Just been dealing with the pharmacy and our health insurance

[xiphias]

Can anyone give me an example of ANY problem that we'd have with socialized medicine that we don't have right now with our current health care system?

I mean, if I'm going to have to go through byzantine, bizzare, arbitrary bureaucracy and have to bang my head against walls and argue with people to have simple, commonsense health care taken care of, I'd like to at least know that it was available to everyone.

Comments

[bimmer1200.livejournal.com]

I'd say you being dead is a downside, yes.

Why would you be better at it than a pencil pusher? Precisely because it would be your life on the line. I think you're perfectly capable of picking a doctor or other health care provider that will meet your needs.

I did make a presumption though, that if someone has insurance of some kind from their work, they'd be able to use that money for an HSA. Or to choose their own healthcare instead of having to go with what their employer provides.

Another point I didn't make is that if someone with an HSA takes money out for non-medical purposes, they'd have to pay an income tax on it. As benefits of this kind are currently taxed, that additional revenue could be channeled into helping people who are having trouble. You well know I'm not fond of taxes, but I'd find that tolerable as a) the subsidy is self-selecting b) the self-selectors are people taking risks of their own choosing.

I'd also presume that necessary medical treatment would be provided as it is now. The problem with socializing systems like this is that it doesn't bring the people at the 'bottom' up, it just drags the people in the middle down and makes it even worse for the people at the 'bottom' and I don't think that helps anyone.