Category: Obamacare

  • The Wonk Gap – NYTimes.com — its the lie not the truth that is telling.

    The Wonk Gap – NYTimes.com:

    Rotary International has a 4-Way test that starts with “Is it the truth?” In all we say and do …

    If the facts that are presented are not truthful, then whatever follows in the arguments are bogus. Who benefits and why can not meaningfully be determined.

    Stated differently, often (usually?) based on a careful organization of the facts, the best decisions are self-evident.

    So what does Dr. Paul have to say about outright denial and miss information on the right? He points out the healthcare costs have actually been tame in recent years. Current estimates of the future costs/savings are actually better the GAO had originally estimated. Until recently, healthcare costs had been increasing at about 10% per year over the last 30 some years. All evidence is that these costs are much tamer, just over inflation, for the last few years. And that is prior to Obama care really kicking in.

    I know! I’m surprised too, because Obama care doesn’t do nearly enough to address out-of-control healthcare costs as I would like to see. But shifting people out of the emergency room as the primary care, has got to save tons of money.

    Klugman points out how obvious and untruthful some of the information is that continues to be propagated. At least on PBS, you will find a serious analysis of the issues and usually a fare representation of both sides.

    Why would anyone anywhere continue to accept consistent untruths and even blatant lies?

    I like to hear what I want to hear. But I need to hear what I don’t want to hear. As long as it is factual.

    Counter factual is, will, counterproductive, to say the least.

    Good article Dr Paul. It is too bad that the right people won’t read it. And the people who do read it, probably won’t apply the concept of truth-in-information-sources to their own media noise.

    We all need to unfriend sources who promote bogus information, and let them talk to empty space. Only then will we have meaningful solutions to replace meaningless bickering.

    ‘via Blog this’

  • How much should a hip replacement cost? CBS News

    How much should a hip replacement cost? Study raises more questions than answers – CBS News:

    Paying cash for a procedure can get wild in terms of the prices. (They did this for a similar ailment and got similar results.)

    Offering to pay cash, and pay up front will result in serious discounts, say 70%.

    But this is still a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad world of medicine.

    What’s missing is transparency. If you can’t figure out how much something is going to cost, how can you plan for it.

    Oh, and here is a case in point on the Hip-to-be-squared problem. If hip is a pre-exiting condition, then you have to pay out-of-pocket. But, if you let your insurance laps, then you can not be denied… BUT in next year, 2014, more of Obamacare will kick in and then it’s no worries (maybe?).

    This whole area of healthcare is fuzzy and morphing, so it really is not sane to try to make rational decisions.

    Maybe the best idea is to go an medical tourism vacation. Trip it up to Canada, down to Costa Rica or drink it up in Spain. It seems that the pain before and after surgery, just might, kinda put a damper on the whole vacation thing though. But the $50-100,000 would be a nice incentive to enjoy the trip.

    It’s going to be hard to bring healthcare costs under control when the mess in pricing and the lack of transparency is out of control.

    It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World of medicine.

    ‘via Blog this’