Countdown to the 5-4 decision announcement

[CountDeMoney]

Air-based EMS for the entire Metroplex is provided a separate non-profit (CareFlite).

Interesting.  The Maryland State Police take care of ours here.  You see those Dauphins buzzing everywhere during rush hour.

[Sheilbh]

I don't understand why there is such an assumption that we spend too much on healthcare. I'd much rather have luxurious healthcare spending than BMWs for everyone. I'd think my doctor should generally be better paid than my lawyer or financial advisor.

You spend way more than almost anyone else.  You cover far less than anyone else.  On almost every measure you have worse outputs than most developed nations.  That's why.

Edit:  Also from an economic perspective the cost to businesses and individuals is huge and it shouldn't continually be growing as a chunk of your GDP.  That's not healthy.  As it were.

[DGuller]

I don't understand why there is such an assumption that we spend too much on healthcare. I'd much rather have luxurious healthcare spending than BMWs for everyone. I'd think my doctor should generally be better paid than my lawyer or financial advisor.

You spend way more than almost anyone else.  You cover far less than anyone else.  On almost every measure you have worse outputs than most developed nations.  That's why.

Well, the average American has much more of himself to cover.

[garbon]

American peeps, under your current health care arrangements, is an ambulance service one of the emergency services you can choose when you call 911, like it is when we dial 999 here? Do you then have to prove you're insured before they pick you up? Do different companies come depending on who you're insured with?

Volunteer and municipal EMS and Fire Departments are supported by local taxes and public funds.  No proof of insurance necessary.
Emergency care does not require proof of insurance.  Never has.  If you don't have insurance, you get billed.  You don't pay, the rest of us wind up paying it for you in higher premiums.  YOU SEE OBAMA IS ACTUALLY ON TO SOMETHING

Now, if you're being transported by a private provider for other reasons, that falls under your insurance plan.

Hmm? The one time I was in an ambulance it was a private provider. They came via a 911 call (that I assume a bystander made).

[alfred russel]

Senate can repeal it via reconciliation, or Romney can refuse to enforce the mandate's penalties. Boom, done.

I don't know the Senate rules, but it can't act unilaterally.

Romney isn't going to refuse to enforce the mandate. He could almost accurately be called the father of the mandate. The Republicans will need to figure out a way to replace him as a candidate, which seems unlikely at this juncture.

[Admiral Yi]

I predict the debate will now switch to the trivial size of the penalty for no coverage, and possibly the robbing Medicare providers to pay existing conditions aspect.

[merithyn]

Ground-based EMS services in the two metro areas I have lived in (South Florida and DFW) have always been provided by the appropriate fire department.  Air-based EMS for the entire Metroplex is provided a separate non-profit (CareFlite).

It is very dependent on where you live. In Des Moines, it was owned and operated by the city, just like the FD. Here, it's a private company. In the Chicago area, it depends on which town you live in, as each one handles their contracts differently.

[alfred russel]

You spend way more than almost anyone else.  You cover far less than anyone else.  On almost every measure you have worse outputs than most developed nations.  That's why.

Edit:  Also from an economic perspective the cost to businesses and individuals is huge and it shouldn't continually be growing as a chunk of your GDP.  That's not healthy.  As it were.

I'm convinced we have worse outcomes because of our lifestyles, not a screwed up health care system. So long as our national dish is McDonalds and our national pastime is parking in front of a TV/computer, I think we are going to have poor healthcare outcomes.

I don't know that the issue is we spend to much, rather than the rest of the developed world should spend more. Every country spends 100% of its GDP on something, some parts are growing while others shrink: no part can obviously grow forever. Healthcare is one of the categories I'd least like to skimp on.

[CountDeMoney]

To be even more optimistic it's now clear that the Republicans should have used the White House's desperation for Republican votes to wring some policy concessions for them.  They chose the 'kill the bill' this is 'Obama's Waterloo' approach instead and that's failed.

They've done a good job on evilizing Obamacare as an overall plan;  just as much as the Dems did a bad job marketing it.

What's interesting is that, when polled about specific provisions in the Act, most Americans support the majority of the elements. 
They like the fact that employers with more than 50 employees should provide health care to their employees. 
They like the fact that their kids can still be covered while they're in college and fresh out looking for a real job, instead of cut off at 18. 
They like the fact that, if they get a new job with a new healthcare provider, they can't be declined by the new provider for pre-existing conditions bullshit that was covered by their previous provider. 
They like the fact that $1.1B in rebates are about to be issued by providers for overcharging for coverage.
And yes, they like the fact that deadbeats and moron young people will have to get healthcare or pay for their carelessnes, so the rest of us don't have to cover their asses when they smash into someone else when they're texting while driving.   

However, when asked about "Obamacare", it gets negative ratings overall.  The GOP's done a good job in that respect.

The rage over the ruling will taper off.  Mittens would be wise now to concentrate on how he's going to generate jobs, because he hasn't really said much about that at all.

[FunkMonk]

Well ladies and gentlemen, it's morning in America.

[Razgovory]

Like a bad penny, I decided to show up.  My spirits are up.

[CountDeMoney]

I don't understand why there is such an assumption that we spend too much on healthcare. I'd much rather have luxurious healthcare spending than BMWs for everyone. I'd think my doctor should generally be better paid than my lawyer or financial advisor.

You spend way more than almost anyone else.  You cover far less than anyone else.  On almost every measure you have worse outputs than most developed nations.  That's why.

I posted this before.  Interesting numbers.

Report: 5 Percent of People Account for Half of U.S. Health Care Spending

The report stated about half of the U.S. population accounted for only 3.1 percent of all expenditures. But 10 percent of the population hogged 63.6 percent of all health spending, the survey found.  The top 5  percent of the population accounted for 47.5 percent of all spending, and the top 1 percent accounted for 20.2 percent.

While the average person incurred about $233 in costs in 2008 for health care services, those in the top half of spending cost insurers, the government, or themselves $7,317. The top 1 percent cost $76,476.

Adults 55 and over made up a larger proportion of the high-spending group, while those in the lower spending group tended to be younger. The report also found that people with at least one chronic health condition were two to four times more likely to have spending in the top 5 percent group.

The likelihood increased as the number of chronic conditions rose. Nearly half of people in the top 5 percent of health care spending had high blood pressure; a third had high cholesterol; and a quarter had diabetes.

[Faeelin]

I don't know the Senate rules, but it can't act unilaterally.

Romney isn't going to refuse to enforce the mandate. He could almost accurately be called the father of the mandate. The Republicans will need to figure out a way to replace him as a candidate, which seems unlikely at this juncture.

You think the Dems will retake the House? Romney may be the father, but he wants it repealed, right?

[CountDeMoney]

I'm convinced we have worse outcomes because of our lifestyles, not a screwed up health care system. So long as our national dish is McDonalds and our national pastime is parking in front of a TV/computer, I think we are going to have poor healthcare outcomes.

Mayor Bloomberg believes in you.

[Maximus]

To be even more optimistic it's now clear that the Republicans should have used the White House's desperation for Republican votes to wring some policy concessions for them.  They chose the 'kill the bill' this is 'Obama's Waterloo' approach instead and that's failed.

They've done a good job on evilizing Obamacare as an overall plan;  just as much as the Dems did a bad job marketing it.

What's interesting is that, when polled about specific provisions in the Act, most Americans support the majority of the elements. 
They like the fact that employers with more than 50 employees should provide health care to their employees. 
They like the fact that their kids can still be covered while they're in college and fresh out looking for a real job, instead of cut off at 18. 
They like the fact that, if they get a new job with a new healthcare provider, they can't be declined by the new provider for pre-existing conditions bullshit that was covered by their previous provider. 
They like the fact that $1.1B in rebates are about to be issued by providers for overcharging for coverage.
And yes, they like the fact that deadbeats and moron young people will have to get healthcare or pay for their carelessnes, so the rest of us don't have to cover their asses when they smash into someone else when they're texting while driving.   

However, when asked about "Obamacare", it gets negative ratings overall.  The GOP's done a good job in that respect.

The rage over the ruling will taper off.  Mittens would be wise now to concentrate on how he's going to generate jobs, because he hasn't really said much about that at all.

Obamacare is a stupid term anyway. I cringe every time someone who I think of as intelligent uses it. He didn't invent health care coverage.