Puterbac News Network and Political Discussion Thread

[Hacksaw]

Oh, look...a dipshit parade.

Good points, puter. Sadly, you are talking to a bunch of ring-kissers. I believe that's the term, IIRC.

[TheBigMook]

We should bring back workhouses and debtors prisons for the unemployed. That will make them productive.

If [the poor] would rather die, they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.

[bluetick]

Tick,

So what are you seeing on premiums and coverage in health insurance for next year?

We already get to feel the affect of Oprama Care here.

We used to have two choices that were 90/10 with one offering out of network coverage and the other not. I was on the one without since all our docs are in network.

Now you have the 90/10 choice with out of network that is a couple grand more than last year and an 80/20 that is more expensive than the 90/10 was last year.

There are all these things that are covered 100 % by law that we will never use. BTW there should ALWAYS be some sort of co-pay. Nothing, IMO, should be 100% with no copay.

So due to no lifetime limits, covering of retards up to 26 years old on Mom and Dad, and all these other items that are forced to be 100 covered I have to pay more for a smaller benefit.

Good stuff.

Whatever you are feeling, it ain't opramacare. You're getting what everybody has been seeing the last 10 years (more, really). All of our group customers have reduced employee coverages before this year. Haven't we had this discussion before...about your gold-plated plan? heh

Actually the biggest change here with PPACA has been the implementation of the medical loss ratio (MLR) that rebates everybody if medical costs don't exceed 80% of premiums. Because of the MLR companies have slashed agent commissions to the bone. So much so that we made our group health specialist our bookkeeper so that we could keep her on.

[Professor Tiger]

The biggest problems with ObamaRomney Care are:

1. As a country we cannot afford it. It is hugely expensive as advertised, and that doesn't take into account the 100% - 500% cost overruns that are guaranteed to come.

2. Government bureaucrats in DC will make major decisions about everyone's health care - who gets treatment and who doesn't, who dies and who doesn't. Going to the doctor and hospital will have all the individual concern that we now experience at the post office and department of motor vehicles.

3. The federal government has a horrible track record of managing anything well. As soon as they demonstrate competence in managing social security, medicare, balancing budgets, etc. then I will consider putting them in charge of my health care.

[puterbac]

Tick,

So what are you seeing on premiums and coverage in health insurance for next year?

We already get to feel the affect of Oprama Care here.

We used to have two choices that were 90/10 with one offering out of network coverage and the other not. I was on the one without since all our docs are in network.

Now you have the 90/10 choice with out of network that is a couple grand more than last year and an 80/20 that is more expensive than the 90/10 was last year.

There are all these things that are covered 100 % by law that we will never use. BTW there should ALWAYS be some sort of co-pay. Nothing, IMO, should be 100% with no copay.

So due to no lifetime limits, covering of retards up to 26 years old on Mom and Dad, and all these other items that are forced to be 100 covered I have to pay more for a smaller benefit.

Good stuff.

Whatever you are feeling, it ain't opramacare. You're getting what everybody has been seeing the last 10 years (more, really). All of our group customers have reduced employee coverages before this year. Haven't we had this discussion before...about your gold-plated plan? heh

Actually the biggest change here with PPACA has been the implementation of the medical loss ratio (MLR) that rebates everybody if medical costs don't exceed 80% of premiums. Because of the MLR companies have slashed agent commissions to the bone. So much so that we made our group health specialist our bookkeeper so that we could keep her on.

I don't know man. A lot of the changes are straight outta Opramacare. No LIfetime max, 26 yr olds covered, lots of things now 100 percent covered and no co-pay.

And my plan was never gold plated. That was reserved for Congress and Unions.

[Hacksaw]

You don't honestly think that 'tick would admit it if Obamacare was having a negative impact, do you?

Keep dreaming.

[TheBigMook]

http://news.yahoo.com/venezuelas-chavez ... 03256.html

Fuck yeah he did, bitches. Cancer-gun mutha fuckas! Get some! U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

[AlabamAlum]

Soon, there will be another notch on Obama's belt.

[Hacksaw]

Because of who the current President happens to be, at least we won't have to listen to the usual Hollywood leftwing loonies regurgitate that silly claim by Chavez. So that will be nice.

[bluetick]

You don't honestly think that 'tick would admit it if Obamacare was having a negative impact, do you?

Keep dreaming.

I explained how the MLR was killing agency business...maybe I was I little too technical for you.

The biggest problems with ObamaRomney Care are:

1. As a country we cannot afford it.

So you are saying the country COULD afford the track we've been on? With all the cost pressures built into our current health payment system?

In 2001, my family of four's tab was 500/mo. with practically zero out-of-pocket. Currently, I'm at 800/mo. myself, the wife is 550, and the last son in college is 120. Deductibles and O-O-P range from 2k to 5k. Only three of us and now we're at almost 1400/mo. Hopefully we'll continue to stay out of the hospital.

Look back at where you (or your employer) were 10 years ago cost-wise; look at where you are now...and interpolate 10 years into the future. Simple.

[Jungle Rat]

Hack also reminds me of Chavez. Bush might have had the hurricane machine but Obama will give you cancer with a snap of his Muslim fingers.

Way ahead of ya there Mook .

[TheBigMook]

Hack also reminds me of Chavez. Bush might have had the hurricane machine but Obama will give you cancer with a snap of his Muslim fingers.

Way ahead of ya there Mook .

Only Hugo Chavez reads your posts.

[Professor Tiger]

Professor Tiger wrote:The biggest problems with ObamaRomney Care are:

1. As a country we cannot afford it.

So you are saying the country COULD afford the track we've been on? With all the cost pressures built into our current health payment system?

Look back at where you (or your employer) were 10 years ago cost-wise; look at where you are now...and interpolate 10 years into the future. Simple.

I agree that health care costs are rising at an unsustainable rate. But I'm also saying that, if you are looking for better efficiencies and cost management, government is the LAST place you go. Government produces electric cars that nobody wants or can afford, Solyndra solar panels, etc.

When was the last time you heard somebody say, "FedEx and UPS would operate so much better if they were just taken over by the US Postal Service"?

[bluetick]

It's still private physicians, private hospitals, and private health insurers by and large, prof. Government isn't taking over BC/BS or Aetna in my lifetime. Obamacare is no doubt some serious piece(s) of regulation, but regulation was going to come eventually no matter who sat in the WH. Healthcare's doubling and trebling costs are unsustainable. Tens of millions of uninsureds are a travesty. Same with people being underinsured and forced to exist under exclusions and riders against various coverages.

We've had a state-run workers compensation exchange in TN for better than twenty five years...for hard to place risks and those with high claims experience. Still, 90% of work comp is written directly to private carriers. And TN law requires mandatory WC for nearly all businesses bigger than one or two person shops. This tandem of a government exchange and private enterprise has worked very well...even though in the beginning critics were screaming that mandatory WC was un-American, and costs could never be sustained.

[Big Orange Junky]

Not too many people going into private practice any more. Private practice is the enemy of the gubment. Too many regulations making it harder and harder to do that.

So here is some of our gubment's wisdom. Prescriptions must be electronic or you are penalized and fined/have money taken away from you as a provider. Percocet can't be faxed or sent electronically. They must have a signed origional prescription. Now Lortab, that can't be sent electronically, but it can be faxed.

Now just what makes sense about that? You have to use electronic prescriptions, but you aren't allowed to use electronic prescriptions. That's only two of the ones that can't be electronic, there are many more. Only our gubment could be that brilliant.

Same thing for all the electronic medical records and the increased documentation required and the requirement to allow the gubment to have unfettered access to these electronic medical records in the name of "monitoring".

It's actually prohibitave to go into private practice. They are changing to ICD 10 now, changing the 4 and 5 digit codes for diagnosis making it harder to get the money you earn. If you have an old, valid number but they changed it you don't get paid, but they don't tell you why it just doesn't come in and you have to hope you catch it. They don't provide you with their changes either so you legitimately think that you are submitting the right code but they get to keep your money without ever telling you that they changed the code on you. It is supposed to cost a 3 physician practice 85,000 dollars just to change to the new codes this year. They are important codes too such as a Macaw bite as opposed to the generic animal bite. Walking into a lamp post code as opposed to just the general trauma code. They went to over 140,000 codes now, over 10 time more than they have now. Brilliant.

Then to top it off you have to hire someone specifically to try and go through the payments to hold them to the fire and make sure they pay the contracted amounts. They like to pay for a bundle of 5 to 10 so the check looks OK but you look at each item and find that they were contracted to pay 20% of what you billed but in reality they only paid 5% hoping you wouldn't notice. Electronic deposits into your account makes it easier to say "you accepted it" because it went in automatically before you could make sure they paid what they were supposed to.

Of course you can buy another program to run in the background and try to find this for you too, more unfunded mandate LOL.

[Professor Tiger]

The democrats love medicare and consider it one of their crowning achievements.

How's medicare going these days?

[Toemeesleather]

Same w/education.

[bluetick]

The floor is open to alternatives to medicare.

or education lol

[Toemeesleather]

The only alternative I've witnessed, at least in the past 40 years, has been...mo money, mo money, mo money....

[AugustWest]

“My administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens. Indeed, I believe that doing so would break with our most important traditions and values as a nation.”

then why did you sign the bill?

http://thinkprogress.org/security/2011/ ... tion-bill/