Is this Dan Rather speaking? What's his source for this comment? Are we to believe whatever Dubious Dan says? With his track record, I would be skeptical that he even talked with anyone about facts on this. This has the stench of sensationalism hanging over it.

Dan retired last year..............:rolleyes:

I say again, is this Rather?

............well.........if it is Rather.........then we can't believe anything in the article........correct?

Tell the truth now, you didn't even read and understand the article before you stampeded to paste it ,did you?;)

Tell the truth now........"Rather" appeared in the article and you didn't even bother to read it............

like a crapshoot
 

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Hi Medmech,

When I hear that, I can only wonder why more US residents are not trying to get into Kanada.
We may have to wait for prceedures, but once you are IN the hospital, all is top knotch.
All you pay for is your bedside TV and cafeteria snacks when you can get out of bed to avoid the "airline food"

The parking lots were privatized at most hospitals... now you pay about $4 an hour to park..
With prices like that, you don't get much company and certainly no flowers.
( Of course, the doctors get to park for free in their segregated Mercedes lot. )

Should I be complaining?

Komrade Ron
from {Kanada)

I haven't read all the intervening posts, but first off, insurance that will cover basics and emergencies is not that high. Even if you can't afford the coverage, there are clinics that charge a minimal fee for fairly exhaustive services, and they aren't all in the ghetto, either. There is a system in place for people without coverage or between jobs. For some reason, many people choose not to utilize it. I'm a little more saavy to it than others as I worked as a social worker for many years, but we actually have a "socialized" health care system that many seem to be unaware of. Further, many pharmaceutical companies will provide medicine (like insulin) to you for free or at a very low cost if you apply to the company directly with the assistance of a doctor.

How would this work for someone who needs an emergency appendectomy................or.............falls victim to pericarditis..........and must be admitted to a hospital.........as has occured to me.

First of all they ALWAYS gave me a hassle about any little bill. They eventually would pay, but it always required a phone call, or a letter, or something from the doctor. They always dragged their feet before finally paying up. I assumed the post surgery payments would be no different.

I had a series of surgeries within 8 weeks. They did not pay, and I was sent a letter claiming they needed to “investigate the matter further” (something along those lines.) They tried to get out of the foot surgery by claiming it was a completely different procedure (that procedure of course was not covered within the first year of service.) My surgeon said it was “BS” and showed the procedure that was performed on me was different then what the company was now claiming . He showed me the code in the billing book (the insurance companies book no less) and I showed that code to the insurance company. Using their own book against them, I felt they would back down.

Instead they went back and asked for all my doctors notes from my primary physician. I had told my doctor (during an initial questioning) that I did not drink because I had abused alcohol in the past and had not drank for years. They used THAT as grounds to deny my coverage retroactively. They claimed they would not have insured me if they knew I had abused alcohol at any point in my life. So they told me I was canceled back to day one and all the bills would be reversed back to the doctors, anesthesiologists, hospitals, and so on.

When all the bills came in the were priced for a patient with no insurance. So even though I knew they were coming in, they were much higher then I had anticipated.

And we all know what a spotless record CBS has for properly vetting their stories now don't we.


Like the Bumper sticker says....... CBS - Rather Biased.


However that is not to say I don't think there isn't abuse going on there.....after my father died from cancer my mother got a bill for treatment that was done to him 2 MONTHS AFTER HE DIED. I'm not talking thats when she got the bill...thats when the bill said the expense was incurred. Needless to say she sent a letter to them telling them to just try and collect that one. She also told the insurance company that was a fraudulant claim against them and my fathers death certificate that predated that expense was proof enough and they said they would take care of it...

............incredible..........thanks for sharing..........care to divulge which HMO it was???

Two items.

First. My wife had a sever migraine a few months ago. I just got a bill from the Neurologist. I’m not sure who gets what and nor, at this point do I care. I have insurance and he only wants $49.97 but there are items on this bill that are beyond outrageous.

$126 to place a needle in the vein, $310 for a IV injection, $377 for the first hour of infusion therapy and $200 for the second hour, $451 for them to directly admit my wife t the hospital. The first item to me is by far the most ludicrous amount. $126 to jab a needle in. Insane.

Second. My mom fell in Berlin several years back and broke her elbow in several places. As I recall she ended up need 4 screws and 2 plates. She had surgery in Berlin and was in the hospital for 11 days. She had physical therapy, semi-private room … The bill my dad got was under $4,000. The care my mom was provided with was far better than anything she would have received here in the US. Do you honestly think a US hospital would keep here for 11 days? I’m having hernia surgery tomorrow and I’ll be home tomorrow afternoon. The bill is $6,700.

Our system sucks like big sweaty monkey balls.

IHC = Intermountain Health Care

There will be a special place in hell for them I hope.:P

You in the Ferry business or something? Not sure but that is what I thought. Anyways, if I want a ticket, it is say $5. however, if I am going to charter your boat for say 100 people, you might give me a ticket at $4. HMOs send customers to the institute. Joe Blow might never walk in to that place again. Who should get a better rate? Should I sell you product at the prefered price if you are buying a small quantity?

Further to that. If I have to make $100 and I have 10 clients, I make a $10 a client profit. However, if I have 10 clients, 5 of whom don't pay, I guess I will now have to make a $20 profit per client. We do have a lot of people who tap the ER because they have to see the patients and it costs much, much more to see a patient in an ER as opposed to a clinic. So, who makes up the difference? The paying client be it insurance or private pay. Since the insurance is bigger and can demand better rates, well, it falls down to the single private pay.

Since when should hospitals, doctors, etc, etc be running at a loss? It is a business, just like a computer business, export business, etc, etc. It exists to make money, plain and simple. If it doesn't, it should close up. You have the right to life, liberty and the PERSUIT of happiness. Go persue your happiness. It should not be a right. It should be a privillage. I have seen socialized medicine. When I went back there, I stockpiled all my drugs so that I can self medicate with advice from my wife.