Category Archives: Health Care

More On The Laws Of Economics

Posted on July 31, 2012 | 6 comments

I’m reading an article for an upcoming post when I came across this:

We have a shortage of every kind of doctor, except for plastic surgeons and dermatologists.

It strikes me that plastic surgery and dermatology are both examples of medical “care” not subject to insurance and the accompanying government regulation.

And the prices of plastic surgery?

 

From the report:

Cosmetic surgery is one of the few types of medical care for which consumers pay almost exclusively out of pocket.  Even so, the demand for cosmetic surgery has exploded in recent years.  According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 1.7 million cosmetic surgical procedures were performed in 2008.  That is more than 40 times the number performed two decades ago (for example, 413,208 in 1992).

Despite this huge increase, cosmetic surgeons’ fees have remained relatively stable.  Since 1992, medical care prices have increased an average of 98 percent. The price of physician services rose by 74 percent.  [See the figure.] The increase in the price of all goods, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI), was 53 percent. Yet, an index of cosmetic surgery  prices only rose only about 21 percent. Thus, while the price of medical care  generally rose almost twice as fast as the CPI, the price of cosmetic surgery went up less than half as much. Put another way, while the real price of health care  paid for by third parties rose, the real price of self-pay medicine fell.

When exposed to the free market, commodities and services will respond with cheaper prices and higher quality.

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Posted in Economics, Health Care

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Obamacare’s Taxes And The Impact On Jobs

Posted on July 29, 2012 | Leave a comment

Romney says that he knows why jobs come and why jobs go.  Obama doesn’t.

Barack Obama feels a sense of charity.  And he thinks that government should act on that charity.

Are there people who get sick or hurt and can’t afford their care?  Well, by golly, the government should step in and perform that charity.

But when he realizes that people respond in rational ways, he becomes confused and then angry.  “Why won’t people just DO the right thing?  Why won’t they accept the added burden of Barack’s charity and continue to hire?”

An Indiana-based medical equipment manufacturer says it’s scrapping plans to open five new plants in the coming years because of a looming tax tied to President Obama’s health care overhaul law.

Cook Medical claims the tax on medical devices, set to take effect next year, will cost the company roughly $20 million a year, cutting into money that would otherwise go toward expanding into new facilities over the next five years.

“This is the equivalent of about a plant a year that we’re not going to be able to build,” a company spokesman told FoxNews.com.

He said the original plan was to build factories in “hard-pressed” Midwestern communities, each employing up to 300 people. But those factories cost roughly the same amount as the projected cost of the new tax.

“In reality, we’re not looking at the U.S. to build factories anymore as long as this tax is in place. We can’t, to be competitive,” he said.

This is why companies move jobs overseas.  The government forces the price of labor to the point that such labor isn’t competitive.

By the way, to answer the question above, “Why won’t they accept the added burden of Barack’s charity and continue to hire?”  I suspect that he would say that they are greedy.

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Posted in Economics, Government, Health Care, Politics: National

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The Nature Of Health Insurance

Posted on July 19, 2012 | Leave a comment

The nature of health insurance is to protect us against the risk of requiring medical care.  If we get hurt or sick, we have the mechanism of insurance to protect us.  Depending on our individual circumstances, we purchase different kinds of policies.  The very young may choose a simple plan that protects against only the most extreme costs.  Those of us who are more likely to require care may purchase a plan that accommodates those contingencies.

But it’s all about managing risk.

After the supreme court upheld Obamacare, we have moved from insurance protecting us from risk to insurance offering prepaid medical care.  When an “insurance plan” covers office visits, routine tests and other incidentals, we are nt paying someone to take the risk from us, we’re paying someone to give us medical care.

And what happens when that happens?

Raleigh, N.C. — The University of North Carolina system requires all students to have health insurance coverage, but the cost of a plan the system offers has more than doubled in two years.

The insurance requirement started in 2010, and about one-third of students on the system’s 16 university campuses buy their policy through UNC’s provider, New York-based insurer Chartis. The rest of the students have other coverage, usually through their parents.

The average cost of the Chartis policy started at $695 a year, but it rose to $847 last year. Tuition bills that are now arriving in student mailboxes for the 2012-13 school year include a $1,418 health insurance premium.

Why the rise in prices?  Greedy insurance companies?

Bruce Mallette, the UNC system’s vice president for academic and student affairs, blamed the increase on a high number of claims by students on the policy.

“It was a very affordable plan,” Mallette said. “If you look nationally, the pricing we had in the first two years was very, very competitive, and students utilized it and utilized it and utilized it.”

Right.

People demand value.  When they’re forced to buy something they don’t want, they’re gonna use it.  And by using it they raise the price.  The next guy, not wanting to be left behind, uses HIS policy.  It’s a spiral.

Consider a table of 10 people having dinner.  They agree to just “split the bill 10 ways.”  The first guy orders a BLT.  The second a steak, the third wants a bowl of chili but senses that he’s paying for the prior two guy’s high priced meal – so he too orders steak.  And so on.

Prices are going up folks, not down.

 

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Posted in Economics, Health Care, Politics: National

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The Cost Of Health Insurance

Posted on July 8, 2012 | 2 comments

I am reading the morning’s internet today.  As usual these days, I’ve come across a lot of health insurance stuff.  And it got me to thinking.  If we’re now going to allow individuals to wait until they get sick to purchase health insurance, and force companies to sell insurance to folks with pre-existing conditions AND make it illegal to adjust premiums based on an individual’s health risk, there is only one thing that can happen.

The price will go up.

So, I’m gonna try and track the cost.

Right now, the laziest and best historical example I have is from a September 2009 post where I was discussing the healthcare debate:

Ah, here’s one.  $5000 deductible, Office visits are free after the deductible.  0% coinsurance.  149 a month.  Oh yeah, and you can have an HSA.

Another:  $5000 deductible, $15 office visits and 0% coinsurance.  $229 a month.

One more:  $1250 deductible, office visits are not covered and the coinsurance is 20%.  $253 a month.

I was quoting from ehealthinsurance  The above example is for a 52 year  old man in Greensboro, NC who doesn’t smoke.

Let’s see what that costs today.

$5,000 deductible, 0% coinsurance, Office visits are free after deductible:

$132.00 per month.

Before Obamacare is implemented, the price of insurance has gone DOWN $17 a month.  However, it seems to be on a policy by policy basis.  The $1,250 – 20% – No Dr. visits plan?

$292.00 a month.

Now, how expensive in insurance for a 30 year man in the same ZIP?

The plan that offers $5,000 – 0% -No charge after deductible?

$62.24

The plan with the lowest deductible that is the cheapest looks like this:

$2,500 – 30% – $40 office visits:

$99.40 a month.

First, insurance isn’t that expensive today.  I may not be very happy with a plan that offers a deductible as high as $5,000, but remember, we’re crafting a policy that protects against the #1 liberal complain, medical care shouldn’t force someone into bankruptcy.  And a brake at 5k will do just that.

Let’s watch the policies in Greensboro’s 27403 ZIP code.

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Posted in Health Care

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The Mandate And The Cost Of Insurance

Posted on July 8, 2012 | Leave a comment

Let’s set aside the debate on whether or not the mandate represents a penalty or a tax.  In many ways, it doesn’t matter; the bill was made law, the law was challenged and the law remains the law.

A question occurred to me as I was watering failing to save my flowers Saturday:

Given that individuals are offered the choice of purchasing health insurance or paying a penalty, and that penalty is paid to the federal government of the United States, what will this do to health insurance premiums?

The answer is, of course, “Insurance premiums will go up.”

Individuals will make a value based decision on whether or not to purchase insurance or pay the penalty/tax.  The problem comes into play when you consider that the organization making the determination, and receiving the money, of how much that penalty/tax will be is NOT the same organization that is required to insure people who decide not to purchase insurance.

In short, the insurance company has to cover uninsured individuals while the government keeps the penalty/tax.  What this means to the insurance companies is that they have to cover uninsured people for free.  And since coverage of medical costs isn’t really free, they will have to raise the rates of everyone to cover those costs.  As those costs rise, more and more Americans will conduct value propositions and conclude that purchasing insurance isn’t worth it.

And costs will rise.

And costs will rise.

And costs will rise.

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Posted in Economics, Government, Health Care

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Romney On Obamacare: It’s A Tax

Posted on July 6, 2012 | 7 comments

There was a big decision last week.  The Supreme Court ruled that the AMA was constitutional under the ability of congress to tax.  Republicans, and I, jumped on this to claim that Obama broke his pledge to raise taxes.

Initially, Romney claimed that the AMA, Obamacare, was not a tax but rather a penalty:

In an appearance on MSNBC’s “Daily Rundown,” Romney strategist Eric Fehrnstrom was asked whether Romney agreed with last week’s Supreme Court ruling.

“The governor believes that what we put in place in Massachusetts was a penalty and he disagrees with the court’s ruling that the mandate was a tax,” Fehrnstrom said.

When pressed by host Chuck Todd about whether Romney supported calling the financial burden placed on Americans who choose not to buy health care “a penalty or a fee or a fine” rather than a tax, Fehrnstrom replied: “That’s correct.”

However, governor Romney has changed his tune, to one that sounds more true:

GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney attempted to clarify his campaign’s position on the individual mandate, calling the provision a “tax” days after his top adviser said otherwise.

“The Supreme Court has spoken and while I agreed with the dissent, that’s taken over by the fact that the majority of the court said that it’s a tax and therefore it is a tax,” said Romney in an interview aired Wednesday on “CBS This Evening.”

This happens to be what I think.  Obama never meant this to be a tax.  He adamantly denied it was a tax.  It never would have passed had it been a tax.  It clearly was meant to be a mandate under the commerce clause.  However, that is not how the supreme court saw it.  To them, the mandate is a tax, therefore, legally, it’s a tax.

 

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Posted in Government, Health Care, Politics: National

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Did I Mention That Obama Is A Liar – When A Tax Isn’t A Tax

Posted on June 29, 2012 | 33 comments

Last night, in bitter disappointment, I posted that our President lied to us when he claimed that Obamacare wasn’t a tax.  Scott Erb and Nickgb called shenanigans.  The claim is that when Obama was claiming that his law wasn’t a tax, he believed it.  Only later did it turn out that he would be wrong and the court would strike down the law based on the commerce clause and uphold it under congresses ability to tax.

Certainly valid points.  But what is Obama’s administration saying now?

The White House and the Obama campaign today insisted that the individual mandate in the president’s health care bill is a “penalty,” not a tax, despite the Supreme Court’s ruling to uphold the law under Congress’ taxing power.

“For those who can afford health insurance but choose to remain uninsured, forcing the rest of us to pay for their care, a penalty is administered as part of the Affordable Care Act,” White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters aboard Air Force One today.

“You can call it what you want. If you read the opinion, it is not a broad-based tax,” he said, stressing that the “penalty” would affect 1 percent of the population, based on CBO estimates. “It’s a penalty because you have a choice. You don’t have a choice to pay your taxes, right?”

Obama isn’t going to call this a tax.  It IS a tax, that’s the law.  As he sends his administration and his campaign out saying that it isn’t it does two things:

  1. That Obama knew this was a tax when he was working to pass this law.  The words know and the words then certainly are beginning to sound the same.
  2. That he’s lying now.

It’s settled.  This new law is a tax hike, rumor has it it’s the biggest tax hike in history.  In that lens , Obama is going to have to answer to that.

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Posted in Government, Health Care, Politics: National, Welfare

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What Makes America America

Posted on June 29, 2012 | 7 comments

I have often thought that makes America unique in the history of the world is not her physical boundaries.  It’s not the vast expanse of land mass bordering two oceans.  It’s not the natural resources.

It’s the people that have cherished the concept of Liberty that have made America what she is.

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Posted in Government, Health Care, Liberty, Politics: National

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Faith, Hope And Charity

Posted on June 24, 2012 | 3 comments

I came across this video the other day.  Someone I know posted it on Facebook and I took the two minutes to watch it:

It turns out that it wasn’t the first time that Freemasonry, Facebook and the Shriner’s Hospitals For Kids juxtaposed.

About 3 years ago a college roommate living in North Western Minnesota shared a link on Facebook.  It turns out that his brother, living in the same town as him, had a little boy; a son of about 11 years old.  This brother had just posted that he was outside the emergency room where his little boy had been taken and observed.

It turns out the kid had been complaining of knee pain for several days and was now complaining that it was dramatically more severe.  It became so bad that he had to be brought to the hospital.  The doctors couldn’t say for sure what the problem might be without further testing.  They wanted the young man to be brought back for MRI’s and some x-rays.  The boy’s folks wanted the best for their kid but were unsure of what the costs might be and where that money would come from.  Additionally, the strain of being away from work only added to the pressure.

By the time I saw the post it was long past “real-time” and was now of the type, “Keep my brother in your prayers.”  And it was 8:30 at night.

I called the Shriner’s Hospital in Minneapolis, explained that I was a Mason and requested that I be allowed to sponsor a patient.  I went on to describe the condition of the child as best I could from the information I had.  The nurse made an appointment for first AM Monday morning.  When I told her that the family lived near 4 hours away, she let me know that she could change it to 1:00 if that would be easier.

I hesitated but pressed on.  I mentioned that the family worked and may not be able to make the trip to Minneapolis and I would have to call back to confirm.  She cheerfully explained that they had arrangements with a lodge in that area of the state and that a Mason would be called and a ride, to and from Minneapolis, would be arranged.  It was hard to get my head around that.  Again, explaining that the family might be able to make it based on their circumstances, I asked for lodging near the hospital, the less expensive the better.  Again, she had an answer, “We allow families to stay on campus, we have rooms just for that purpose.”

One last thing…money might be an issue.  As she wished me a good night she reassured me that all services would be provided to the family free of charge; there wouldn’t be a financial obligation to the family.

I was reminded:

Freemasonry stands for the exercise of Faith, Hope and Charity, the three cardinal virtues in the Freemasons’ creed. These are the principal rounds of that many-staved ladder, of which every stave represents an active virtue, which links earth to heaven, and which, though invisible, is a reality to the true Mason. Indeed, no man can be a true Mason without the exercise of these virtues in his daily life, for having Faith in God and His promises, he has the Faith which banishes doubt. He has also Faith in himself. Faith in his fellow-man. Faith in the boundless possibilities for a regenerate humanity, Faith in the ultimate happiness of all mankind, Faith in the enjoyment of perfect bliss throughout an endless life. With this Faith in his soul, the consistent Mason has hope. Hope for that in which he has Faith, Hope for himself. Hope for his fellows, Hope for all mankind—Hope for the present, Hope for the future — a Hope so firmly rooted in his soul, that it is steadfast, immovable, enduring to the end. And Charity, that perfection of all virtues, the choicest, rarest of all the jewels which adorn the life of a perfect Mason, that too Freemasonry stands for, although each Brother well knows the difficulty of its full attainment in this world of conflict, error, sin and tears. To bring help to a suffering humanity, to relieve the distressed stricken in body or mind, to shelter those whom a censorious world has cast out, and to throw a veil over the faults and failings of all weak and over- tempted souls—that is the Charity placed before us in a Freemasons’ Lodge.

I so do love this noble fraternity.

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Posted in Faith, Health Care, Life, Raising Men

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Obamacare Odds

Posted on June 22, 2012 | 2 comments

Steady upwards track since April.  Intrade has it at 75% that the law is struck down.

Good.

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Posted in Economy, Health Care, Liberty, Politics: National

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