Personally I do not like employer provided health insurance

[question everything]

First, it ties employees and employers together even when such a tie has long outran its usefulness. Since, as we are getting older and add family members to our policy we also generate "pre existing" conditions that make it harder to apply for a new coverage. And then, of course, there are exciting opportunities at start up companies that cannot afford BMW-style coverage that an established corporation can.

Second, we have no say in type of coverage - and health care providers - that we have. It is our employer who negotiates the contract and often we have to leave a long trusted physician because he is no longer in our "network."

Mostly, for me, is the lack of privacy. An employer can and does request copies of payments by the insurance company. No, it will not detail the treatments or the illness but, say, you live in a community where only one OBGYN provides abortion services. Everyone knows about it. And your employer sees that this OBGYN submitted a claim on behalf of a female member of your family. Is it really your employer's business who you and your family member see? No. But s/he does.

Having said all this, I am glad that MA, and perhaps even CA are forcing employers to offer insurance coverage. Perhaps this will convince more of them to vote for Democrats who push for universal health care.

This is what was so disappointing in the "60 minutes" story about GM. Instead of complaining that cars made in the U.S. - but not Canada and Japan - cost $1400 more each because of GM-provided health care, one would hope that Rick Wagoner would join other corporate presidents to push for universal health care.

[endarkenment]

1. Me neither and I'm self employed.

It truly sucks. Friggin expensive. Plus I get screwed on rates. UHC would fix this just fine. Medicare for everyone.

[democrat_patriot]

3. You've never lived in Canada or England than...

Ask anyone form those countries if they like the UHC. We need to fix what we have, but is UHC the way?

[question everything]

4. I've heard that the French and German systems are good

but, of course, neither joined us to force "democracy" down the throats of the Iraqis

[endarkenment]

9. Canadians overwhelmingly support UHC

as do the Brits, which is one huge reason why the tories, who underfunded england's healthcare system, were relegated to political obscurity. Glad you brought those cases up.

By the way americans, by over 60%, support UHC.

[Inland]

2. Additional points:`

Employer provided insurance usually sucks, as it is part of an ERISA plan and ERISA basically suckerpunches the insured by giving huge discretion to the insurer to decide what is insured under the plan.

Employer provided insurance is a huge tax break, and it needs to be compared to a single payer system.

GM has found it easy to just move a plant across the Detroit River. Seems that socialist Canada provides a better atmosphere for business that a employer insurance tax benefit.

[Yupster]

5. I'm against employment related health insurance

simply because it ties a universal permanent need (health insurance) to a temporary activity (employment).

That just doesn't make any common sense.

If it's a universal permanent need, then it needs to be provided through a universal permanent body which would be the government.

It will be eventually. It's the only system that really makes sense.

[Skidmore]

6. All I know is that when I lost my job in March, we were sent a

note letting me know that I could pick up COBRA coverage for the dental insurance which I carried. My husband works in the same place I worked and he carries our health insurance. On the table sent to me regarding COBRA coverage, it was noted that we could continue the same coverage for health insurance, if we needed to, for almost $900 per month. We are now living on $1800/mo., with a third of that going to our mortgage. Tell me how we would afford that type of coverage if we had to pick it up.

[SmokingJacket]

7. Yes, COBRA's a joke.

When I was leaving my job to have a baby, I sat down with my hr person to discuss COBRA -- and while I can't remember the numbers now, they were completely ridiculous. Because my husband was self-employed at the time, we ended up getting a high-deductible catastrophic plan -- which was expensive enough.

[question everything]

8. COBRA often has too many bells and whistles that only an

employer can provide - and deduct as expense. For example, we do not always need maternity and pediatrics coverage.

Call your local Blue (Shield, Cross or both), you should be able to pick an individual policy - unless you have "pre-existing" conditions at about $200 a month, with $1000 - $1,500 deductibles.

That's how got out of the employer-provided coverage and stayed as an individual even though both of us went through different employees that offered it.

Good luck!