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As more patients come in health care becomes rationed and who gets what is determined by some apparatchik of the party much in the way Jews were either sent to die in the shower or live as slave labor.

I can just see a future visit to local ObaminationCare clinic.

Apparachitik: What do you want?
Patient 1: I have injured my knee and need it replaced.
Apparatchik: And how old are you ?
Patient 1: 28
Apparachitik: Join the line to the right and make an appointment for surgery.

Apparachitik: Next ! Yes want do you want?
Patient 2: I have injured my knee and need it replaced. I am in great pain.
Apparachitik: How old are you ?
Patient 2: 73
Apparachitik: Join the line to the left and get your monthly allocation of aspirin.

Ultimately I have had my pocket picked all my life only to be told to piss off and die when I become elderly. Lovely bunch of pricks these Democrats.

That's a good explanation, but it's worse. The millions of us who vehemently disagree with this plan are being told in so many words to piss off and die already.

In a related story, Moonbat Roseanne Barr decides to dress up like Hitler, and eat Jewish cookies from out of the oven:

http://www.mererhetoric.com/archives/11275782.html

What an empty headed antic.

Socializing medicine has been the ultimate prize for the progressive left for decades. They know that once they get this plum, the game is over for any conservative comeback in America. These people are downright evil. Why any medical doctor would support being a slave to the government is beyond me.

I've heard the life-expectancy stat used by libs and it's getting tiresome. Socialized health care must be better because those countries have a higher life-expectancy, right? Wrong for many reasons. The real questions to ask are, 'at the moment of diagnosis, what system has a better survival rate, and where would you rather be: in England/Canada/Sweden... or in America when you are diagnosed with cancer or heart disease... or even a frikkin' hangnail?' America wins hands down, bar none, sweep, game-set-match. So let's destroy it. Good work lefties.

Socializing medicine will kill America. Good conservatives know it. Evil progressives know it. It's the last battle in America's war between good and evil. If Obama gets 'health care', evil wins.

The thing that infuriates me the most is that the idiotic communists have all 3 branches of power AND are STILL "blaming" the Republicans.

It's like everybody actually thinks the Republicans are still in control and even have the slightest chance of stopping this disaster.

Did you see the guy on Fox&Friends this morning rip up his AARP card? I think we should flood them with hate mail. I intend to never ever give them one thin dime, and to badmouth them all over town and the interwebz every chance I get.

I work at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. We are a non profit cancer hospital, and we are ranked 5th in the nation by US News and World Report for cancer treatment in the United States. We’ve been ranked as high as 2 on various other ranking systems (depending on the criteria involved), but US News is the best known so I’ll defer to them. I work in financial counseling at my hospital.

What has really bothered me about this whole health care reform debate is the huge amount of misinformation being spread. It seems to me that Republican and Blue Dog Democrats are simply ASSUMING the effects of privatized vs. non privatized health care, as opposed to having any actual facts. So I would like to present them to you now. This is rather lengthy, but if you want an honest assessment from someone who knows what they are talking about, please read on.

Efficiency. There’s a big argument that anything provided by the government is less efficient. But that’s not true in health care. Why? Because it is not in the insurance’s interest to be efficient. If they were efficient, then all claims would be paid, and they would make less money. It is in their interest NOT to be efficient.

Let’s examine: at my hospital, the three biggest insurance carriers are Medicare, Masshealth (Massachusetts Medicaid), and Blue Cross Blue Shield. We see about an equal number of patients for all three of these payers. In my department, we have 1 person who deals with Medicare claims, 1 who deals with Medicaid, and 6 who deal with Blue Cross Blue Shield. Why? Because with Medicare and Medicaid, all we need to do is verify a patient’s eligibility, sub the claim, and the claim is paid. With a couple Medicaid plans, referrals are required, but these can be requested online and retrieved online, which takes a couple of minutes. The only things that need authorization are experimental procedures and transplants.

With Blue Cross, however, almost everything needs an authorization, which is typical with private insurers. It’s not enough to get a referral to a specialist. Say you have tongue cancer. You’re going to get oral function therapy that needs an auth. Speech therapy too. Nutrition therapy and physical therapy all need a special authorization. And BCBS isn’t one of the worst ones. Some of them require an authorization for EVERY SINGLE line item on a claim. So for instance, say you’re getting lab work. You need an auth for every single lab procedure, and even an authorization for the needle they use to draw blood! They do this because it is known that with SO many authorizations required, things are bound to fall through the cracks. So they can deny that part of the claim. In some cases, they deny the ENTIRE claim. I’ve seen a $30,000 claim deny because there was no authorization on file for an $80 port a cath. On October 1st, the start of the new fiscal year, BCBS is implementing a policy which requires even MORE authorizations. Say you’re getting chemotherapy; it’s not enough to JUST have an authorization for chemotherapy. There are different drugs used for chemo, and different doses. So in one session you may be getting 273 mg of etoposide, and another session 4mg of zoledronic acid. And these new rules require we have a specific authorization for every individual drug and every individual dosage. To keep up with these, we are going to have to hire three new people. And who is this expense going to be passed to? The patients. Because it’s not like BCBS is suddenly going to start paying us more even though rules they implemented are going to require us to hire more people. So explain to me again how Medicare requiring only one person to process, and BCBS requiring 9, even though we have roughly the same number of patients for both carriers, is more efficient.

The second issue I want to address is that socialized medicine will take decisions away from you and your doctor. This is ridiculous. My primary responsibility is to fight insurance companies who are denying patient’s care which their doctors say is medically necessary for them to live. Every hour, of every day, this is all I do. And there is no lack of work. I kill myself in overtime. We are talking top of the line plans that are the best that money can by, plans patients have paid thousands of dollars in premiums in. We tell them a patient needs radiation, or chemo, or what not, and they say no, they don’t. It’s not medically necessary. Even though the doctors say it is. The problem is that with the vast majority of businesses, profit margin is a GOOD thing for a patient, because in order to make a profit, the company must provide the best service available. But it’s not that way with health insurance, because every time you use their services, they LOSE money. They don’t make a profit by agreeing to pay for your very expensive chemotherapy. They make a profit by saying that it is not medically necessary for you to receive it, and they get to keep all those premium payments you’ve given them, but now don’t have to pay. This is a huge problem faced by people with chronic health conditions. The more expensive their treatment, the more likely their insurance will deny it. So then I appeal it. And the doctor has to take time out of their very busy day to write letters of medical necessity, and protocol reports, and do peer to peer reviews with the insurance medical director. And I have to fill out form after form and write report after report and spend months convincing insurance companies that the treatment a doctor says the patient needs is in fact needed. But often they still deny it, and the patient dies. OR, they just make sure the appeal stays in process for months, because then they can just wait out the patient. I have seen so many patients die while their case is held up in appeals. But with Medicare and Medicaid, it doesn’t matter how expensive the treatment is, they pay it. And do they pay at a lesser rate? Yes, but they PAY. The patient gets treatment. And often times we WILL get an authorization, oh but guess what, we bill the claim, and the claim gets denied. Why? Oh, no reason in particular, the insurance company just isn’t going to pay us. So then we appeal the denial. But who are we appealing to? Oh, the same people who denied us in the first place.

We lose millions a year in unpaid and underpaid claims. As we are a non profit hospital, we absorb as many of these denied costs as possible. Also, since we are non profit, if we have already started a patient’s treatment, we typically won’t revoke it. We won’t take on NEW patients whose insurances won’t cover them, but if you have been seeing us for awhile and suddenly your insurance starts denying your claims, we’ll typically still see you, and lose millions in the process. In for profit hospitals, these patients simply are cut off, and die.

Lastly there is the argument that health insurance is a privilege, and not a right, and that if you want it, well, just work hard enough to get it. But that simply doesn’t work, #1 for the reason I list above: many people with chronic health conditions are denied by their top of the line insurance. Another problem is that many people who can afford health insurance are denied it because of a pre existing condition, even though these are people who need it the MOST. It’s like saying that anyone who doesn’t live near public transportation shouldn’t be allowed to drive a car. It doesn’t make sense. Also a lot of companies are very loose on what they consider a “pre existing condition.” Let’s say when you’re 5, you get a benign tumor. As it is benign, the tumor is removed, they monitor you for a few years just to make sure nothing appears, and then that’s it. You’re done. There’s nothing wrong with you. Yet this benign tumor which has no impact on your overall health will often be reason enough to deny you coverage when you grow up and need to get your own insurance policy.

The other problem is co insurance. Every day I have to deal with patients who have done “everything right.” They worked hard, went to college, got a good job with great benefits. But then they got cancer. Now let’s say they need averting chemotherapy treatment. These sessions can cost up to $40,000 PER SESSION (and we’re a non profit so you know the prices are low compared to other hospitals). Now let’s say your insurance pays 80% of your chemotherapy. Even a middle class person is not going to be able to afford 20% of $40,000 when you are getting treatment every week or every other week. What about a bone marrow transplant? These cost around half a million dollars with the transplant and care. So let’s say your insurance pays 90%. How many people can afford 10% of half a million dollars? Every day, I have to deal with patients crying on the phone because they have the best insurance money can buy, and they still can’t afford to save their life, or the life of their child. But you don’t see this with Medicare and Medicaid. There are some co payments involved, but they are based on your wage, and aren’t a flat percentage. I’ve never had a patient who had to stop treatment because their Medicare wouldn’t pay for enough of their treatment costs.

And these insurances don’t have to worry about getting a bad reputation and losing clients to another company because of these denials, because ALL private insurances work like this. If you have a chronic health condition, it’s really a roll of the dice on whether or not you are covered. Maybe you will, and maybe you won’t. But you’re just as likely to NOT be covered no matter which insurance you chose, so the normal “competition” that operates in the marketplace to weed out bad companies which do not provide good enough services falls flat.

Now some of these patients go to other nations for treatment. Did you know that every year, thousands of Americans go to Canada, Mexico, South Korea, and India for treatment, because getting treatment there at the best hospitals in these countries and paying completely out of pocket is STILL cheaper than their co insurance alone here in America, or because their insurance has denied their coverage in America? If privatized medicine is so efficient, then why is it the most expensive in the world, EVEN WHEN identical services are being provided, so it’s not just a matter of it costs more in America because it’s “better.”

America is 27th in life expectancy in the world. We are 21st in infant mortality. The #1 reason for bankruptcy in America is medical costs, and plenty of those bankrupt people had the best insurance money can by in America. The idea that privatized medicine is better is a lie. And people who work in my field know it is a lie. That’s why my hospital, in conjunction with other top Boston area hospitals like Mass General and Brigham and Women’s and Beth Israel, are all lobbying heavily for socialized medicine.

In most industries, privatization is undoubtedly the way to go to deliver the best and most efficient service to a consumer. But health insurance is a rare but tragic example of how privatization actually leads to less efficiency, and less services.

"Evil progressives know it."

LOL, that is ridiculous. In socialized medicine, yes there is a longer wait for NON ESSENTIAL things, NOT for essential things.

I lived abroad, as a health care provider, and you know what, there was one case while I was in Ireland of a patient who died because they did not receive treatment in time for their cancer. And you know what? It made headlines around Europe. It was a national scandal and outrage. There were protests in downtown Dublin. Over one woman. Because it happens SO RARELY.

When I got the stomach flu in Ireland, saw a doctor that day. When my friend fell down the stairs and knocked out his two front teeth, they were fixed the next day. I worked in a hosptial over there as well, and I never heard of a case except for the one I illustrated above of someone with a serious health condition who died from lack of proper care. Yet my entire job in America revolves around people who are not getting treatment because of the authorization, denial, and appeal process.

You simply have no idea what you are talking about. Do you know how foolish you look in the foreign press? The Europeans are laughing their asses off at you because they know you are full of shit. Their are jokes about how the streets of their cities are lined with the victims of socialized healthcare. People WITH HEALTH INSURANCE in America die every day waiting for approval from their health insurance, and in Europe, this happens so rarely that when it does, it's a national scandal, and people lose their jobs over it.

And evil progressives want socialized health care? Oh yes, I'm so evil. I participate as a coordinator in Doctors without Borders. I spent two years living and volunteering with a team of doctors in orphanages in third world countries, all of these doctors were also socialized medicine advocates. Yes, those evil doctors volunteering to live in squallor for years at a time to treat orphans. We really are the epitome of evil.

but I want to add that I'm not hateful. I don't think any of YOU are evil. Just enslaved by propaganda and uninformed. But not evil.

Too bad Medicare and Medicaid are not financially solvent. Now I see why.

So you don't think we're evil, just stupid.

Thanks.

Evil Otto,

I don't think you're stupid. The Europeans do, but that's only because they're not aware of how much mis information Americans are given. I think the reason you think the way you do is not your fault, it's the fault of intense political lobbying by the insurance industry. They have put out so much false information that it is understandable why people who do not have first hand experience would think the way you do. That is why I put up my post.

"Too bad Medicare and Medicaid are not financially solvent. Now I see why."

Am I to assume by that comment that you think that it is a BAD thing that medicare and medicaid always allow medically necessary treatment, but private insurers do not? Because that would mean you are FOR health care rationing and FOR people being denied medically necessary service. Which doesn't make sense, because that's the main argument as to why socialized medicine would be bad.

I'm not saying single payor health care is perfect. It's not. It has its own problems. But the main arguments against it (denial of care, patients having to wait for necessary care, inefficiency) do not make any sense, because that is how the system works now with privitized healthcare, and to a much greater extent then what happens with socialized medicine.

Also "medicare and medicaid are insolvent'

Haven't you guys been saying that since it started after the depression? Socialized healthcare has existed for over 50 years in most Western nations, and for 50 years we've been told it's not financially solvent, and their system is on the edge of collapse. Yet that hasn't happened. And when I worked there, there were no signs of this happening.

If their system is so bad, then please answer me why when someone dies there for lack of treatment, it makes the news and people lose their jobs and the public is outraged...whereas here, this happens every single day. Every hour of every day, in my ONE hospital. we have patients denied cancer treatment. There: national headlines. Here: business as usual.

A poster above asked where would I rather be with a cancer diagnosis, in America or Europe? Well considering my entire area of expertise is coordinating oncology care, and as someone who has lived in Dublin and Boston and worked in healthcare in both these places, I think there are few people in a better position to answer this question other than me. And my answer is Europe, without hesitation.

I am delighted that HCE is saying (more eloquently than I) what the score is. While I have not been on the "provider" end of foreign healthcare, I have indeed been injured in one of the 'evil, socialist' countries, and was astounded at the efficiency with which I was given care. This is an uninsured (marginally inebriated) foreigner, and within 30 minutes I was patched up and sent on my way. with no bill, no headache, and a new perspective on the way america's healthcare works (or doesn't, as the case may be).

So, thanks HCE. That was an excelllent synopsis of the reasons I support the OCare initiative.

HCE, you are lying in so many ways that I couldn't begin to wade through your deceit.

Consider this: what if we returned to treating health insurance the same way as car insurance? Health care and car repair are both commodities, not rights. Expecting to have insurance that allows you to go to the doctor any time you want for anything and pay $20 is asinine, yet that's what people expect. It's to the point now that people demand to have it.

It's ludicrous, and people like you who clearly have no clue are part of the problem.

For example, if Medicare and Medicaid are shining examples of what we should work towards for the entire nation, why then do new patient forms at every doctor I've ever visited have the following:

Are you covered through Medicare or Medicaid?

If you answered yes, do you have supplemental insurance?

Heck, two years ago when I was searching for a family doctor I was told by everyone I contacted that they were not accepting any new Medicare or Medicaid patients. Luckily, I wasn't burdened with the government-run crap heaps.

But, you're in the non-profit arena, so it's not likely you'll see the problem with off-loading the costs of all health care and health insurance on to a government that is already massively in debt and running out of other people's money.

hardly my place to defend, but i find it interesting that 'cowlove' is saying that the one individual on this site that really does work on the sharp end of healthcare, and has stated in an eloquent and straightforward way what he sees, personally... is called 'asinine', 'decitful', and 'clueless'. Interesting level of hubris to contend that you know more than the people who actually do this for a living...

i kinda think that you are exactly the sort that HCE is talking about when he mentions those who are lacking information on which to base their decisions...

But Anonymous, I work at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. I have a vast amount of experience, I'm an expert, and hence, my opinion is worth far more than yours. You would be wise to be quiet and just listen to what I tell you.

Do you see what I just did there?

"America is 27th in life expectancy in the world. We are 21st in infant mortality" If you exclude gun deaths we rise much higher in life expectancy and as for infant mortality many foreign governments don't include stillborns or babies that die in the first few hours of life to gin up their numbers. So those statistics are BULL but we have a higher survival rate for cancer heart attacks and strokes than most nations in the world.

As for Ireland all my family lives there and my cousin is a Family physician. He has told me that if one of HIS kids got ill he would send them here for care as hospitals are a disaster there. Another cousin had have a growth on her throat removed, it was the size of a golf ball and she had difficulty swallowing before her surgery was scheduled. Since she was 20 and there was only a 10% chance it was cancer the wait was 6 1/2 months, thank God she is OK. My grandfather had a growth on his lip but since he was 89 he had to wait 1 year to see a dermatologist to have it removed, by that time it metastasized and he died a painful death from melanoma. Another cousin had a mole removed and sent to a lab where they refused to test it because it didn't meet the "government standard for malformation". Whatever the hell that meant and it was disposed of. Two years later he was diagnosed with melanoma and they had trouble treating it as the couldn't positively determine the source of the cancer. Hello mole!! They said they couldn't assume the mole was the source and he died at age 44 leaving behind a wife and 3 young kids. European healthcare is great if you do not become seriously ill. They hold lotteries so you can be assigned a family doctor and people have waited on line overnight to get a number in Britian for example.

I could go on and on, a cousin's child who can't get treatment for a severe stutter and speach impediment, no program space for a autistic child now age 7 (the child has had NO treatment to date), having to travel 21/2 hours for dialysis treatment because there is no space in any hospital closer including a medical center 20 min away.

Medicare reimburses quicker but the balance 20% of acceptable costs falls on the retiree. This means that without secondary insurance you pay actually close to 40% of the costs. I know seniors who had to sell their homes to pay for medical bills, doesn't cover prescriptions (you have to pay seperately for that coverage and you MUST buy the secondary coverage to pick up the rest of the medical bills not covered by medicare. Those costs are $312 a month for my mom),70 billion dollars underfunded, and at least 1 billion lost to fraud a year. Yep its a great system which will have its funding slashed to pay for the government run program per the Democrat plan.

I don't think you're stupid.

Yes, you do. "Enslaved by propaganda and uninformed" is not something someone writes when they have any respect for your intelligence, or for your opinions.

Tell me, why should you bother discussing this issue with us? If we're "enslaved by propaganda and uninformed," then there's no reason for you to respect anything we say. And there's no reason for me to respect anything you say.

The Europeans do,

I really don't give a damn what the Europeans think.

but that's only because they're not aware of how much mis information Americans are given.

Stop patronizing us. You think we're "misinformed" because we're not in favor of this bloated monstrosity being rammed through congress?

I think the reason you think the way you do is not your fault, it's the fault of intense political lobbying by the insurance industry.

Oh, how generous of you. It's all the fault of those evil insurance companies.

They have put out so much false information that it is understandable why people who do not have first hand experience would think the way you do. That is why I put up my post.

Do you have ANY FRIKKIN' CLUE how patronizing you come across? How arrogant?

cowlove - whereas you provided no data, HCE did. I was impressed with the candor and clear desire to communicate what he sees as the state of affairs. i choose to believe his word (epecially since i have observed some tiny sliver of data the does indeed support his stance).

whatever. the good news is that OCare will indeed pass regardless of the peanut gallery's vituperative whinging, and you will have something to whine about forever (even as it makes life better for millions upon millions of people). Meh.

The examples HCE provided were specifically my motive for asking him or her to re-examine the nature of health insurance in this country.

And really, you agree with someone who thinks like you, knock me over with a feather.

Maybe you didn't notice, but this bill is failing before it even arrives. It's killing the President's approval, destroying his political capital, and turning the Democrat party into whining jackals nipping at one another. You folks are doing more than we could ever do to oppose it. Thanks?

ANOTHER point I want to make is that you aren't even allowed to PICK YOUR OWN DOCTORS with privitized healthcare. There are a few indemnity and PPO policies with open networks, but for HMOs, nuh uh. You have to stay in YOUR "referral circle." It doesn't matter if a doctor or provider ACCEPTS your insurance, your insurance gets to chose whether or not you get to see them.

So for instance, we are the best cancer center in new England. And we accept Tufts insurance. But many Tufts plans will not allow Tufts patients to be seen at our hospital, which accepts Tufts. because they have to stay within their "referral circle" which is a very small network of doctors which the insurance company determines for you. We have people who live in the same CITY (Boston) as our facility and STILL aren't allowed to see us, even though we provide the best care and accept their insurance, because their IPA reviewer won't allow them go outside of their very limited network.

Medicare and Medicaid get to come to us from anywhere in Massachusetts or the other New England states, but not private insurers, if we are outside of their "referral circle" even if we accept their plan.

Don't you want to be able to receive the best care available? Don't you want to be able to go to the specialist YOUR PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN recommends as being best for your individual case, and not the specialist your insurance company assigns you?

Of course you believe his word, Larry (or should I call you Ghost of Wellstone?). YOU AGREE WITH HIM.

Oh, by the way, I love the taunting little line "OCare will indeed pass regardless of the peanut gallery's vituperative whinging" you threw in. Typical progressive. People's opinions don't matter... this will be passed for our own good, whether most people want it or not. It will magically make "life better for millions upon millions of people." Because, as we all know, government programs never make things worse.

ANOTHER point I want to make is that you aren't even allowed to PICK YOUR OWN DOCTORS with privitized healthcare. There are a few indemnity and PPO policies with open networks, but for HMOs, nuh uh. You have to stay in YOUR "referral circle." It doesn't matter if a doctor or provider ACCEPTS your insurance, your insurance gets to chose whether or not you get to see them.

Sigh. Lying, obfuscation, and outright ignorance. True story, HMOs are a government creation. Another true story, I can see any doctor I'd like. My insurance company may have a problem with it, but I can still do it. I can then shop for a new insurance company if I so choose. But of course, the government that created HMOs will do a much better job running health insurance and health care for the entire nation, right? RIGHT?

So for instance, we are the best cancer center in new England. And we accept Tufts insurance. But many Tufts plans will not allow Tufts patients to be seen at our hospital, which accepts Tufts. because they have to stay within their "referral circle" which is a very small network of doctors which the insurance company determines for you. We have people who live in the same CITY (Boston) as our facility and STILL aren't allowed to see us, even though we provide the best care and accept their insurance, because their IPA reviewer won't allow them go outside of their very limited network.

It sounds to me like people who have problems with their insurance company should shop around. Just sayin'. I'd like to have that option, wouldn't you?

Medicare and Medicaid get to come to us from anywhere in Massachusetts or the other New England states, but not private insurers, if we are outside of their "referral circle" even if we accept their plan.

Do you think being a non-profit has anything to do with this? Medicare and Medicaid are acknowledged, insolvent failures. So of course, we should create a much larger version, right? I mean, just because private facilities essentially require supplemental insurance if you're primarily insured under Medicare and Medicaid doesn't mean there's something wrong with the programs. It's obviously something wrong with the private facilities. They should do what they're told I guess.

Don't you want to be able to receive the best care available? Don't you want to be able to go to the specialist YOUR PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN recommends as being best for your individual case, and not the specialist your insurance company the government assigns you?

Yes, absolutely, which is why I'm vehemently opposed to the government's involvment in any aspect of my health care.

I swear, it is beyond me how seemingly intelligent people have such blind faith that our government can manage health care and health insurance for the entire nation when that same government can't even prevent Social Security from turning into the greatest Ponzi scheme in history.

But, that's sort of the point isn't it?

Political tags - such as royalist, communist, democrat, populist, fascist, liberal, conservative, and so forth - are never basic criteria. The human race divides politically into those who want people to be controlled and those who have no such desire.

-- Robert A. Heinlein

HCE - this is the problem with socialized healthcare in the US. Already in CA we have a massive problem with illegal aliens having babies in US hospitals and taxpayers are picking up the tab. Almost 2/3 of live births in LA country hospitals are to illegal aliens. They deliberately come to the US so they can suck off of the taxpayer's teat.

If we have socialized healthcare, that will be the catalyst for more illegal aliens to come to the US to get healthcare. And don't even try to tell me that they won't. If they come to the ER they will get treated as nurses and doctors don't play the immigration police.

My Mom was on medicare when she died. She was on private insurance which did quite well for her. After she got sick and could not afford insurance, she was relegated to Medicare. Shitty insurance and I know it was one of the reasons for her early demise.

My Mom a good woman was denied a liver transplant but some celebrity who fucked up his life drinking himself to death can get ahead of the line to get a new liver. Had my mom gotten a new liver she would have been alive today. Mom maybe drank 1 or 2 cocktails in her life, so it wasn't liquor that did it to her. She got a needle prick as an ER nurse, which gave her Hepatitis C, which eventually killed her.

Government screws up everything they do. Look at our public school system. Look at immigration or ICE. What a joke. Everything government touches is a complete disaster.

Remember a month or two ago when someone posted here that they worked in the health care industry and spent their days doing nothing but denying people health care? Since then I've heard some callers on talk radio shows claiming the same thing. No one can verify any of their claims as these people are completely anonymous.

I think there is a sophisticated campaign of disinformation going on. Some of the things this so-called "health care expert" says don't ring true with my experience. I'm in my fifties and I've known many people that have gotten cancer and I don't know anyone to ever have been denied what their doctor thinks is needed. Imagine if this were the case, that this person spends their day denying people healthcare. (This is exactly what the person that posted here the other month claimed as well - that they spend their day denying people health care.) Has this been anyone's actual experience?

If this were all true there wouldn't be anonymous people posting on websites and calling in to talk radio shows - all completely anonymous and unverifiable. The newspapers and magazines and TV would have huge exposes with real actual people who work in the health care industry and real actual people who are dying because they were denied treatment because their insurance wouldn't pay for it. Does anyone think that in this political climate that wouldn't be the case? News on this and first hand accounts from real people that can be verified would be 24/7 news right now.

This "health care expert" and I'm sure the anonymous poster are part of a sophisticated campaign of disinformation. This is what the Left does.

Some of the things this so-called "health care expert" says don't ring true with my experience.

Heh, what tipped you off Kevin? Was it the line about Americans leaving in droves to seek care in India?

Hce you have stated that you work in Mass. so how's that universal state healthcare going? It should be the best in the world considering it's put the state in over 1 billion dollars in debt. That's what you don't understand,in order for universal healthcare to work ALL other social programs would have to be eliminated or this country,that's already on the brink of bancruptcy,will fall into an unrecoverable tailspin.

They just released that Dodd has cancer, he IS pretty OLD, possibly he should have some of that counseling Barry wants' to give the seniors.... Byrd is right up there too isn't he!? Whatever they pass (and they WILL pass something) they should MAKE Congress be put on the same plan!

I don't see the mobs of Americans running off to Canada and Mexico (and INDIA?) for medical services they've been denied here, in fact what about all the Canadians that come down here? And the Mexicans? (I know it's for different reason) Holy crap! Everything is available immediately under socialist medicine, yeah right. I've been to various doctors and physical therapy nearly every day this summer, all for things I've just started treatment for. No cancer or anything that dramatic, but I've had an MRI and an epidural injection. The for-profit imaging place has an MRI machine waiting because they know they can make a profit with it, and bang! It's there for me when I need it. People were amazed that it was three weeks before my epidural. I sure wouldn't want to wait until next year before I could even get the MRI. I'm having a minor surgery next friday that I scheduled yesterday. Just because the doctor thinks I ought to, and we didn't have to ask anyone's permission!

"I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help." LOL.

yeah I purposely capped govt.

The best health care reform would allow Americans to buy insurance across state lines, undoing current government interference and allowing true competition in the market.

Mr. Dana Farber Cancer Institute:

I'm convinced you're a shill for socialized medicine.

You're obviously intelligent enough to be aware of the genuine horrors of medical care in Britain, France and Canada.

You don't have the excuse of ignorance.

But you choose, not to educate, but to propagandize.

The horrendous state of affairs abroad is exactly what will happen once government takes over healthcare and makes life or death decisions with no other objective than controlling costs.

With private healthcare insurance, (incidentally inflated by Medicare's outright refusal to pay entire costs of treatment, forcing hospitals to pad our bills to recover it) you have a dedicated appeal process and if all else fails, you can at least attempt to raise the funds yourself.

Under nationalized healthcare, if you are denied a drug or procedure, you have no appeal, no recourse and no hope...unless you have enough money to travel, as thousands do, to other countries like the...United States!

If you don't have enough money, however, then you quietly die.

A 22 year old Briton was recently denied a liver transplant by the NHS (the British government) because he had been a childhood alcoholic.

He died because some faceless inhuman apparatchik sat behind a desk in judgment of this youth's lifestyle. Did he think about giving him a second chance? Since when is alcoholism a crime punishable by death? (I've been sober 15 years.)

On the other hand, here in the US, you can find the story of an illegal alien who has so far received TWO liver transplants at taxpayer expense. Now tell me...which system is more in need of reform?

The NHS passed a regulation restricting access to treatment for macular degeneration until one eye goes blind. This is the example Betsy McCaughey mentioned in her interview with Fred Thompson.

What Ms McCaughey DID NOT mention, however, was the NHS revoked this rule, but NOT until 25,000 Britons went COMPLETELY BLIND.

Now do we want a medical system that watches people go BLIND rather than allow them to receive treatment under unjust, inhuman and draconian rulings?

There will be no difference in America.

cowlove,

1- "illegal aliens [...] deliberately come to the US so they can suck off of the taxpayer's teat".

Illegal aliens tend to pay more taxes because they usually come here at an age they can work. Plus, paying taxes is a prerequisite to maybe, one day, get the citizenship. They have a strong incentive in paying taxes, and they do. That's the big reason why the IRS does not share its list of taxpayers with Immigration: they would loose a LOT of money if they did.

2- "My Mom was on medicare when she died. She was on private insurance which did quite well for her. After she got sick and could not afford insurance, she was relegated to Medicare."

That's exactly the point. Private insurance does not like sick people, the one who actually need help. What's their incentive in helping your mom? When private insurance does not want to take care of your mother, who do you turn to? Out of pocket? Is that your solution?