A question for anyone living in Sweden, about socialism

[madgar]

The U.S. needs socialized medicine badly. Even when I got my medical insurance through work (which cost me $112/month) I had to pay over $30k out-of-pocket when I had to have surgery. Last year the company dropped the medical insurance all together and decided to give $120/month towards buying your own policy. Thanks to this I now have to pay $236/month for even worse insurance than I had before. I am definitely in the upper-middle class, but if I was to have to have surgery or have an accident in the next few years I would be financially screwed. Capitalism has clearly failed in this respect. I would gladly pay an extra few percent in taxes to not have this worry.

I feel your pain but, think about it. Lets say you have a procedure which costs you 20k$. Right now, its your procedure so you have to pay. Under socialized healthcare, that ammount has to be distributed amongst all taxpayer ( thats not fair because its not their surgery, they are basicly paying and not recieving a service), but what about the guy who has cancel and spends amillion dollars on meds/procedures, all the people who will not go in for ever cough and sneeze because it has the illusion of being free. Now, instead of paying for your 20k$ surgery, you are sharing the coast with people who have even higher blls than that, so there is no guarantee that you wont be paying MORE than you would have if you just paid FOR YOUR OWN INJURIES. IMO


I think we need health insurance reform, but me (a healthy person who ses the doctor maybe twice a year) should NOT have to front the bill for your surgery, I should not have to pay for illegals to get free healthcare.

And I will not.

The high cost of health care is pure capitalism though. They are a purely for-profit industry.

I consider myself a fairly healthy person too. I did manage to go for over 30 years with nothing but yearly check-ups which I often didn't bother with when younger. It only takes one incident to really screw up the finances. It is highly unlikely anyone will go through life without having some sort of medical crisis.

[sgreger1]

The U.S. needs socialized medicine badly. Even when I got my medical insurance through work (which cost me $112/month) I had to pay over $30k out-of-pocket when I had to have surgery. Last year the company dropped the medical insurance all together and decided to give $120/month towards buying your own policy. Thanks to this I now have to pay $236/month for even worse insurance than I had before. I am definitely in the upper-middle class, but if I was to have to have surgery or have an accident in the next few years I would be financially screwed. Capitalism has clearly failed in this respect. I would gladly pay an extra few percent in taxes to not have this worry.

I feel your pain but, think about it. Lets say you have a procedure which costs you 20k$. Right now, its your procedure so you have to pay. Under socialized healthcare, that ammount has to be distributed amongst all taxpayer ( thats not fair because its not their surgery, they are basicly paying and not recieving a service), but what about the guy who has cancel and spends amillion dollars on meds/procedures, all the people who will not go in for ever cough and sneeze because it has the illusion of being free. Now, instead of paying for your 20k$ surgery, you are sharing the coast with people who have even higher blls than that, so there is no guarantee that you wont be paying MORE than you would have if you just paid FOR YOUR OWN INJURIES. IMO


I think we need health insurance reform, but me (a healthy person who ses the doctor maybe twice a year) should NOT have to front the bill for your surgery, I should not have to pay for illegals to get free healthcare.

And I will not.

The high cost of health care is pure capitalism though. They are a purely for-profit industry.

I consider myself a fairly healthy person too. I did manage to go for over 30 years with nothing but yearly check-ups which I often didn't bother with when younger. It only takes one incident to really screw up the finances. It is highly unlikely anyone will go through life without having some sort of medical crisis.

Im just saying that socialized or not, Dr's are still going to need to get paid, Pharmaceutical companies will still sell for a profit, and this involved a HUGE cost, plus the admin costs added since gov is running it, then you have to pay a tousand beurocrats to run the thing. I think it will end up being more expensive as a whole if socialized (obviousely because tehre will be more people getting care), and whetehr they have a healthcare tax or they jsu raise taxes on ciggarettes and gas and everything else its going to cost us. It will give them carte blanche to tax anything and claim its to pay for healthcare, which is their new excuse for why they are raising taxes on cigs here in US.

[sgreger1]

"The high cost of health care is pure capitalism though. They are a purely for-profit industry. "



Since when is making a profit bad for the country? It helps the economy, gdp, creates jobs etc. I think maybe a little more regulation on insurance companies etc but I think that the incentive of making a profit is why people go to med school, why people invent world changign pharmaceuticals, why people have invest money into research and developement etc


I just dont trust the government to do a better job than the private sector, bottom line. Also, this is why people come to America for medical care, because if they have the money, they ca get the best. Thats capitalism

[Eidekker]

and we just gave close to a billion dollars to Palestine (read as Hamas). What kind of strategy is this???

EU also pays millions for the Katysha rockets of Hamas, or at least supplies it with "emergency aid" of sugar and fertilizers to help them make propellant for them..

What I don't understand is why US keeps giving Israel billions of dollars a year..

According to the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise (AICE), from 1949-2001 the U.S. has given Israel a total of $94,966,300,000. The direct and indirect aid from this year should put the total U.S. aid to Israel since 1949 at over one hundred billion dollars. What is not widely known, however, is that most of this aid violates American laws. The Arms Export Control Act stipulates that US-supplied weapons be used only for "legitimate self-defense."

[madgar]

"The high cost of health care is pure capitalism though. They are a purely for-profit industry. "



Since when is making a profit bad for the country? It helps the economy, gdp, creates jobs etc. I think maybe a little more regulation on insurance companies etc but I think that the incentive of making a profit is why people go to med school, why people invent world changign pharmaceuticals, why people have invest money into research and developement etc


I just dont trust the government to do a better job than the private sector, bottom line. Also, this is why people come to America for medical care, because if they have the money, they ca get the best. Thats capitalism

There is nothing wrong with making a profit. The issue is that they are making profits that would put any other industry to shame or out of business. 1 hour under the scalpel shouldn't cost more than a house. The government wouldn't be doing the job. They would just be regulating it and paying the bill.

[TBD]

The U.S. needs socialized medicine badly. Even when I got my medical insurance through work (which cost me $112/month) I had to pay over $30k out-of-pocket when I had to have surgery. Last year the company dropped the medical insurance all together and decided to give $120/month towards buying your own policy. Thanks to this I now have to pay $236/month for even worse insurance than I had before. I am definitely in the upper-middle class, but if I was to have to have surgery or have an accident in the next few years I would be financially screwed. Capitalism has clearly failed in this respect. I would gladly pay an extra few percent in taxes to not have this worry.

So instead of paying your own bills, I should have to pay part of it? I don't think so. How is that fair?

What we need to do is kill the insurance companies and government funded health care. The whole problem is since someone else is paying the bill, drs. hospitals and such overcharge for all their services. Eliminate the fraud and waste and costs will go down.

[superdevil]

The U.S. needs socialized medicine badly. Even when I got my medical insurance through work (which cost me $112/month) I had to pay over $30k out-of-pocket when I had to have surgery. Last year the company dropped the medical insurance all together and decided to give $120/month towards buying your own policy. Thanks to this I now have to pay $236/month for even worse insurance than I had before. I am definitely in the upper-middle class, but if I was to have to have surgery or have an accident in the next few years I would be financially screwed. Capitalism has clearly failed in this respect. I would gladly pay an extra few percent in taxes to not have this worry.

So instead of paying your own bills, I should have to pay part of it? I don't think so. How is that fair?

What we need to do is kill the insurance companies and government funded health care. The whole problem is since someone else is paying the bill, drs. hospitals and such overcharge for all their services. Eliminate the fraud and waste and costs will go down.

You've hit the nail on the head. Back in the fifties/sixties, you didn't need insurance. Doctors visits, hospital visits, prescriptions, etc- it was affordable to all but the most financially destitute American.

Failure to cap the spiraling greed of pharmaceutical companies, health care professionals, and insurance companies helped get us into the mess that we're all in now. Instigating Socialism is not the answer. Look at Canada.

[sgreger1]

US-supplied weapons be used only for "legitimate self-defense."

Theres the reason right there, Israel is one fo our only allies on the planet and defending against constant terrorist attacks is considered self dfense, so therefore not illegal.

[sgreger1]

[quote="madgar"]

" The government wouldn't be doing the job. They would just be regulating it and paying the bill.

As per their track record, we know that anyone who they give money too is micromanaged and ran by them, allowing them to set salaries and fire executives as they feel necessary. Once they have the power they willnever let go.

[sgreger1]

[quote="TBD"
What we need to do is kill the insurance companies and government funded health care. The whole problem is since someone else is paying the bill, drs. hospitals and such overcharge for all their services. Eliminate the fraud and waste and costs will go down.[/quote]



Boom, right there. That is the solution. They are artificially high because they know whatever they change the insurance companies HAVE to pay under law. Just make all medical services affordable, and no insurance is required. Its like when your car breaks down or your tire pops, you just pay for it, it costs a couple hundred bucks, and didnt cost a trillion in taxpayer dollars to run the system which fixed the tire, only good old free enterprise and a free market with fair pricing determined by supply and demand, the John Wayne American way.

[Condor]

I just think its scary to think of your doctor as a federal employee :shock:

[TexDis]

Israel is one fo our only allies on the planet...

Huh?

USS Liberty, Jonathan Pollard, Lawrence Franklin, Steve Rosen, Keith Weissman, AIPAC, AEI or neoconservatism itself ring any bells at all?

[superdevil]

I just think its scary to think of your doctor as a federal employee :shock:

Do you think its any stranger to think of the people that build Chryslers or Chevys as federal employees?

[TexDis]

What I don't understand is why US keeps giving Israel billions of dollars a year..

Careful. It is a thoughtcrime to question that "special relationship".

In Europe, it could send you to prison.

[Sal1000us]

Israel is one fo our only allies on the planet...

Huh?

USS Liberty, Jonathan Pollard, Lawrence Franklin, Steve Rosen, Keith Weissman, AIPAC, AEI or neoconservatism itself ring any bells at all?

Good catch TexDis