4 ms·

One ambulance trip can easily cost $8,000. Now you are down to $20,000 for the year - hope you didn't have any kids. But the point isn't whether $28k is livabl

by pekk 14y ago

One ambulance trip can easily cost $8,000. Now you are down to $20,000 for the year - hope you didn't have any kids. But the point isn't whether $28k is livable in Nebraska, but how it compares to what people used to get back in the day.

WimLeers 14y ago
Honest question: does that still cost $8,000 under Obamacare?
- slindsey 14y ago
  FWIW, I used to work on an ambulance and when the person didn't have insurance the cost was $500, not $8000. Not sure what we billed insurance though. Oh, and if they couldn't pay, we didn't follow-up. They were sent one bill and that was it.
  - Spoom 14y ago
    I've always heard that was because medical debt was legally very difficult to collect, true?
- antidoh 14y ago
  What's Obamacare? My life hasn't changed. And when Obamacare kicks in, my healthcare life will still be fundamentally managed by insurance companies, with somewhat changed regulation around the margins but still extremely profitable.
  - rayiner 14y ago
    The margin on health insurance companies is like 8%.
    - tptacek 14y ago
      You have to be careful there, because some of the largest consolidated insurance providers are nonprofits that are incentivized to maximize overhead (to the benefit of internal executives and managers). The ones that aren't have to compete with the ones that are.
      - rayiner 14y ago
        Very true.
martinced 14y ago
So screw it. I'm sorry but we can't constantly let the price of medicine / medical care drag down the world's economy as a whole. "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by one year if you have a cancer and it cost $20 000, let's offer everyone this". "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by two year if you have a cancer and it cost $100 000, let's offer everyone this". "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by three year if you have a cancer and it cost $100 000 000, let's offer everyone this". "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by four year if you have a cancer and it cost $100 000 000 000 000 000, let's offer everyone this". Where do you put a limit of what's acceptable? In the end it all comes down to death tables and one day politicians and everyday people will understand that. If 99 persons can live decently with $28 K and the hundredth one can't pay the $8 K ambulance, so be it. Because, in the end, it all comes down to death tables and we can't allow totally overpriced and unjustified crazy high medical (and related) cost, like a $8 K ambulance trip, ruin down the entire world's economy. Also it would be nice if these arbitrarily high medical price ween't constantly used as a form of intellectual terrorism justifying more and more debt creation.
- Sumaso 14y ago
  If only it were as simple as pill = dollar = life expectancy. All I have to say is I'm happy to live in Canada and don't worry about these things.
  - bconway 14y ago
    Glad I don't have your taxes, though.
    - micah63 14y ago
      I love our Medicare system (Canadian) because it creates a peaceful feeling of reassurance. You show your Medicare card and you are good to go, no paperwork, no bills, nothing. It's hard to explain that feeling, the hospital is not a scary place, it is a safe place. It's there to help you. You just go to the doctor when you are sick, no big deal. On average, we pay roughly 30-40% Income Tax. The less you make, the less you are taxed. If you make less than $38,000 in my province, you would pay something like 24% (15% federal tax + 9% provincial tax - http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/fq/txrts-eng.html http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/fq/txrts-eng.html). And if you make more you get taxed more, but it's reasonable. Honestly, when you grow up here, you just get used to it. It comes off the paycheck just like retirement savings and employment insurance, and you don't think about it. I'm a proud Canadian, equal healthcare for everyone is a value we share and I think it's worth paying for.

by pekk 14y ago

WimLeers 14y ago

Honest question: does that still cost $8,000 under Obamacare?

slindsey 14y ago
FWIW, I used to work on an ambulance and when the person didn't have insurance the cost was $500, not $8000. Not sure what we billed insurance though. Oh, and if they couldn't pay, we didn't follow-up. They were sent one bill and that was it.
- Spoom 14y ago
  I've always heard that was because medical debt was legally very difficult to collect, true?
antidoh 14y ago
What's Obamacare? My life hasn't changed. And when Obamacare kicks in, my healthcare life will still be fundamentally managed by insurance companies, with somewhat changed regulation around the margins but still extremely profitable.
- rayiner 14y ago
  The margin on health insurance companies is like 8%.
  - tptacek 14y ago
    You have to be careful there, because some of the largest consolidated insurance providers are nonprofits that are incentivized to maximize overhead (to the benefit of internal executives and managers). The ones that aren't have to compete with the ones that are.
    - rayiner 14y ago
      Very true.

martinced 14y ago

So screw it. I'm sorry but we can't constantly let the price of medicine / medical care drag down the world's economy as a whole. "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by one year if you have a cancer and it cost $20 000, let's offer everyone this". "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by two year if you have a cancer and it cost $100 000, let's offer everyone this". "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by three year if you have a cancer and it cost $100 000 000, let's offer everyone this". "We've got this medecine that shall raise your life expectancy by four year if you have a cancer and it cost $100 000 000 000 000 000, let's offer everyone this". Where do you put a limit of what's acceptable? In the end it all comes down to death tables and one day politicians and everyday people will understand that. If 99 persons can live decently with $28 K and the hundredth one can't pay the $8 K ambulance, so be it. Because, in the end, it all comes down to death tables and we can't allow totally overpriced and unjustified crazy high medical (and related) cost, like a $8 K ambulance trip, ruin down the entire world's economy. Also it would be nice if these arbitrarily high medical price ween't constantly used as a form of intellectual terrorism justifying more and more debt creation.

Sumaso 14y ago
If only it were as simple as pill = dollar = life expectancy. All I have to say is I'm happy to live in Canada and don't worry about these things.
- bconway 14y ago
  Glad I don't have your taxes, though.
  - micah63 14y ago
    I love our Medicare system (Canadian) because it creates a peaceful feeling of reassurance. You show your Medicare card and you are good to go, no paperwork, no bills, nothing. It's hard to explain that feeling, the hospital is not a scary place, it is a safe place. It's there to help you. You just go to the doctor when you are sick, no big deal. On average, we pay roughly 30-40% Income Tax. The less you make, the less you are taxed. If you make less than $38,000 in my province, you would pay something like 24% (15% federal tax + 9% provincial tax - http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/fq/txrts-eng.html http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/fq/txrts-eng.html). And if you make more you get taxed more, but it's reasonable. Honestly, when you grow up here, you just get used to it. It comes off the paycheck just like retirement savings and employment insurance, and you don't think about it. I'm a proud Canadian, equal healthcare for everyone is a value we share and I think it's worth paying for.