Tony Strickland: State Health-Care Bill an Ill Fit for Californians

» dave on 03.17.10 @ 07:46 PM

Sorry Mr. Strickland.  I like SB 810.  The free market has failed to produce coverage for state residents that is not more than what the state classifies as poverty level.

Personally, I have a catastrophic plan through an employer and the premiums are going up 89% this year.

This is a decent solution.

I sincerely hope your constitutional amendment fails.

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» sbnative on 03.17.10 @ 08:55 PM

Why are lawyers writing legislation that tells doctors how to practice medicine? Hey, I’ve got an idea. Let’s “nationalize” the legal profession, and make sure committees of say, doctors, oversee legal claims, lawsuits, judicial actions, etc.

Does anyone else see the irony in this? Lawyers (too lazy to go to med school and do years of internships—about 13 years on average) are jealous of physicians. Wow, let’s fix that. Nationalize healthcare.

Simply pathetic!

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» sbnative on 03.17.10 @ 10:01 PM

One huge problem California has, which is the 800-lb gorilla, is the costs that illegal aliens add the the healthcare system. Hit the average ER waiting room in CA. Look around you. How many are actually paying? Ask your local hospital what their reimbursement rates are…

It’s call COST SHIFTING. You pay for those who don’t pay. This is a huge problem.

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» Mark King on 03.18.10 @ 07:20 AM

Good article Mr. Strickland.

I have only one word to add:

“Amen”

Mark King

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» sb native on 03.18.10 @ 08:27 AM

Well, Tony—with 25% of Californians not HAVING health insurance (not you obviously)...I’ll bet it is time for Sacramento to grow up and face up to the reality of their constituent’s needs.  Perhaps something more creative than “no more taxes” is in order from the GOP.  Perhaps the GOP could think about solutions instead of roadblocks.

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» Mark King on 03.18.10 @ 09:32 AM

Dear SB Native,

I have an 8” iron fry pan.  I have a 16” iron fry pan.  But I do not have a 12” iron fry pan.

I really, really need a 12” iron fry pan.

I did some research and found that 40% of Californians do no have a 12” iron fry pan.  Google it and see for yourself.

Could you please use your very persuasive writing skills to pursuade Mr. Strickland to also insure that we all get our 12” iron fry pan with our health care.

I would REALLY appreciate it.

No matter what it costs or how much taxes have to be raised.  We all deserve it.

Good on ya.

Mark King

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» chaco on 03.18.10 @ 11:52 AM

Regarding SB 810, please consider the following:

SB 810 (Sen. Leno)  proposes a single payer system which accomplishes the following:

1. Everyone will have access to needed medical care, thus no cost shifting to cover the uninsured

2. Everyone above poverty level will be expected to pay a fair share, based on income, into the system.

3. The almost 50% of medical dollars spent in California which already come from government programs will not change. This covers almost $100 billion of the cost, not through new taxes, fees, etc., but from what we are already paying. The rest of the money also comes from what we already are paying, but will total less than what we currently spend in the form of private insurance premiums and out of pocket costs.  Our medical dollars will go through a public agency which will cost 5% to administer, vs. the 30% overhead costs in our current system.

4. Private insurers will be allowed to sell insurance for non-covered services. Please note that there are health insurance companies, both for-profit and non-profit, in countries where there is mandated universal coverage.

5. The money saved by being able to negotiate prices for drug and medical equipment and by eliminating the private insurance paperwork will be sufficient to subsidize to an affordable level the coverage of those who are currently uninsured, and to expand the benefit package to include dental, drugs, mental health and many other services.

6. Businesses which now provide health coverage will see premiums drop, and be on a level playing field with other businesses who are increasingly shut out from participating because of high premiums.

7. Coverage will not disappear when one loses employment, gets sick, retires, or comes off one’s parent’s medical coverage.

8. Hospitals and doctors will see a significant decrease in their administrative overhead costs because there will be one plan, one place to submit the one form needed to get paid, no hassle to get reimbursed.

I could go on and on. Anyone really interested in health policy should read T.R. Reid’s “The Healing of America” to see how primitive and wasteful our health non-system is compared to other industrialized nations.

Last but not least, fiscal conservatives should focus on the provision that the inflation rate for the proposed system under SB 810 is limited to the increase in the Gross Domestic Product. California and the nation cannot sustain our current out-of-control insurance rates, and only a publicly run system has the power to do it.

So the California Legislature is considering an important proposal, thoroughly researched, fiscally sustainable according to Lewin Group analyses, and supported by a large and growing number of Californians.

Please see http://www.CaliforniaOneCare.org for more information.

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» dave on 03.18.10 @ 08:14 PM

AN

A little angry are we?

So you are concerned about how we pay for it.  How do we pay for anything?  The governments role is to tax us and spend the money on things that the constituents need.

Wanna argue we waste too much money on police officers?
Wanna argue we waste too much on fire prevention?
Wanna argue we waste too much on . . .

So your argument against offering health care to people is we can not afford it.  Hmm.  Ok, cut out everything we can not afford.  No more roads for you buddy.  No more police protection.  No more clean water.  I can go on and on.

Right now the free market has failed.  There is collusion between the doctors/hospitals and the insurance companies.  It is not in the best interest for either party to have prices go down.  What is the financial gain?  So we have two types of companies fleecing the consumer.

Is that free market?

Why don’t doctors post their rates.  You know, how much they charge for cash, get reimbursed by medicare, get reimbursed by blue-cross/aetna/KP? 

Getting medical care in the US is akin to going to a restaurant and EVERYTHING is marked MP.  There are no prices.

So the free market has failed because of collusion.  Now the issue is that this is people’s lives.  With other forms of collusion, I am not in a life or death scenario.

Now it is time for america to at least be equal to a lot of third world countries and offering their citizens health care.

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» srfgrl99 on 03.18.10 @ 09:49 PM

AN, 
perhaps you are not aware that for many it is not an issue of not being able to pay for health insurance, but rather not being able to QUALIFY for it. Unavailable to many at any cost, due to health issues. (and not self-inflicted health problems, either)

Perhaps you are also not aware that loss of coverage due to loss of a job (or loss of an employer due to a business closure) results in many individuals and families finding themselves ‘uninsurable’ due to their age or past health issues or those of their children ?  Or that those who work for small businesses or who are self-employed have no access at all to any coverage via more reasonably-priced group plans?

Years ago one paid the doctor and the hospital for services rendered. Now, one pays the insurance companies a significant percentage of all medical costs incurred-something like 30%. No wonder the price is so high. Why not simply remove the insurance companies from the payroll - they do not contribute to the health of any of us.

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» AN50 on 03.19.10 @ 10:57 AM

Thank you for the response my liberal friends and yes I am very angry. I cannot understand how adults, possibly those with children can say things like “well we need it so who cares what it costs” or “we can whip out our check book and fund Haitian relief, why not do the same with healthcare?” This is pure insanity. We do not have the money, we don’t have it for charity and we don’t have it for compassion. We are $50 trillion in debt both public and private. That check to Haiti is worthless. And what you responders continue to miss is I’m not talking about cash in your pocket but our ability to EARN wealth. That is done in three main areas of ANY economy whether socialist or capitalist, resource extraction, manufacturing of durable goods and agriculture (your favorite socialists in Europe know what that means and they protect those areas of their economy fiercely). These sectors which bring in real wealth to our economy have been severely hobbled by our idiotic misunderstanding of economics. Moving money around does not create wealth. It only changes who has it and when you continue to suck like a parasite off the wealth generators without any synergy but a whole lot of animus then you end up where we are today.
Ok I realize I’m talking to my generation, the baby boomers, who unfortunately are fairly clueless and a real embarrassment to our culture but at some point you people need to wake up out of your fog and realize the game is now over and the bills are due. You simply cannot have whatever you want and not work for it. I too feel bad for those who cannot afford decent healthcare. But dammit why not? What have you been doing your whole damned life that you did not prepare for this? In some cases it’s a tragedy, death, disease or some other calamity roles through your life and everything you planned for is wiped out, gone. Been there, done that. It’s painful in ways our spoiled culture cannot fathom, but that is no reason to go off on an economic suicide venture that drags everyone else down with you. That is what this national healthcare package is, national economic suicide. It will not help those who face tragedy but instead prolong the pain. For the rest it is purely laziness or an unwillingness to earn what you say you need.
I know this is sacrilege to most baby boomers who believe that a wealthy country should help those in need, but we are not wealthy anymore, we are broke and simply borrowing and borrowing and borrowing when you have broken the machinery that earns you the power to pay back makes that borrowing equivalent to theft. We not only have stolen our children’s economic future but China’s, Japan’s and any other stupid sucker nation that has loaned us money. And now the whiny crybaby nanny state generation that failed to launch and still feeds at its mothers bosom cries for yet more of what it is unwilling to earn. So yes I am angry. I want you people to grow up and manage a checking account for a change. No not yours, our nations. Stop this insane hobbling of our ability to earn wealth in those three key areas. Work hard and plan ahead and earn the things you want and need. When we as a nation have paid our debts and earn more than we spend then we can talk about adding more services, bailing out others and what economic system is best at delivery. Got it?

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» Mark King on 03.20.10 @ 04:55 PM

A nice sounding answer, Dave, but you are wrong on every count.

Capitalism is not just for America…it’s for any country smart enough to get it going in their country.

China is more competitive on labor cost than America.

So what happens?  China gets more offers to produce something that we do.

Wow! What a big surprise!

And your definition of: “Capitalism - it is not what you sell it for, it is what you pay for it.”...wrong again.

It’s both!  ANY entrepreneur (as in a small business, a home business, a manufacturer and, yes, a corporation) has to come up with an idea for a product that he/she/they then design a plan to produce and successfully do so that sells at a profit.

That’s a: “Well, DUH!” point for me and An50 but is totally missing to you.

If you can’t find 10 things that are made in America that only indicates that we are loosing the edge that we have had and should get back to the drawing board and get competitive again.

And, yes, capitalism does indeed get money flowing…to ALL parts of the pyramid.

Go back and read AN50’s article again.

It was quite well done.

Mark King

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