Bushs health care plan------employers may drop the benefit.

[rodeodance]

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/26/opinion/26fri1.html?ex=1327467600&en=390acd49ec87562e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss


...........But the main drivers in rising health costs are the costly services, high-priced drugs and hospitalizations for people who are seriously ill with catastrophic diseases or multiple chronic illnesses. Making their health coverage less generous would simply make it harder for them to get the care they need.

The greatest risk in the president’s proposal is that it would seem likely to lead many small- and medium-size employers to stop offering health benefits altogether on the theory that their workers could buy affordable insurance on their own. That would leave many more Americans at the mercy of the dysfunctional individual policy market, where administrative costs are high and insurers strive to avoid covering people who are apt to become sick and need costly care.

For all its fanfare, Mr. Bush’s plan would be unlikely to reduce the ranks of the uninsured very much. And if things went badly, it could actually increase their numbers. That’s not the answer Americans are waiting for and not what they deserve.

[sutz12]

1. Republican health care plan......."Don't get sick." nt

[unblock]

4. the real republican health plan -- self-insure

i.e., be really, REALLY rich.

[barb162]

9. the system is so super broken I think it's not fixable anymore,

Five yrs ago I thought it was. Not any more

[salin]

2. "greatest risk" ?? No - that is the MAIN Point!

Pressure from business to get them out of the healthinsuring business and bush responds with an Orwellian program sold as a way of expanding insurance coverage with a plan almost assuredly like to greatly expand the ranks of the uninsured. It's Intentional!

[Dracos]

3. As usual he is full of shit

all talk no action say what the people want to hear the hell with the truth.

[Lurking Dem]

5. This plan has as much chance of passing Congress

as a proposal to eradicate all campaign funding.

[KT2000]

6. tax dollars

already contribute to the advances made in medical treatment. More and more though, these treatments will be available only to the wealthy.
The new treatments coming down the line will be astronomically priced - bioengineered treatments, at many thousands per month.


Looks to me like the rw has come up with yet another plan for the masses to serve the wealthy.

[prolesunited]

7. Try getting insurance on the open market

if you have any type of pre-existing condition(s). I have high blood pressure, allergies and asthma. In the past, tests have show elevated cholesterol and high blood-sugar levels. (Basically, I have metabolic syndrome.) Who's going to write a policy for me?

All of these conditions have been well-controlled through medication and lifestyle changes. I've never been hospitalized for any of them, but the risks for any insurer are clearly there.

The MUCH greater risk is to take away my access to medical care and medication. Annual blood tests, more frequently if something's out of whack, help me keep everything on track. Without my allergy and asthma meds, how long before I end up in the ER. Without my BP meds, how much greater is my risk for stroke? Who's going to take care of me if I don't fully recover.

One of the major problems is so many people lack access to basic care and medicine. What about preventative screenings before problems escalate? Meds to treat diseases so a crisis doesn't develop.
We would spend FAR less as a nation if everyone had access to basic levels of care.

[barb162]

10. The pricing is ridiculous if you can even get the private policies.

Unless you're young and very healthy

[barb162]

8. yeah that's a bad side effect of the "plan"

VERY BAD