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+--- Thread: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? (/showthread.php?tid=84403)
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - davester - 09-15-2009
Dakota wrote: Answer me wise guy, just answer me. These wisecracks won't impress anyone.
...says the king of wisecracks (more like dumbcracks).
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - $tevie - 09-15-2009
I'd love to cook a turkey if I was going to make a million dollars per bird like Halliburton did. I could hire illegal immigrants to make it even more profitable, just like Halliburton's subcontractors do.
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - lafinfil - 09-15-2009
Dakota wrote:
So you like monopolies. One state, one insurance company.
Apparently you missed it - we're already there (and this is from 2006)
Health insurers build up market clout
New evidence raises fears that local monopolies forming
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Consolidation among health insurers is creating near-monopolies in virtually all reaches of the U.S. - with the most dominant firms grabbing more market share by several percentage points a year - according to a study released Monday.
Data from the American Medical Association shows that in each of 43 states, a handful of top insurers have gained such a stronghold that their markets are considered "highly concentrated" under Department of Justice guidelines, often far exceeding the thresholds that trigger antitrust concerns.
The study also shows that in 166 of 294 metropolitan areas, or 56%, a single insurer controls more than half the business in health maintenance organization (HMO) and preferred provider networks (PPO) underwriting.
"This problem is widespread across the country and it needs to be looked at," said Dr. Jim Rohack, an AMA trustee and physician in Temple, Texas. "The choices that patients have now are more difficult."
The AMA study cited a Justice Department benchmark in citing antitrust concerns, the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index, or HHI. A score above 1,000 shows "moderate" concentration. Those scoring above 1,800 yield a "high" concentration.
Figures show that 95% of the 294 HMO/PPO metropolitan markets studied were above 1,800. Raise that HHI bar even higher to 3,000 and yet more than half, or 67%, rise above it.
continues >>> http://www.marketwatch.com/story/study-confirms-health-monopoly-fears
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - Mac1337 - 09-15-2009
Again, where are the state regulators or could it be that they are the ones causing it?
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - the_poochies - 09-15-2009
Dakota wrote:
Again, where are the state regulators or could it be that they are the ones causing it?
What gets me is how state regulators drive up the cost of insurance by requiring that insurers cover erectile dysfunction, birth control and other treatments that, while important, really aren't life or death stuff.
I dunno where to take this, but my state mandates coverage for the above two items but NOT for fertility treatments. Even many private insurers won't cover fertility treatments.
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - Mac1337 - 09-15-2009
ooooh, we are closing in on the causes. Some people may not like it. Give me more regulations.
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - kanesa - 09-15-2009
Don't you understand, Dakota, if you open up the competition, your employer will be able to go out there and get insurance that costs them less but will probably have less coverage and higher deductibles for you.
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - Dennis S - 09-15-2009
Although state regulations may cause some problems, without them, we would be getting screwed worse than we already are.
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - Mac1337 - 09-16-2009
Just when I bought into Obama's promise of competition and choice, you guys are talking me out of it. Happy now?
Re: Why not "Public Option" everywhere? - mattkime - 09-16-2009
Dakota wrote:
Just when I bought into Obama's promise of competition and choice, you guys are talking me out of it. Happy now?
How does that make you feel?