Saturday, November 26, 2005
"THE POOL, SINK OR SWIM?"
Good morning people! I surely thought that yesterdays topic would have generated a lot of talk? It is such an important subject, not only in our personal lives, but in the life of the city (town). I attributed the almost nil conversation yesterday to people still napping from the holiday......well you had better wake up! As this POOL affects the city (town) government as well as the businesses that are here and their employees. Look at how the budget monies are divided up......the biggest portion going to education, and that is on the rise. The prediction from the state is that within a few short years INSURANCE will cost the same if not more and be as big an item on the budget. Then we have real problems! The fix is real simple, PRICE CONTROL, but you will never see that with Republicans running the show. You have to control cost, but not at the expense of the workers, you have to control what can be charged for Insurance premiums (all insurances - liability, medical, and auto), for a doctors visit, for an operation, for the price of drugs, for a hospital stay... "THE POOL" doesn't address any of the underlying factors that effect the rising cost. It only puts off the problem for someone in the future to deal with. Our city (town) people are doing a good job right now but soon it will be beyond their means to control...what will suffer....we all will! ..........What Do You Think? It's YOUR DIME!
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8 comments:
Didn't Russia try this??? It would be a bigger mistake, in my opinion, to control what someone can charge for a service or product. I think you would find the quality of goods and services would suffer greatly. If someone knows they will get a certain price, whether their product is better or not, I think you will find that people will strive for the doing the least possible.
Who is to say what that cost should be? What sectors of the economy should this apply to? People fought hard for the deregulation of the airlines, the communications companies, and the energy sector, would this be a step backwards? What happens if there are not any quality doctors because the pay to risk ratio is poor?
This is supposed to be a free market society, have we run as far as we can with this baton? Is it time to restructure the economy.
I guess it is OK for the Republicans --- Tricky Dicky --- to freeze wages but when the economy needs price freezes .....All hell breaks loose and the excuse bag is brought out!
In both cases it is or would be a temporary fix and not a solution to the problem. Similiar to releasing oil from the nation oil reserve. Short term solution to try and quell price gouging, but doesn't go the heart of the problem.
The proposals currently under discussion in Conference Committee do not include the Single Payer proposal that Nucifors supports-- at least that is my info---the Single Payer plan is the one that would insure everyone through this POOL----e.g. North Adams currently pays 2.9 million (from our budget) I think on a 50/50 basis with the employess- if that is correct then they also pay 2.9 million----and again I think it is to Blue Cross -Blue Shield----- under the single payer plan--- that money would not go to Bc/BS but to the POOL-----as would the money paid by the state on behalf of state employees (85/15) to various insurers--and the same for all private companies-- it would in effect remove privare insurers from the mix-- no BC/BS no PPO's or HMO's --everything would be handled by the state-- the only argument Nuciforo had dfor this was that the savings in administrative costs would be enough to unsure those who were uninsured or underinsured..You would still have your doctors and hospitals but instead of insurance companies paying the bills the state would from this POOL---I don;t get it------if it takes X employees scattered throughout the
insurence industry to monitor Y number of clients-----would it also take the state as many employees to do the same thing---I see no savings-- and I don;t trust the state to cut bureaucartic costs---- even if they could-----besides-- instead of having a certain number of clients calling into the various insureres for authroization-- everything would have to go through the state---you ever tried calling a state office???? no here's my personal quandry--- I have the omincare indemnity plan-- the costs more with greater out of pocket costs as well----others at the college have PPO's or HMO's and pay less---since this plan is based on the current amount of in-pays to insurers-- will I still pay the same amount and others less- and we all get the same coverage???? if so- I'd be paying more and getting less---put it another way---- would I be paying the same amount (I pay 15%) plus the out of pocket--and a City employee would continue to pay 50% for the same coverage???? and I have no idea what percentages are average in the private sector-----but this plan would put the insurance business out of business---that's the way I read it--- it may bot be worth a dime-- but it is my two cents-----and I will not support any resolution that supports a single payer plan----where in the United States is it being done?????? I know of no place-- but I haven't researched it either----but Nuciforo did not say-- that this idea was working well anywhere in this country-- that it had been tried and tested and had been proven to be successful-------Ohhhhhhhhh Canada--maybe-----but if I need an operation I don;t want to wait six months to get an authorization--and 3-6 more months to have the operation----and to da snoop???? nothing the state does is a temporary or short term solution--not once you get the bureaucracy established-----add in this -what happens to all the employees who work the medical desks of these private insurers??? Oh that's right unless they are hired by the state to do the same thing--- they are unemployed and without medical insurence--think about it-- chbpod
POD my "band-aid" label was more of a statment that the problem wouldn't be fixed but transfered.
Perhaps I don't fully understand the proposal, but if it is only for Berkshire County, I don't think many if any people would be put out of a job at an insurance company. More likely the costs from loss of business would just be passed on to the remaining customers. I was involved with another entity that was presented with a self-insurance program such as this, and the big question is always what happens in the first few years if there are a large number of claims against the pool? Who will underwrite the plan should the pool go dry? A single payer plan for a nation would be a good idea in my opinion, but not for a small corner of one state.
Also, would it be manditory for all state employees in the county to buy into this plan? I would bet that the insurance companies would come up with a counter offer if it did mean a substaintial loss of business. Suppose you only get 75% buy in, if it is optional, what happens to the pool?
When I was working I was paying $4.75 PER HOUR - around $760 PER MONTH for Blue Cross Blue Shield. My wife, who worked for the state, was paying $35 a week - $140 PER MONTH. It was the identical plan and coverage! I could not op out of my program so togather we were paying $900 per month for insurance, but we could only use one! Hmmm - WHY? If you buy something shouldn't you be able to use it? My $9,120 went for a new limo for some CEO! There has to be BIG changes in the INSURANCE INDUSTRY but our politicaos are not going to do a thing about it except screw things up more than they are....Why? BIG BUSINESS, BIG MONEY!
Hey Southview-- not that I intended on responding to today's post-- but there's no "comments" link----chbpod
Thanks chbpod. To early in the mornin I guess! :~)
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