Soaring costs force Canada to reassess health model

[bushwacked]

Perch, myself, WV

 

 

Edited June 6, 2010 by bushwacked

[Azazello1313]

Those charts are quite impressive but they need to be seen against a much wider background e.g. the rise in health care costs above wage increases, for instance. Seems obvious that would lead to declining out of pocket costs when expressed as a percentage of the overall spend.

 

well obviously health care costs have risen over wages, or other costs. the point of showing the graph is that, within that increase, all of that increased cost is going into insurance premiums (and gov't expenditures) -- which are tax sheltered, and for most of us, we don't really even know we are paying, because our employer pays it on our behalf, apart from our wages.

 

point being, consumers have become almost totally separated from the economics of their own care. the "free market" doesn't work because there is no free market.

[Yukon Cornelius]

 

That's all hot air. What about private health insurance changes any of that? Doctors willing to steal from the federal government suddenly become honest when dealing with BCBS? Why are marginal calls handled differently? Because Peter Suderman says so?

 

As the economy has declined, almost every major private insurer has seen a decline in memebership. Mainly because they are so expensive individuals can't afford to purchase them without employer assistance, which is also declining due to the economy. In addition, a lot of these insurers got hit by derivative losses making them even less profitable. Supposedly.

 

BCBS of Texas decided back in December of 2009 that the 2 year old did not need RSV shots one more year. The pediatrician disagreed and wrote an appeal letter. The pediatric cardiologist disagreed and wrote a letter. The pulmonologist disagreed and wrote a letter. I paid for a second opinion from a different pediatric cardiologist because a second opinion wasn't covered. Another letter saying one more year was medically necessary. Appeal denied. I've got 4 letters in my hand telling me it is an absoulte necessity that my daughter get these shots. And BCBS still wants it's monthly premium payment of $1,261.00.

 

So I'm now paying off the $8,000.00 worth of shots and still paying $1,261.00 a month to BCBS of Texas. Had I not elected to take on that burden, she would not have recieved the treatment at all. BCBS was still profitable in 2009 but not as profitable as they'd like because of decreased enrollment and bad investments. We are all taking it in the shorts I figured and she got her shots and I'm paying it off as best I can.

 

You can imagine my shock when I learned that while claiming the RSV shots were both too expensive and not medically necessary despite the 4 letters to the contrary, the c*unt at the top of BCBS of Texas got a 62% compensation increase to $8.7 million in 2009.

Club I have had my now 7 year old son denied medical treatment and have had to fight hard to get other things. Keep working hard for your kids as the medical establishment ,past the floor staff , do not.