lemme get this straight
i hate anecdotal evidence and emotion charading as logic badly enough most days, but these past few with the picture of an extremely small number of "i got mine" folks more or less accusing the present city administration of proposing death panels, it's gotten way past reasonable. (yes, one james malloy used the phrase "signing the death warrant for many retirees" at the meeting this past tuesday night).
linda dano told the city council that her master medical coverage is the reason she is alive and not dead. fair enough. so, then, i would ask, where is the accounting for the number of people who are dead but not alive today because they DIDN'T have master medical?
am i the only one here who sees the bullshit quotient implied in all of this?
if this plan is exactly what these people say it is, (aka, the only thing standing between "many retirees" and certain death), how is it that we can possibly sit still, least of all those with the coverage who know best how it's saving their lives, and not fight tirelessly so each and every resident in the city also enjoys the life-saving benefit??? i want to hear those folks, like linda dano, who cannot sleep at night because other people don't have master medical. yes i do.
the truth is, master medical patients go to the same doctors to whom you and i go with our lower-priced insurance coverage, and there's nothing costing them their lives in the least about having that coverage replaced with something that costs less to the city. oh, sure, they may have increased out-of-pocket costs, but speaking as one whose health insurance coverage just increased several thousand dollars this year, i really don't think that's life or death at all. that may be life or cigarettes, or life or catfood, or life or dunkin donuts coffee every day, but it's not life or death. (i really, really, REALLY wanted to ask linda dano if she is or was ever a smoker, but that would have been rude, wouldn't it...)
until then, besides being reminded yet again as to why my not voting for rita mercier was one of the most positive and productive things i've done over the past year, i'm feeling better and better about the way bernie lynch is approaching some of the challenges faced by this city. there are some decrying an absence of "imagination" inherent in his actions lately, but, from where i'm standing, a cleaned-up inspectional services department and the abolition of supremely-selfish and prohibitively expensive master medical coverage are 1 and 2 on my list of happy-to-see city improvements.
linda dano told the city council that her master medical coverage is the reason she is alive and not dead. fair enough. so, then, i would ask, where is the accounting for the number of people who are dead but not alive today because they DIDN'T have master medical?
am i the only one here who sees the bullshit quotient implied in all of this?
if this plan is exactly what these people say it is, (aka, the only thing standing between "many retirees" and certain death), how is it that we can possibly sit still, least of all those with the coverage who know best how it's saving their lives, and not fight tirelessly so each and every resident in the city also enjoys the life-saving benefit??? i want to hear those folks, like linda dano, who cannot sleep at night because other people don't have master medical. yes i do.
the truth is, master medical patients go to the same doctors to whom you and i go with our lower-priced insurance coverage, and there's nothing costing them their lives in the least about having that coverage replaced with something that costs less to the city. oh, sure, they may have increased out-of-pocket costs, but speaking as one whose health insurance coverage just increased several thousand dollars this year, i really don't think that's life or death at all. that may be life or cigarettes, or life or catfood, or life or dunkin donuts coffee every day, but it's not life or death. (i really, really, REALLY wanted to ask linda dano if she is or was ever a smoker, but that would have been rude, wouldn't it...)
until then, besides being reminded yet again as to why my not voting for rita mercier was one of the most positive and productive things i've done over the past year, i'm feeling better and better about the way bernie lynch is approaching some of the challenges faced by this city. there are some decrying an absence of "imagination" inherent in his actions lately, but, from where i'm standing, a cleaned-up inspectional services department and the abolition of supremely-selfish and prohibitively expensive master medical coverage are 1 and 2 on my list of happy-to-see city improvements.
posted by kad barma at 11:14 AM
1 Comments:
Great post. I had seen your comment on Gerry's site but hadn't seen this yet when I bumped into you today...it's a great question to throw back at the alarmists -- what about everybody else?
I'm not foolish enough to think that I'm somehow alive today because of Tricare. It certainly didn't hurt when the fit hit the shan, so to speak, but another insurer wouldn't have meant certain doom and gloom.
Tricare is a great program for those who have it, but it's also reasonable to think that things like doctor's visits, prescriptions, and even surgeries and hospitalizations should require SOME co-pay from patients. Even a tiny amount goes a long way when multiplied by all the users (thereby keeping the system going), but I think the other big advantage of throwing *something* on the patient is that it cuts down on frivolity.
This is just going to be a bigger and bigger deal, played out on so many stages across the country as the population ages, unfunded liabilties come due, and things like Master Medical (which guarantees care all the way to the grave..including nursing home care) loom over our budgets.
As someone whose bread gets buttered on the public side, I'll be the first to admit that compromises have to be made.
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