The Biggest Health Care Purge in History is Abandoning Millions

[@robertcouch1675]

It really hurts to hear Tiffany say that she's a "contributing member of society" as justification that she deserves access to health care. Even if she wasn't, we all deserve to go see a doctor. No one should ever lose access be it because they were laid off from their job or because their state legislature kicked them off for nebulous reasons.

[@CyphDragon]

I live in Texas, and have been jobless for over a year now after I was told I was no longer needed at a 40+ hour a week freelancing job. I couldn't afford *any* of the marketplace insurance plans because I "made too much" and "had too many assets" to qualify for any of the subsidies. Now that I have no income through no fault of my own, I still "made too much" on my last tax return, and "have too many assets" to qualify for any kind of healthcare. My last income was over a year ago, and I *still* don't qualify for any kind of assistance...why? because I bought a house almost a decade ago when prices were more reasonable, but still really too damn high, and was only able to do that through a VA loan. I don't qualify for VA healthcare since I have no service-connected disability, and my 7 years in the National Guard weren't "active duty" for long enough to qualify. The entire healthcare system in America is completely fucked, and it only starts with for-profit insurance companies.

[@robertcouch1675]

@@CyphDragon as a fellow Texan, I'm so sorry that you're having to go through this. For as much as this country's funding that gets directed to the military, it's infuriating that access to the VA is so bound up in red tape and means tested BS. In my eyes, you dedicated your time to serve this country in some capacity and should have access to all benefits; full stop.

[@vg7985]

@@CyphDragonI get subsidies for coverage, however my $900/ month plan has $12k deductible and I have zero doctors in the network in my area. In general, this plan is only good for insurance company. It gives me no access to healthcare at all.

[@obiwanjebroni505]

well the shit part about that is the people affected are not the ones in charge so. pretty much none of that matters.

[@CyphDragon]

@@vg7985 you should see the full price without subsidies. I bet that plan costs around 2k without them, or more. It's been awhile since I've looked, but the last time I did I think coverage just for me that would include anything was somewhere around 3k a month, and it also had a really high deductible (but covered 1 visit a year for a physical, how generous!). I'm glad the "individual mandate" is gone, but I looked into the fines...it was far cheaper to just pay the fine for not having insurance than it was for even the cheapest insurance available on the marketplace. It's all a huge scam and costs us billions, but makes a handful of executives even more stupidly rich and let's them play doctor without any of the credentials...

[@garyholley3476]

I moved to Germany a year ago, my daughter had to see a doctor several times before having German Healthcare... not only did the doctor see her for free, the prescriptions were under $20. I did not realize how afraid I was of the American health care system until that moment.

[@edarcuri182]

We don't really have a system. What we have is government in the thrall of pharmaceutical companies and bureaucracies - including so-called private insurance and government "plans" - limiting what doctors can do. Who went to medical school? The doctor or the bureaucrat? There are medical practices that refuse to take insurance, work for their patients, and cost less. Who doesn't like that? Politicians who want your vote and ask for it while lying to you that the only answer is more of the same.

[@Novusod]

The American healthcare system is extremely flawed. It is mishmash of public and private insurance schemes. The public ones such as Medicaid are heavily means tested which means people get thrown off for it over minor rule changes or changes in income. Get a raise and then you can lose your insurance. It is perverse system. What America needs is a universal system of public healthcare like every other country in the world.

[@Brian4Liberty]

My sister-in-law was getting ready to spend a year in Germany. However, the tax cost to her is so great she is reconsidering. It's far cheaper to live here and pay for her healthcare, than to have German healthcare and pay German taxes on her income. TINSTAAFL.

[@scifirealism5943]

Yeah, it's messed up.

[@weekendnomad5038]

Just to see a doctor last week for my infected tooth was $120 for the visit and then $30 for the medication I have bills from the ER for over $1000 and I wasn’t even seen. All they did was take my blood pressure I’m scared to go to the dentist to get my tooth extracted because I feel like oral surgery is normally at least $3000 here Braces start at $3000 it’s just insane here A shot of stelara here is $25,000 Most people need them monthly for Crohn’s and if your condition is bad you’ll need two a month. Insurance will refuse you saying it’s not medically necessary. 😒 Everything here is ridiculously priced. I told my husband to just let me die if something happens that I have to be hospitalized I don’t want to come out of there with a 300k bill, that’s more than my house

[@spacecaptain9188]

Employers should not be the gatekeepers to healthcare. Everyone is entitled to healthcare. It's a goddamn human right!

[@ohauss]

In the civilized reaches of the world, employers have a keen interest in the health of their employees, because not being in good health means not being as productive, and sending someone with an infectious disease home for the day may prevent yet more employees being ill several days down the road.

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

Totally agree A job I worked for told me I could get healthcare insurance after a year. In the meantime I was on my own. A year later on that job, told me I could not get it, I would have to wait until the next enrollment date.

[@ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvaw4ehr]

the only reason it still is is because it makes it harder to quit, which makes it easier to abuse employees and underpay them

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

@@ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvaw4ehr Abuse is the right word It's like being held hostage on a job you hate , you stay there because you need the healthcare insurance

[@gregsandell]

These two parties are doing nothing to get single-payer health care. JFK said Med4All needs to happen, and 60 years later nothing.

[@llobe86]

This is disgusting and despicable.

[@KAMMD]

🇺🇸💙 Senator Ted Kennedy : Where does the greed end ! 🇺🇸💙

[@az55544]

Pregnancy is a choice. As long as you're not graped, it's a choice.

[@blahblahblahbloohblah]

@@az55544not in states where they ban abortion. Or when contraception fails.

[@marciamartins1992]

Birth control is only 50% effective.

[@WillowEtain]

We should file a class action lawsuit against the Governors of the states doing this. This is mass murder.

[@Noname-cn4ly]

Trump said he will cut Medicare when he gets sworn in…..so he and the rest of his republiCONS don’t really care about anyone but themselves. 😡😡😡

[@FUNKY_BUTTLOVIN]

I joined the Navy in 1998... It was never something I wanted to do at all, but being on my own right after high school, my options were either enlist in some branch of the military, or be homeless, the amount of money I could conceivably earn, no matter how hard I worked, would never be enough to live. But yeah, I was a Corpsman, the enlisted medical job, and worked in various medical facilities doing different things. Something I heard from many of my superiors in those days, who all worked in a socialized medical system, that worked parallel with the normal for-profit system, was just how obviously superior a socialized medical system was. It's the difference between a system that exists to provide health care, and a system that exists to earn money for some folks who are not there, not involved in any way, save for having some legal ownership over the facilities and structures of professionals. Profit is practically and legally the top priority at all times, and providing good medical care is a far second priority. Something people also don't consider is just how wasteful it is to even have to be constantly messing with one or more of a wide array of insurers... In some areas, like, with pharmacists for example, the VAST majority of your time is spent messing around with insurance, rather than doing something useful. Retail pharmacists back then made over $120/hour (who knows what they take in now) and that >$120/hour is being mostly wasted on messing around charging one insurance or another, or reaching out to them to override automatic denials, etc. It's a wildly wasteful system, tremendous waste, over half of the resources poured into the medical system, is profits and payments that have nothing to do with providing medical care at all. Things that can and should be pared away, jobs that serve no purpose, that shouldn't exist We can, should, and would have a better system at less than half the cost of the current one, if we only left the for-profit model. It is so wasteful and bad.

[@dedetudor.]

Yours is a great comment. Thank you for sharing your personal experience. This is a very serious nationwide problem.

[@meligoth]

A good start is having people realize that healthcare does not operate on a capitalist model, and never has. Then take a look that literally all the best hospitals are non profit.

[@FUNKY_BUTTLOVIN]

@@meligoth that's another thing I just remembered an anecdote about, from when I was working at a Navy hospital's inpatient pharmacy. This was a big hospital that occasionally dealt with amputations, reconnecting someone's lost fingers, arm, whatever. Arteries that feed tissues blood are deeper and larger, veins that take blood back to the heart, are closer to the surface, smaller, and more numerous. So its difficult to reconnect a sufficient amount of the veins, to bring all the deoxygenated blood out of the amputated limb. There is a single, great, elegant solution to this issue, using medical-grade leeches. They remove the blood that otherwise accumulates in the reattached part non-invasively, and they secrete anticoagulants, antibacterial chemicals, chemicals that allay inflammation, a whole bunch of stuff that evolved to keep their food supply healthy and happy But at least at time, while Naval hospitals would keep or otherwise secure a stock of medical leeches for use in such cases, there's just so little profit in LEECHES that for-profit systems just can't and don't have them. Why find a source of good, clean leeches that can do this job better than anything else, when your goal is profit? It is MUCH more profitable to attempt to get the same result by surgically implanting a mess of tubes deep into the tissues to drop out the accumulated blood, and then throw $2,000 worth of various drugs into that person's IV a day to mimic what a leech can do easily and safely A system that is built to profit just doesn't have tools available to it, that are not wildly profitable for someone, somewhere, to provide to them. So some of the best tools, just go unexploited

[@jerdonclar8655]

Many prisons are following the privatized model and they're also trying to do it to the public school system now too

[@meligoth]

@jerdonclar8655 my guess is that these places are state run, because healthcare in privately owned prisons are ridiculously awful! One can guess what non medically trained quacks are running a private school's nurse's office.

[@lovemoviesful2]

And they called themselves "pro-life", disgusting.

[@erkinalp]

they are actually "pro-birth"

[@carlcushmanhybels8159]

They're Pro-Life, as long as you haven't been born yet. After birth, you're on your own -- unless of course you're among the deserving-rich; those they'll help.

[@ombrezz7030]

@@carlcushmanhybels8159 How dare those babies not pull themselves up by their -bootstraps- diapers!

[@SipLeila]

OH, GIVE IT UP! THERE IS APPARENTLY A WORLDWIDE SHORTAGE OF BOTH DOCTORS AND NURSES. GO BACK TO SCHOOL AND GET A DEGREE AND HELP OUT!

[@glassycreek1991]

It was never about children. It was ALWAYS about controlling women.

[@PaulADAigle]

More proof that we need Medicare4All.

[@rightsdontcomewithpermits7073]

No we don't. I don't want to support No one that doesn't care about their health. And all them land whales in this video is a proof.

[@yolyrom7233]

Exactly

[@scifirealism5943]

Too much of a political risk.

[@PaulADAigle]

@@scifirealism5943 How much of a political risk when you consider every other country seems to have some sort of federal public healthcare?

[@scifirealism5943]

@PaulADAigle sorry. I meant to elaborate. The truth of our political values lies in the risks we refuse to accept. Medicare for all won't be implemented because the political risk is deemed too great. M4A would change healthcare even more than obamacare ever intended. On some level, this reveals that politicians do not deem it intolerable to deprive people of healthcare, much less affordable healthcare.

[@erikkennedy8725]

This is beyond the breaking point. The USA needs single payer, universal healthcare like every other developed nation already has, and we need it now.

[@edarcuri182]

I hope not. Have you seen the wait times and horrible outcomes in the UK, for example? Of course you haven't.

[@erikkennedy8725]

@@edarcuri182 and neither have you. Why don't you ask people in the UK if they'd rather have our system, and see how enthusiastic they would be about paying $200+ for insulin.

[@Yoraeryu]

​@@edarcuri182because of the push for privatization and lack of funding. it's the same in Canada, being scraped at on all sides by private interests

[@Brian4Liberty]

Singe payer universal healthcare does not create more doctors, nurses, hospitals etc. etc. It's a singular solution presented by "progressives" because it sounds good and is easy to sell. The vast majority of voters have no understanding of why our healthcare system is broken, and explaining the long complicated history of how we got here doesn't get votes. Not to mention the fact that both parties are completely beholden to big pharma and the medical industrial complex just like the military industrial complex. The fact is our tax and regulatory environment means health care providers don't market to individuals, but to institutions. That is the problem that needs to be solved.

[@erikkennedy8725]

@@Brian4Liberty you're not wrong, but how would you fix it?

[@akfeast9058]

Lots of working people with insurance cannot afford to go to doctor either

[@scifirealism5943]

Yep.

[@tnfitzhugh4905]

And that’s not alright.

[@dead2802]

​@@tnfitzhugh49054600 a month is what some man was saying he paid for 3 diff policies. He also said over half his bills were denied!

[@MistySprinkle-f4y]

Amen!

[@SamiMichelle]

I hole you meant this as “We should also talk about this issue” and not “These people don’t deserve healthcare”

[@X1Y0Z0]

😢😢😢😢😢😢 We put the hardest burdens on the poorest of us in US

[@mariamorgan3009]

😢

[@blammers]

Republicans will never let you forget how pro-life they are.

[@eringo-bragh4243]

Unless it's actually BEING pro-life, more lies but what do you expect.

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

Yeah, protect the unborn. But, forget about them after birth. Before Reagan there were all kinds of free healthcare clinics, or go by your income, pay what you can. The Health Dept had healthcare clinics and dental clinics that were for the poor. Now the Health Dept ask do you have health insurance. The Republicans cut out so much in healthcare in Tennessee, even more when Obamacare came along. Obamacare isn't worth spit Both parties suck

[@justinfowler2857]

Pro-lfe before birth. Afterwards you're on your own.

[@yasielromero8236]

Is what always comes to my mind. All these so called pro-lifr people are the same people against gun control, against universal healthcare, against expanding Medicaid for kids and babies, like come on, you are so against abortion but can't provide free healthcare for babies and pregnant women? Gtfoh with your bullshit hypocrisy and double standards

[@gregsandell]

Biden said he would veto Med4All if it came to his desk. Sure the GOP is a really bad party, but the Democratic Party is a bad party.

[@ShaeLaughter]

It so weird how Republicans love to step over dollars to save dimes. They need our children and our potential children to fulfill the workforce to ultimately fulfill their pockets. But yet let children and adults to perish because of lack of access to their imperative healthcare needs. Of all MODERN countries in 2020, the United States possessed the highest infant mortality rate at 5.4 deaths per 1000 live births, which is markedly higher than the 1.6 deaths per 1000 live births in Norway, which has the lowest mortality rate. It’s all due to subpar healthcare or the lack of healthcare all together.

[@Gamingpandacat]

They don't care, they already made enough money to last them a few lifetimes, by the time that matters they won't be around anymore and won't suffer the consequences.

[@TC-8789]

Did you mis-type and mean the highest mortality rate out of "western" or wealthy countries? It looks like Niger might have the highest right now out of all countries. Edit to add- i see the article you pulled that from. Actually click on it and read it because i think they mis-typed in the one paragraph google is previewing. For 2020, highest infant mortality rates were in places like Nigeria, Chad, Somalia, etc

[@ShaeLaughter]

@@TC-8789 Of course this is what I meant. It goes without saying. Of all modern countries with modern medicine we have an issue keeping our babes alive and then healthy. It would be silly to compare with the matter countries you mentioned. We can look at the percentages comparing the US to other (modern) countries and see where our children’s over health and well being. America comes in at 39th! That’s abhorrent. Now many factors are indicated in this index data including flourishing, survival rates, years of school, teen birth rates, maternal mortality, prevalence of violence, growth and nutrition, mental health and basic healthcare. We need to be better. We need to do better overall. We should have no excuses. “The greatest country on Earth” should do better.

[@Monkeyshine911]

Yeah but Norwegians have to stand in a line for 3 hours just to get an aspirin. And if they need surgery it takes over a year to get an appointment. Their low infant mortality and overall better health is due to their citizens not being woke sissies. Their kids fight through SIDS and stuff like that. (I'm just effing with you. I was doing my best trump supporter impression to show how stupid their arguments are)

[@thoperSought]

they'd much rather be a medium-sized fish in a *_tiny_* pond than a much, much larger fish in an ocean. without things like this to make people desperate, no one will be willing to clean their toilets for them.

[@NoNotThatPaul]

The saddest part of that video was that woman trying so desperately to justify why she should have health insurance. Everyone should just have it, no justification needed.

[@NoSacredCowFla]

I think Republicans need to explain to their constituents why they hate the working poor so much.

[@rhondapotter6989]

The problem is their constituents blame Biden for it and are almost brain dead to any wrong doings of their leaders. I have maga parents and they literally won't believe any of this is actually happening. If they do, they blame it on Biden.

[@campbellpaul]

*RFK24*

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

They have told their Lower Income and poor voters and shown them time and again they don't matter. The Republican politicians let them and everyone know that are in the corner with Big Pharma, Big Healthcare Insurance Corporations, and Hospitals with overcharging the citizens. Those big campaign donations to their party matter

[@meligoth]

Do you really think the political party where just about all of them come from affluent families and got into college through legacy programs, but pretend they are self made explain this mess?

[@middleagebrotips3454]

Because the poor don't donate to their campaign

[@MichaelSchultzSF]

Thank you so much for telling the stories that need to be told, in such an elegant way.

[@WanderingExistence]

We need single-payer healthcare and medical institutions run in a Cooperative manner. Cooperatives are run by and for members, and so they take care of their members better. Both workers and members deserve a vote.

[@TheZodiacRipper]

Keep the politicians out. Let the board of directors be of doctors and nurses.

[@deadcard13]

We could also do away with payment and make Healthcare a guaranteed right. I don't think anyone should be required to pay for food, healthcare, housing, or education. In exchange, the people who provide/facilitate those services should never be required to pay for anything they need.

[@jrho8033]

So many issues could be solved with Universal Healthcare. Every other developed has better access healthcare than America. Yet, Republican's will scream it too expensive. A.k.a. Their donors, wealthy insurance executives won't make a bigger profit next quarter.

[@campbellpaul]

*RFK24*

[@thepurplealpacca7353]

😊😅

[@The_Tiffster]

It's particularly gross that the very people they elected to protect their rights are actively destroying them.

[@1783W]

Delay, deny, depose

[@平和-v1z]

This is unacceptable, healthcare should be free for everyone, period.

[@lkfs55]

Why are the poorest supporting Trump?

[@williaml.baptiste3597]

I wonder that also!

[@campbellpaul]

because they're uneducated

[@campbellpaul]

*RFK24*

[@jrho8033]

Thanks to the internet, misinformation and propaganda is at an all time high. Republican's love the poorly educated, and want to keep it that way which is why they attack education whenever they can. They want to keep power, and lying and manipulation are the tools they use.

[@storbokki371]

They all aren't, but those that do are wage slaves in the oligarch plantation trained with fear and rage by right-wing media.

[@stevechance150]

The richest country on earth. We should be ashamed.

[@TheZodiacRipper]

You are not rich, you are in debt.

[@campbellpaul]

*RFK24*

[@RevShifty]

@@TheZodiacRipper At the scale of entire countries, let alone superpowers, debt doesn't work the same way it would for a simple household. We are the wealthiest country in global history, there is literally no reason why any of this should be a problem.

[@scifirealism5943]

​@RevShifty why?

[@SipLeila]

OH, GIVE IT UP! THERE IS APPARENTLY A WORLDWIDE SHORTAGE OF BOTH DOCTORS AND NURSES. GO BACK TO SCHOOL AND GET A DEGREE AND HELP OUT!

[@klawless2531]

Money absolutely has too much power in this world.

[@scifirealism5943]

Unless you have a star trek replicator, then that won't change.

[@alabaster2163]

Moron....morons... have too much power.

[@lkfs55]

Yet they say they are pro-life. They want them to have babies but they won’t help take care of them.

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

True. These Christian conservatives kill me telling people to marry and have children. Then when they do complain if a family of five or more needs help or food stamps They tell single young girls or women do not abort your baby. Yet, resent having them get government assistance or job training.

[@TheMysteryDriver]

That's where the pro personal responsibility part kicks in.

[@bobrooney5315]

They just want another generation of work cattle before they start automating everything.

[@nikkids4266]

Sadly, they’ve purposely designed the system this way. If you take away access to a woman’s and by extension, her family’s access to choose reproductive autonomy. You effectively create a cycle of generational poverty in families already struggling to survive. When you do that, you produce individuals who are only able to survive, not thrive. This means lower education, lower education means less likely to be fully informed civically minded. Guess what happens then? It’s designed exploitation. Make no mistake on that.

[@asdfasdfasdf528]

The more accurate term is "forced birth extremist"

[@princessjezimine]

This video was my reminder to check my coverage. I now am aware my form that will be used to try and snub me from coverage is going to come in a few weeks time. I wish we had a Supreme Court that would not let things like this happen sometimes. I wish we really did.

[@Athena-g712]

We haven't had a Supreme Court for anyone but the obscenely rich since "Citizens United", quite a few years back.

[@d1j16]

Cruelty IS the point!! -- gqp

[@patty4349]

Next step? Jailing women with no coverage who fail to get prenatal care.

[@Athena-g712]

I just wish people talked about all the women dying, in the red states, ever since the far right got their way with the Supreme Court

[@marciamartins1992]

Keep an eye on Texas, they are implimenting draconian punishment for pregnant women who wind up with problem pregnancies. These women need to scream for their lives in the media.

[@KaiLivi]

Sucks for our low income citizens and those that make just enough not to qualify.

[@gracequalls9770]

That's the worst one. I had to quit my job and find a part time job to qualify

[@ericawentz2734]

Even if you qualify republicans kick you off.

[@edarcuri182]

Yep, government "insurance" sets arbitrary limits. Yet, some refuse to read all of the problems of socialized medicine in places like Britain and Canada nor here in the US at VA or the execrable support given the Indian Health Service. Still, their solution is more government involvement! If drinking a gallon of whiskey didn't sure your pain, should you drink another gallon?

[@basilmemories]

​@@edarcuri182 Idonno, but if a gallon of whiskey didn't straight up kill me, then i'd check myself to see if i'd been turned into a cyborg... and if i had been, then i ABSOLUTELY would see what other foul concoctions my cyber-body can tank. otherwise, i'd immediately head to the hospital. But also, who on earth drinks a gallon of whiskey in one go? savor that stuff you barbarians.

[@GiftedGaz78]

The richest country in the world but the only one that doesn’t have free healthcare.

[@Athena-g712]

Stop saying that. We're the poorest developed country, if you're honest and don't go by the bean-counters of the rich. 80% of us live pay-check-t0-paycheck

[@marciamartins1992]

The USA prints its own money and gives it to the war machine in billions. Tell me again where does your tax $$$ go? Republicans are always crying about lack of money when it comes to peoples welfare. Pure lies.

[@brandirose3874]

​@@Athena-g712sure, but the government is rich.

[@Athena-g712]

@@brandirose3874 Go look up plutocracy, and you'll understand why

[@nicholasgallanis7539]

With the amount of money us uninsured folks cost the hospitals when we go to the ER when things become life theatening instead of a Dr. office for preventative care. Why are the hospitals NOT pushing for insurance coverage for all? Are the profit gains that much higher than the losses due to unpaid medical bills? Are they able to just write off the losses & pay less taxes that way? I'm just a farmer, so these are legit questions!

[@12pentaborane]

I'm not american but from what I've understood looking at this stuff a lot of hospitals are owned by insurance, United Healthcare for one, so the incentive is to only provide the most expensive and least covered care.

[@CaliNic30]

Short answer: Yes

[@davidcandido4602]

That rarely happens, because hospitals contract with collections agencies to destroy non-paying patients’ credit scores in retaliation. Also keep in mind that Inflating the price of healthcare does not (by itself) increase the cost of healthcare. The profit margins are large, especially for pharmaceutical companies with patented drugs. This probably more than makes up for the loss from patients who don’t pay.

[@frankgrabasse4642]

The issue is complex, but follow along. Before we get started the hospitals are largely non profit and the hospital-medical- pharmaceutical complex donates more money to politicians then the military industrial complex..... Now to the meat 3 patients walk into a hospital (or Dr office as the hospitals bought up all the independents) Patient 1: Medicare/medicaid covered. This is a large group of regular "customers" that you can count on every month. Prices set by the government, you don't really make money off them. But it covers the overhead. You know you will make payroll, leases on equipment, etc. Patient 2: the insured. This is the gravy. CT scan, blood work, enema. All done at ER. $25k the CT was a very small incremental cost as the nachine and operator was paid for by Patient 1. Blood work is cheap to do and automated, also it's overhead paid for by Patient 1. To prove this it is $2k+ at emergency room. Same test at Dr office done by same lab is $200. Enema is 15 minutes and done by nurse. The bill is $25k. But you have insurance. So they knock it down to $12k by negotiated pricing. Patient pays $2800 out of pocket. Insurance renegotiated the remaining $9k. They pay $2700. So less then Patient. If the Patient doesn't pay they send to collections. Ruin credit. Then drag you into court and attach wages or tax returns. Patient 3. 45yo man lives with his mom. Never held a job more then a few weeks. Cuts grass for beer money. Calls it a career. No reported income. Spends a week in the hospital because he caught an infection from living like an animal and not washing ass. Probably $90k bill. Pays nothing. Hospital looks him over. No money, no income, no insurance. They write it all off. Now they never expected to get $90k from anyone. Not Patient 1, not 2, not 3. But if insured they would have got.....$20k? But now they write off $90k!!! It's fake money. The number is huge so they can say "poor us, we help the poor". Then they get some money from the state/feds for helping some lazy entitled meritless goober. But what did it really cost the hospital? Patient 1 covered the facility's expenses. Doctors are often a separate bill, so they just get stiffed. And they need a write off anyway! So you see the system is designed this way intentionally. Any profit they make they launder by paying to top executives, use to buy up every practice or hospital around them, build unbelievably fancy buildings, etc. No taxes paid, they are nonprofit! And no pesky politicians thanks to the contributions and the fact that the ones with clout use a different insurance system. And the insurance doesn't care as they renegotiate what they pay after the fact. Plus they are guaranteed 10% because of Obama care...

[@edarcuri182]

Those are good questions. They are not being asked largely because people have the manichean view that we either have the current mess with private insurance or a government run "solution" that will a big mess, but the details will be hidden from us. We need to do, as you do, asking the questions.

[@miltonthegreat6520]

Amazing. As a Canadian -- someone who believes that taxes collected can help to build a healthy society -- I can't ever imagine seeing a pregnant woman without having easy (and free) access to healthcare services for her and her newborn child. Public healthcare works.

[@rebelyellmeh]

Pls tell the class how long you have to wait to see your doctor lol Edit: I’m serious because I doubt it’s any longer than what we have to do in the US but A LOT of people think public health care in other countries means you’ll die before you get to see your doctor.

[@edarcuri182]

Press reports in Canada don't support your Pollyannaish description. Women should get pre natal care and the fathers should pay for it or, at least, help with that and her other needs as her pregnancy continuers. Good men do that. There are resources in the US for women who lack support or who fear asking for help from the father. Unfortunately, the only solution ever offered is to add more bureaucrats to government to "fix" the problem. It doesn't fix it.

[@noreenebabb8266]

​I am Canadian that has lived in both America and Canada. If anything I get quicker help in Canada then I did in the US. When I lived in the US I had to decide if an issue was serious enough to pay to see a doctor so I would wait longer before seeing a doctor then I had to wait for referral to see a specialist, which can take months. In canada I know that any doctor visits are free so I will go see one a lot sooner and if it is an emergency or you are at high risk of further injury you could see a specialist the very next day. There is some wait when it is not an emergency but it usually takes about as long as waiting for a referral in the us does. @@rebelyellmeh

[@Trynatostayalive1234]

@@edarcuri182omg, please share these many resources, and I mean this genuinely! I’ll look some up myself, but yeah. Please do. Free contraceptives, free ultrasounds. Free checkups. If not, affordable ones. Please please share:)!! I’m getting a list together, and I’d love to share with others! Thank you 😊

[@Rene-uz3eb]

Sounds like a federally mandated program shouldn't be administered by states

[@brentwalker8596]

Republicans are all about states' rights. It is what it is.

[@missironmouse]

Why do we keep re-electing these awful people? Why are we electing people who Don’t want to help us? I’m baffled

[@RevShifty]

Low information voters, absurd information silos, and that goofy hyper evangelical fervor all play their parts.

[@donaldwilliams4019]

Gerrymandering is the main reason. Low education, mouth-breathing, religious bigots are the secondary reason.

[@roy4173]

If you must know, for the average person, it's difficult to make a case for sympathy for the poor person you don't know. And the weapon used to ensure the worst off continue to be abandoned is through scare tactics. People do not understand how capitalism works, so when they're told that expanding coverage means more taxation, less they get to take home for themselves, all to feed some lazy person playing video games, they believe it. It isn't until they become the "lazy person" through no fault of their own (because capitalism) do they realize how they had been lied to. Growing up in the south, there hasn't been many things I've seen my fellow Americans be proud of, but at least one thing has been consistent: rugged individualism. And it's been a bane to any attempt at progress.

[@deadcard13]

I'm sure gerrymandering isn't helping things.

[@campbellpaul]

*RFK24*

[@caracrabtree715]

Do they realize most jobs today don’t offer insurance and it’s unrealistically expensive. Most people who get assistance work full time.

[@TransitAndTeslas]

That’s the thing. They just don’t care.

[@waffles3629]

​@@TransitAndTeslas exactly, they know, they just don't care. I asked a relative who is very against social anything (he loves his low taxes but then bitches that he has to pay $500/year to use the local library, like hmmm, you know what usually pays for that?) what should be done about the people who can't get jobs with benefits because there are not enough jobs with benefits for everyone seeking them. He told me that the people who wanted them most and put in the most effort would get the jobs and everyone else would just need to try harder because they clearly didn't want it enough. Like yeah, I'm sure when 200 people apply for one job there was only 1 stand out candidate and everyone else wasn't trying enough. 🤦 Or they could've picked any of the top 20 candidates who were equally qualified.

[@scifirealism5943]

The real reason conservatives oppose welfare is because poor people won't work for slave wages if they have government benefits.

[@scifirealism5943]

​@@waffles3629just-world fallacy.

[@waffles3629]

@@scifirealism5943 very much so. I'm glad I don't have to talk to him much.

[@FLEABONE]

I live in Idaho, have been disabled and eligible for Medicaid and help with my Medicare premiums for over 12 years and was kicked off. Idaho kicked off thousands in a purge that wasn't just for Covid eligible people. They kicked off people who had just recertitifed, many found out at the doctor's office and emergency room(where I found out). Idaho's call center doesn't answer, you are automatically forced to wait for a callback if you miss that call you have to start again.

[@Karo-nr4ve]

Guess who voted on GOP governors, the poor Americans. Wake up GOP voters. means to love all persons, everywhere - not just our friends, allies, countrymen.

[@thoperSought]

the real solution is universality. just give it to everyone

[@christophercomtois7175]

Yeah, anybody else needed to take a day off of work to make calls just to keep the things you need to stay alive. This sucks.

[@Orycal29]

Another solid investigative story thank you! If it's at all possible could you look into certain states that are purging voters from registrations? How do they get to do this without setting off alarm bells BEFORE they issue the purge?

[@Gfish17]

French Revolution needs a repeat.

[@operatorodin1006]

Bring it

[@Gfish17]

@@Proud_Danish I DO Know. Let's do it.

[@operatorodin1006]

@@Proud_Danish don't worry he's in his late thirties and finally drank enough koolaid that he voted for the first time ever in 2020. Trying to be scary on the Internet.

[@jedibane]

@@Proud_Danisha lot of people die without revolution

[@campbellpaul]

*RFK24*

[@zlpatriot11]

Nationalize healthcare. Healthcare is a human right 🏥

[@63saruman]

All the wonderful, meaningful things that could be done if the military budget was cut.

[@CZpersi]

You do not need to cut the military budget. Access to universal healthcare system would likely repay itself in the higher tax revenue, generated by the healthier population.

[@kurisu7885]

@@CZpersi Still might not hurt.

[@cathybruce8692]

VOTE republican'ts out of office NOW! Don't wait for 2024! Start locally and work your way up!

[@ruthdorius2831]

a bit to late for this repost....

[@animeshthakur5693]

"Think of the children!" Well, I am now, thinking of how they'll be the reason for this atrocity which will affect them.

[@krisniznik3953]

In Washington, a state with a Democratic governor, one was supposedly able to continue coverage by phone when this happened, but when you called, you were transferred to a hold abyss that told you it would be 3-4 hours, and the machine cut you off after 2 long hours of hearing how much your patience was valued.

[@MostlyEnds]

Found out today. Lost medicaid after 13 years

[@andrewpierce1588]

Shame. What we get for the taxes we pay is criminal. And, if we can always afford a tax cut, why are my working-class taxes never cut?

[@dead2802]

last time I EVER got tax cuts was frm 2017 thru 2020 (got it in Jan 16 of 2021. For some reason, everyone I knew that didnt file super early like me didnt get a cut in 2021. Dont know why. they just didnt! But I turned mine in on Jan 8 2021 and on the 16th got a 46% tax cut. (said I didnt make enough to have to pay over that for the year)

[@RextheRebel]

As someone who is actually "pro life" I support universal healthcare.

[@Michelle-bn1fu]

Pro life is a made up political phrase. If more people end up dying in ani-women healcare states you can't call those states "pro life".

[@litac5433]

It's sad, because they vote for these governors 😮.

[@treytrey6011]

Socialism for the rich companies. Capitalism for the poor. This will only last as long as people vote against their interests. Learn to talk to poor republicans and explain what their vote does.

[@ralonglv]

Healthcare Is Trending December 2024, I wonder why

[@premiertrainingFL]

Not only do we pay an extremely high rate for our health insurance, we have to deal with them covering or not covering us when we actually become ill. It’s absurd, and unacceptable!

[@ohauss]

It's jeopardizing the health of more than those people who lost coverage: These people will now be ill longer and more often. The moment this involves infectious diseases, it means that they pose a greater risk to those around them. Totally aside from that, inasmuch as the people are issue are part of the workforce, it will affect their productivity to boot.

[@edarcuri182]

I agree. Here's the snare: insurance coverage is not the provision of medical care. They are related, of course, but conflating the two causes many to miss the most important alternative: Doctors who do not take insurance. Patient pay means longer Doctor visits, much lower overhead for the Doctor, and lower costs for the patient. Who wouldn't like longer more instructive visits at lower cost? When you know who, you'll know how to listen to the lies and know when you are being lied to.

[@JustMePamela]

Medicaid is taken from people who need it by people who have healthcare that the majority of Americans can only dream of having. Where else can you find the bosses having less than the people that gave them their positions?

[@gigaus0]

Why is this a state failure at all? This shouldn't be handled by state governments; it should be handled by the fed at all levels.

[@LeonaPrime]

This sounds suspiciously like Medicare-for-all you are suggesting.

[@edarcuri182]

Get ready for some long, long wait times.

[@Tna2aT]

This is why we need to know who we vote into office and what those running for office stand for, their voting record, get lobbyists and business people out to profit for themselves out of office.

[@edarcuri182]

Pharmaceutical companies spend five times as much on lobbying as defense industries do. They get what they want from politicians who will, then, lie to you telling you that what you need is for more government meddling in medical care. Some folks are fooled. A few of us are not fooled.

[@chloesibilla8199]

All elected officials should be forced to rely solely on government programs for at least a year of their tenure.

[@Justinforsure]

Elected officials should have the same coverage we have. Watch how fast everyone would get free healthcare.

[@edarcuri182]

@@Justinforsure I don't know to which elected officials you refer, but Members of Congress pay for their medical insurance and participate in plans that are also offered to other government employees.

[@edarcuri182]

You mean SNAP, for example? Try that. See who runs for office.

[@chloesibilla8199]

people who are already on snap and have nothing to lose. It would motivate them to bring the standards of these programs up .

[@elled10024]

And their kids should go to public schools They need to have vested interests in their communities Sarah Huckabee Sanders has taken public school funds and re-distributed it to Christian private schools She is a slime ball

[@laurabergman6674]

Means testing is evil. Everyone should have health care.

[@scifirealism5943]

The point isbto perpetuate poverty.

[@DJ_Force]

According to the latest research, it still takes a man to get a woman pregnant. Where is the father and why isn't he helping to care for the mother of his child? Why is it the government's responsibility?

[@dead2802]

Its the corporations. The psychopathic, narcissist, CEOs and execs, shareholders. Can be both left and right taking kickbacks/shares, payoffs, lobbying, etc. Most have NO POLITICS one way or the other. They pay themselves up to 50, 60, sometimes 100 million a yr add a bonus. But what I Have done, is made several calls to Ar governors office. A couple blue st govs, senators offices on All sides, and you have some Very VERY upset politicians now. Maybe you'd like to retract these lies! Your little woke-targeted people r getting very upset w being considered brainless zombies!

[@dead2802]

@DJ.Force. NOT directed at you in Any Way!

[@Trynatostayalive1234]

Right. So many men in the U.S have millions to spend on healthcare. I had no idea, omg. Poverty ONLY affects women and most men are super rich? This is great news for me! Thanks buddy

[@DJ_Force]

@@Trynatostayalive1234 Well, good news! I just saw another study that says pregnancy is 100% preventable.

[@kristentindle3075]

I love Stacey Abrams! Excellent reporting. Very informative

[@AlexFlockhart]

We no longer live in a democracy of people, we have a democracy of corporations. Even if 99% of people voted for something, it's the majority of wealth and industry that decides policies.

[@smc130]

So true!!!!!😊

[@skyebarkschat]

This is exactly why we #NeedBernie so much!

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

I don't get it. Well over 60% of American citizens want Universal Healthcare Insurance or Medicare for All when polled. Why aren't our sorry ass politicians listening?

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

@Detrumpificator4377 Well, do you think the American citizens will ever say enough?

[@bluehero-96]

And why Bernie needs a spine.

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

@@bluehero-96 Yes, he speaks well about healthcare for all. But, always chickens out in the end

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

@Detrumpificator4377 personally I think and feel it's all a game. These two political parties are like wings connected to the same bird (major corporations). When the Republicans have the majority they ram their laws down our throats. The Democrats can have the majority in the Congress and the Senate and still claim they are too weak to do a doggone thing. The Democrats claim they just can't ram it they need to get along with the Republicans

[@Tna2aT]

We need Medicare for all!!!

[@edarcuri182]

Medicare is broke.

[@frankgrabasse4642]

The issue is complex, but follow along. Before we get started the hospitals are largely non profit and the hospital-medical- pharmaceutical complex donates more money to politicians then the military industrial complex..... Now to the meat 3 patients walk into a hospital (or Dr office as the hospitals bought up all the independents) Patient 1: Medicare/medicaid covered. This is a large group of regular "customers" that you can count on every month. Prices set by the government, you don't really make money off them. But it covers the overhead. You know you will make payroll, leases on equipment, etc. Patient 2: the insured. This is the gravy. CT scan, blood work, enema. All done at ER. $25k! the CT was a very small incremental cost as the nachine and operator was paid for by Patient 1. Blood work is cheap to do and automated, also it's overhead paid for by Patient 1. Enema is 15 minutes and done by nurse who is already on staff and brutally overworked. The bill is $25k. But you have insurance. So they knock it down to $12k by negotiated pricing. Patient pays $2800 out of pocket. Insurance renegotiated the remaining $9k. They pay $2700. So insurance pays less then Patient. If the Patient doesn't pay they send to collections. Ruin credit. Then drag you into court and attach wages or tax returns. Patient 3. 45yo man lives with his mom. Never held a job more then a few weeks. Cuts grass for beer money. Calls it a career. No reported income. Spends a week in the hospital because he caught an infection from living like an animal and not washing ass. Probably $90k bill. Pays nothing or close to it. Hospital looks him over. No money, no income, no insurance. They write it all off. Now they never expected to get $90k from anyone. Not Patient 1, not 2, not 3. But if insured they would have got.....$20k? But now they write off $90k!!! It's fake money. The number is huge so they can say "poor us, we help the poor, we donate $$$$ in charity care". Then they get some money from the state/feds for helping some lazy entitled meritless goober. But what did it really cost the hospital? Patient 1 covered the facility's expenses. Doctors are often a separate bill, so they just get stiffed. And they need a write off anyway! Patient 2 was all profit. Patient 3 is a straw man argument to justify screwing patient 2 blind. Or heaven forbid if patient 3 wasn't some lazy bum and had assets. They would bleed him white. How many people in the US go bankrupt due to medical bills? Even with insurance. So you see the system is designed this way intentionally. Any profit they make they launder by paying to top executives, use to buy up every practice or hospital around them, build unbelievably fancy buildings, etc. No taxes paid, they are nonprofit! And no pesky politicians thanks to the contributions and the fact that the ones with clout use a different insurance system. And the insurance doesn't care as they renegotiate what they pay after the fact. Plus they are guaranteed 10% because of Obama care. And as long as the lazy version of patient 3 (or the recent immigrant version of patient 3) exists Republican voters will defend the status quo out of fear some average Joe might get ahead. All the while the system feeds on them like a tapeworm.

[@bizzmoneyb]

do we ALL now SEE WHAT REPUBLICANS ARE ALL ABOUT?!! "protect the unborn," but screw those already LIVING!!!

[@NextNate03]

Fun/Sad Fact: C-19 has never ended.

[@jamieciotti5783]

Can't pay for the "dreamers" and the poor at the same time. ....but we have almost a trillion for Ukraine ? Our priorities are wrong on BOTH sides.

[@janicewuitschick4599]

Too bad Stacy Abrams lost to miserable excuse for the Governor, Kemp.

[@zosa6403]

This is a crazy idea. Stop spending US tax payer's money of other nation's conflicts and use that money for Medicare and Medicaid.

[@michellesvintagelibrary]

They are going to send it to the rich in tax breaks.

[@TheAileZX2]

Once upon a time there was a biologist with a keen interest in furthering medical progress. He wanted his body to be donated to science, in order to further the good of humanity. He wasn't specific. And "for the good of humanity" like they loopholed, they used him as target practice for the US Military. This is the personality you're all trying to negotiate with.

[@TheAileZX2]

America, like Israel, has a strange hatred for itself between government and civilians.

[@eringo-bragh4243]

Don't think The Christ said to F over the poor

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

He never did

[@DtWolfwood]

The working poor who also voted for these politicians, because they say they'll help them but in secret make things worst. But the fact is these same politicians own shares in the media company that also don't report on these crimes against humanity. So what people hear and what their elected officials actually do are 2 different things.

[@MermaidmomUP]

The cruelty is the point. None of them care about us. Truly. 😫😡

[@tylerdurdin8069]

I face renewing my snap every 3 months. They make it where its never easy and you must have someone sign a paper verifying that I live alone. If I live alone who can verify that? Who will want to sign a paper for the government verifying something they can't naturally do. Then they will make arbitrary appointments to make appointments and these people aren't even the government. I feel like it's discrimination at the very least but also violates my privacy rights.

[@scifirealism5943]

The point is to perpetuate poverty.

[@Notfunnysam]

This is way outta control.

[@BrandanLee]

It's not a "glitch" it's a feature. The system exists because it needs to exist, and they can't get rid of it. But, they can implement policies that break it on purpose in obvious ways, masked as the fault of the public simply not understanding they need to jump through hoops on fire while tap dancing.

[@w8what575]

What I e noticed about health ins coverage and Medicaid is there’s more people on Medicaid now and that’s resulted in Medicaid paying providers even less for the services and more providers are refusing to accept Medicaid for any reason now….

[@VCV95]

Don't let them think it's only in Republican states. NYS has been doing the same shit with access to staff and help. I personally know. It's national and don't let them tell you otherwise. I say that as an extremely left person, too. They are all trying to eliminate the poor problem in one way or another.

[@davehaggerty3405]

Any bets on how many of those people voted republican?

[@Osgood913]

Yes both parties suck. But I'll always choose incompetent over evil.

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

These primary political parties know that they suck. That's why they both proclaim that voting for an independent politician or 3rd party is throwing away your vote. They live in fear of independent parties

[@RevShifty]

Yep. I'm absolutely not a Democrat in any way, shape, or form. But there are only two viable options, and one is as close to evil as I've ever seen. There isn't even a decision, really.

[@waffles3629]

​@@RevShifty yep. I'm a registered Democrat only so that I can at least try to get the candidates that suck least on the ballot.

[@kathleenhack]

Yep, I'm living in Texas and my great grandson is due in January 2025 and my granddaughter was taken off Medicaid. She hasn't seen a doctor for months and has is considered with a pregnancy risk. I'm horrified, I'm hoping she doesn't have to give birth at home.😢

[@janetbaker7848]

Why on God's green earth are we still talking and debating on whether people should have Healthcare or not?

[@Dr.pikachuu]

😢

[@Puzekat2]

Florida purged children this year. Medicaid gave us 15 days notice. I thought that was not enough time. I am shocked that they only gave us 15 days notice.

[@msKita43]

Who is here after UHC

[@ThomasSchwartz-km2nf]

Health should always be an emergency.

[@JosephHHerrera]

Quit voting for people who are doing this. Make sure to vote for your interests. Make sure your friends and family do this as well.

[@operator0017]

That's the new America, see what happens when you don't pay attention to your state, county and government officials and who they are!

[@thereare4lights17]

we need a national single payer health care system. Enough of this health crime system.

[@lightbringer2938]

Do not vote for any politician who does not in writing support universal single payer healthcare.

[@dkf119]

Force birth yet no means to take care of them.

[@paulaweadon8130]

There is no excuse for every single American to have health care!!

[@misterwill3625]

This is another example of why voting always matters.

[@AlbyMarz]

This happened to me in Florida! They just dumped me. I lost coverage for a month. Couldn't get treatment, medicine, etc.

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

So sorry to hear that. Hell I can't even get that , medicaid or disability

[@AlbyMarz]

@@leilanigreenwood5064 my disability case has been ongoing for 5 years! Fun times !

[@johnnyarm3181]

The fact this country just lets people die is so insanely depressing. I'm worried I have a soft tissue sarcoma in both of my hands and I can't afford to get it checked out even WITH INSURANCE. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I already pay $450 a month for insurance but I still have to pay to go to a doctor, a colonoscopy would of cost me $2,200. Wtf am I supposed to do

[@edarcuri182]

There are doctors across this country who do not take insurance. They charge much less and work with patients to help alleviate the burdens of higher cost procedures. They are the real doctors. They are out there and increasing in number. Their costs are much lower and their fees reflect that.

[@johnnyarm3181]

@@edarcuri182 this is a bulllllshit lie.

[@tradeprosper5002]

Cologuard or a similar test is 90% effective at much lower cost.

[@akfeast9058]

If you are a 1099 employee you can get inexpensive healthcare based on your income. If you make more you pay more But you still have skin in the game

[@bryangary2270]

And the really sad thing - ask these red state residents who just got kicked off of Medicaid for no actual reason who they plan on voting for in 2024? Trump.

[@maryanncrody4867]

When I went on disability I got 15 dollars over the limit so I was kicked off I had to pay over 400 dollars of my under 1900 dollars a month. God helped me

[@victoriaborzillo4893]

These governers are disgusting. Vote BLUE.

[@campbellpaul]

*RFK24*

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

Both parties suck! Even when the Democrats have the Congress and Senate as the majority nothing gets done about healthcare. No mention of Universal Healthcare Insurance, Medicare for All. The Democrats only tease about it when campaigning promising to do something about it if they get elected. The Republican politicians let you know it's not going to happen

[@TheHuxleyAgnostic]

​@@leilanigreenwood5064 You need a supermajority, to get something through the senate, that no Republicans support.

[@leilanigreenwood5064]

@@TheHuxleyAgnostic Neither do the Democrats. Didn't the Democrats just have the majority in the Congress and the Senate? Well, they didn't do anything Both parties suck

[@bluehero-96]

Yeah, vote blue so they can vote red. That's working out so well, so far.* *sarcasm

[@tammyowens7776]

the govt will not make universal healthcare available because they own stocks in those companies that support the system. it could be quite logical to have a basic cost per service set up, where health care providers have the fee for every service listed , this way we don't need to ask a health insurance company for permission to get an xray... xrays are not expensive, its old technology. we also can have a lot more drugs over the counter... we have high costs because of all the middlemen involved who take profits.

[@sharonannrees2824]

It boggles my mind in November each year when the archaic system of enrolling and renewing healthcare. Between that and all the drug ads for ailments unknown to me, I know for certain I’m watching American tv. We have no such worries here in Canada.

[@annemurphy8074]

We will if people are dumb enough to vote in Pierre Poilievre and his Christian Taliban PC party. They want to get rid of democracy, human rights, regulations, social safety nets of all kinds, just like the GOP in the US.

[@rockerjim8045]

as a UK citizen who has traveled around the US on road trips I have noticed one thing that you never get home. Staying in motels I loved to switch on the TV just to see what garbage programs they have. The thing I noticed was the incredibly number of medical Adds. They all had the same theme. “Tell your Doctor and ask for X” followed by a legal disclaimer for 1000 issues.

[@sharonannrees2824]

@ You’re absolutely right. Here in Canada we get much US tv and the number of ads for medication and medical insurance are so obvious.