I believe in freedom of choice. Not mandated options. If someone doesn't want to pay for healthcare, they shouldn't have to. That is control. If they want to, that's fine also. I understand what Gwyn says about some concern for those that could be denied coverage etc, but we do have medicare and medicaid milking us too. It is a touchy subject, and it is all opinion as to what you, I or the other guy is comfortable accepting. It is about accepting control.

A perfect system? Another discussion.

Romneycare doing well economically, is it? Obamacare will have the same result...More debt. More problems. Something else?

We have to change the system, and maybe the UK or France has some ideas, but taxation and privatization(for those that are luck enough to work and not mandated work):

"In the UK, one of the largest private health care providers is BUPA which has a long list of general exclusions even in its highest coverage policy"

In the US:

"The market for health care in the U.S. is primarily coordinated by competition, there is an abundance of regulations that inhibit market efficiency. A classic example is medical licenses."

Who puts these regulations into place? Who do they think THEY are? The people should control the governments, not the other way around. We should make the laws and regulations, not them. As bweeds says, the (so called elected) lawmakers and officials don't give us the time of day.

CONTROL. I don't want to be controlled. TAXES, including the hidden tax of inflation. I don't want tax.

We just don't live in a peaceful kingdom. It is one of bloodsucking vampires running the show.

"Only the unkowing argue to the contrary"

In my opinion, only the people who think they know what is best FOR EVERYONE make this sort of statement.

TJ

TJ -

If everyone in power believed or talked as you have here, we'd live in a state of mayhem. You can't Google an answer here, it is far deeper. I have studied and practiced economics and finance for my entire adult life. I know the realities. Politics do get in the way.

Do you not want there to be laws that require children to be educated? Do you want the freedom of choice to pay tolls at every intersection you get to? Do you want the freedom of choice to opt out of fire protection for your house?

Freedom of choice has inherent responsibility. We are a society of many. We are not 300 million detached individuals. Every choice one makes affects everyone else.

As a motorcyclist, I hear every day how some believe they should have the freedom of choice to not wear a helmet while riding. Well, when they go down - and one day they will as we all do - there is a very high probability of permanent brain injury. That individual will require care for the rest of his or her life...and it will be expensive. Problem is, WE will pay for that care. I will be forced to pay for their care. Why can't I opt out of paying for their lifelong disability?

We are a society, period. We need to behave as a society. Your tarnished view of who we are and how things work is not on the mark. You are looking at extremes.

I work with people who need health care bad and can't get it because they can't afford health insurance and don't qualify for medicare of medicaid.

We see people of every age in need of life saving-dialysis,surgery, medications-that can't get it.

We watch them get sick when resourses/ donations are exhausted and we go to too many funerals, many who die in pain, because the care and meds they need are not accessable to them.

These are not just the poorest of poor or the unemployable either. They are middle income hard working people who can't get insurance usually due to cost.

Sometimes the reason being a diagnosis of a chronic illness, like diabetes or... MG.


This is a disgrace to our society in my eyes.

I pray for change in our health care system and do what I can to help.


Public info- look up what the CEO's of the health insur companies made last year.

Something does needs to change. I would gladly have my taxes raised if it ment health care for all.

Jeannie

Without Insurance companies and government control, the market aka the people would dictate the prices of these things. I don't have to go to the doctor because he is charging too much for services, and then maybe he/she would lower the price of healthcare so I will. Like a mechanic isn't making money on oil changes, a doctor isn't making money on checkups. Last checkup I had pre mg, doctor says, why are you here? I said I have to pay for healthcare and I am just getting a checkup because I can. I certainly don't have all the answers, that is for sure.

Politics shouldn't get in the way. That is part of my point. Who backs the government politicians? The insurance companies and extremely wealthy financiers and corporations.

Corps and Banks control the world.

Extreme or not, this is truth. I don't have to like it or agree with it. That is my choice. Freedom of thought is about all we have left, and plenty of people don't even excercise that.

In the long scheme of things, the "system" is all about more and more control...aka slavery

One needs to hone the tools of thought and bring to bear learned skills of research in order to make compelling arguments.

One doesn't become a doctor or scientist merely by thinking. It's not "I thnk, therefore I am."

"One doesn't become a doctor or scientist merely by thinking"

No, but any person without a learning disability should be able to become a doctor or scientist.

Society is not setup that way, and perhaps that is part of the problem also.

The healthcare system is just one of MANY(food, education, legal etc etc) corrosive systems we have setup by those in control. It is just terrible. People suffer today because of what has been set forth in the past, and that suffering will be in place in the future because of decisions made now by those in control. Not us unfortunately. I just hope to not lose whatever freedoms I have left and perhaps gain some with the hope that the next generations to come gain more than we have now, instead of less which has been the pattern for some time.

TJ - this isn't going anywhere and pretty soon someone is going to embarrass themselves...if it hasn't happened already.

Some people, like myself, just view the world we live in differentIy. I hate all the suffering that happens, whether it be you me, or anyone of any age. I think that much we all can agree on.

I am not embarrassed to share my views of the world, and there is plenty of things people either cannot understand, or simply do not want to. I know I speak for the minority, and that is part of the design. Crazy talk! Our time on this earth is short compared to its existence. There is only so much we can do in our lifetimes. Time is precious. Our lives are all precious.

Kerry, whenever I read about what's been happening to you I compare myself. I've also read your blog. Others seem to have had periods of remission, but our recovery or remission has had some delays. I also know that we are both willng to try any reasonable reccomendation and we are both still hopeful. My bills since June, 2011, 9 months since I first went to the hospital for a biopsy on my larynx, are over $750,000. I've had three hospitalizations for over 10 days in ICU, just spent another 25 days in the hospital with compications from Plex, and have had numerous IVIG treatments.

During my first hospitalization, I had a dream that I believed in which I thought I had checked the wrong box on an insurance form so that I had only 80% coverage. I was so depressed and miserable that I couldn't tell my wife about it. I finally told a friend and he checked it out and it turned out to be untrue, but I can imagine how much more difficult life would have been. I am so lucky.

May we both be blessed with better health so that we need to spend less of the insurance company's money.

Marvin

Because I am or was a teacher, I was lucky to have insurance at the time I became ill while others without insurance have their lives economically destroyed by an illness like MG. Not only is there an economic distinction, I also believe that there are medical benefits that I received because they were covered by insurance. I've read the commentary regarding this issue and fail to understand any argument that supports this as being fair in the name of "free choice" or "personal individual responsiblity."

Marvin

Marvin, maybe fair is a state of mind. We need to get a system that works, will work, and not change it.

Maybe we can take some ideas from other countries like France or Switzerland, the UK, and adopt a part of them here, but it is clear something needs to change to make it a fair playing field. We have a lot of people in the US, and we could end up like India. They have universal health care system.

Some stuff:

We ship our jobs away from the states, we have people living in tents and on the streets. The food the majority consume here causes obesity and other medical problems to contribute to problems. Fast and cheaply mass-produced food. The large amount of low income or no income(govt provided) people here based on population alone. Some choices just taken away due to society and environmental issues? How can we fix all of this?

Glad to hear you are doing reasonably well, and listen to the boss.she was made that for a reason.

while,having my thymectomy in 2000 l had a lady room with me who had also had a thymectomy,just weeks before mine she had returned for some complication.l was a public patient,no medical insurance she was a private patient,My thymectomy cost me nothing .she was already $30,000 out of pocket as her health cover did not cover all that was associated with that type of surgery.

We both had the same room,same surgeon same level of care?
and l wonder why she would opt to have it done privately.In the past my family had private cover and we paid a lot for it,and when l weighed up the pros and cons l could not justify how much money it was costing us.(l should point out that people without private medical insurance do pay a levy in their tax)

Now l understand that here in Australia we can make that choice,and we chose to do what was best for us,sometimes it does mean longer waits etc for certain things but whenever there has been an emergency l cannot fault the care myself or family has received under our medicare system.

l see my neuro as a private patient at a cost of $75 a visit,but if l was to need hospitalisation l would be a public patient but he would still be my neuro as he works in the hospital l would be admitted to,at no cost to me.(l may have to see one of his colleagues if he was not available at a given time).

l do remember that at the height of my illness medications were costing around $300 a month,depending on what combination l was on but they did reduce significantly when the PBS (pharmaceutical benefit scheme) kicked in,ie once you had reached a certain amount in expenses they became much cheaper.

l am extremely thankful that l have access to our free medical care, and can't imagine what life would be like without it.

I just wanted to add to the insurance discussion. I went for 2 years without health insurance because I was a self-employed IT contractor. I couldn't afford it. My kids were on the state health insurance (doesn't help their dad wouldn't pay support regularly til threatened with jail time). So when I presented with a droopy eye in 2010, guess what? No insurance so I wasn't about to follow up on it. I knew that if it was serious, then I'd have one heck of a time getting insurance in the future. Late 2010, worse symptoms. Then they got much worse in 2011. Still no insurance. My ENT wanted to do a CT of my sinuses but wouldn't since I didn't have insurance. I had a job, with insurance, land in my lapin June. I knew the insurance would kick in in August. The minute it kicked in I began a whirlwind trip to tons of doctors. By Oct I knew it was MG.

Was it right that I had to go about things the way I did? I just accepted an AWESOME offer to go permanent with the company I've been working with since June, but will now have to change my meds from neostigmine to mestinon (which didn't seem to do much the first time around) because it will cost 4 times as much as mestinon on my new insurance. Is that right or fair? Not to mention that I will likely have to pay thousands of dollars to maintain COBRA until August, when my new employer will not be able to deny me coverage for a pre-existing condition anymore (HIPAA laws say you have to have 12 mths continuous group coverage, my 12 comes up in August).

Is it right or fair that I will have to pay so much more for insurance for 3 mths? No. I don't think ANY of this is fair to ANY of us! Or right! Why should we suffer further because we can't afford a doctor or can't afford to get a diagnosis. Why should Americans have to die because they cannot afford healthcare? I work hard, I have a degree. It's going to pay off for me, but not everyone gets so lucky, and I know that.

FYI...my hospital stay back in Jan was $90,000. 4 days, 4 IVIG treatments, 1 ER visit. Crazy. Who, really, can afford that?? Fortunately insurance knocked it down to $1700 for my part. Absolutely insane. I might have died without insurance, or perhaps been so deeply in debt I'd never get out. Just plain wrong. We didn't do this to ourselves, yet we are punished everyday both financially and physically.

And Kerry, I'm glad you are doing so well!! :-)

Kage,
I don't know how many countries there are that do not have universal healthcare, but many consider the US as "land of the free, home of the brave." Maybe we are home of the brave in some ways? Not much free these days, and even free healthcare is not free, no matter how it is suggested.

Curt suggested society pays for healthcare, and that is true in more ways than one if universal, but those that dictate or govern laws, rules etc for (insurance companies, pharmaceuticals corps, and the federal government or like) the healthcare are in control of peoples lives. We talk about people dying from not having healthcare, and yet there are plenty of people dying that do have healthcare. We already get 10minutes with a doctor, how long would we get if universal?

Is the answer more doctors? Why do we need so much healthcare? Obviously people like those with MG, Cancer etc etc need help due to serious conditions, but how many people go to the hospital for insignificant reasons, only to slow the treatment of those that truly need it.

Universal healthcare was not approved by the people of the nation. Only so called democrats in Washington DC. Over half of Americans DO NOT support universal healthcare. 26 states against, and all so called republicans in Washington DC against this, Clearly a divided nation...

Supreme Court going at the decision to decide whether to follow the US Constitution or not:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/23/health-care-reform-supreme-court_n_1376534.html

Little by little over time, the Constitution is being amended, changed etc. Will it be re-written completely at some point? Should the Constitution be ignored? Each US State has its own Constitution, and maybe some answers are within that? One thing is for sure, who wouldn't want TRULY free, healthcare? If TRULY free, what kind of healthcare would you get for free versus paying something for it? Nothing is ever truly free except acts of kindness, and even that costs time. How valuable is time? Is it not all a vicious greed cycle by the those that can control aka "the hand that feeds". Everyone seems to always wants something. Of course, some MUCH more than others.

Greed is one of the seven deadly sins.

Kerry,

I have just been watching your your u-tube entries. They are really helpful for explaining things to to some relatives of mine who think I was nuts to be worried about MG. Thanks. Its good to hear you are a little better; you have had one tough ride.

Also, now I have seen the costs you have explained, I understand why my insurance company keeps trying to put up my charges when I say I am going into the US insurance zone.

TJ.
You refer to BUPA. This is a non-profit organisation run for the benfit of the members. The excluded classes are chronic conditions adequately covered by the NHS. If anyone wants cover for these there are other insurers (profit making) that can meet your needs. The insurance industry is creative and never misses an oppertunity to make money.

The Goverment is at present trying to change the structure of the NHS to make it more responsive locally. This has turnned out to have a 3% approval rating because people are scared that it might turn into a US type system. If a goverment wants to loose an election here all it has too do is to mess with the NHS. I am as right wing as it comes in main stream British politcs but even I do not object to my tax payments that go to the general good through the NHS.