be a full-time student or not. She
would have to try to find work at some retail(?) place while continuing
school to retain coverage -- and what retail/entry-level employer
provides that? It'd be deducted from her paycheck -- *IF* they provided
it. And what if she had pre-existing illnesses, which she has? Tough luck!

The reliance on employer coverage has even prompted some CEOs and
employers to advocate for universal health care, because it's becoming
too expensive for them to provide it for their employees themselves, who
have audaciously come to expect it, the uppity bastards:


http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0507/3877.html

CEOs unite for health care
By: Chris Frates
May 7, 2007 10:40 PM EST

Health care reformers scored a victory Monday when 35 chief
executives announced a major lobbying coalition designed to push for
universal coverage in a market-based system.

The Coalition to Advance Healthcare Reform was launched as a way for
business leaders to influence the debate on the state and federal
levels.

The group is advocating for a market-based solution that covers
everyone, gives incentives for receiving preventive care and provides
subsidies to low-income people.

[...]

-Oliver






T.B. wrote:

>

> You sure won't get an argument from me about how fucked up our

> healthcare system is. However, I don't think it's a matter of quality

> but an issue of coverage. A big part of that problem is the shift to

> medical care-for-profit over the last 50 years.

>

> T.B.

>

>




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