Via Balloon Juice (rapidly becoming my favorite blog) comes this bit of headshakingly disturbing stuff.
Insurers shun those taking certain meds - Costs of Care - MiamiHerald.com
If anyone can read this article and still say with a straight face that private insurance companies should have a seat at the healthcare negotiating table they are in deep denial.
I especially think that folks should read the attached "Vista Guide for Medical Underwriting" ... I am not linking directly to it but i think it is must reading. My personal favorites among the automatic denial drugs are the ones for treating diabetes. My mom is type II diabetic. According to the American Diabetes Associate, approximately 24 million americans are diabetic.
There is another interesting quote in the article "They don't want to buy a claim,". If nothing else, this article should serve as a reminder that insurance companies are in it to make money. There is nothing wrong with that if the product is a car, or a house, or an airplane. There is something obscene about making a profit based on a bet you have made that your clients will be less ill than average.
Single Payer Healthcare (NOT INSURANCE) is the only model that works consistently. If you want to only cover "the basics" with that plan then fine, but be ready to explain why the line is drawn where it is in the case of every procedure. I have no problem with the idea that purely cosmetic (in the ordinary meaning of that term) surgery not be covered but the idea that if I take nitroglycerin it is automatically disqualifying appalls me.
If it doesn't appall you I really want to hear why not. And just saying "socialism,socialism" isnt an argument. I want someone to explain why this is the best system that we can come up with and why single payer is not as good.
Insurers shun those taking certain meds - Costs of Care - MiamiHerald.com
Trying to buy health insurance on your own and have gallstones? You'll automatically be denied coverage. Rheumatoid arthritis? Automatic denial. Severe acne? Probably denied. Do you take metformin, a popular drug for diabetes? Denied. Use the anti-clotting drug Plavix or Seroquel, prescribed for anti-psychotic or sleep problems? Forget about it.
This confidential information on some insurers' practices is available on the Web -- if you know where to look.
What's more, you can discover that if you lie to an insurer about your medical history and drug use, you will be rejected because data-mining companies sell information to insurers about your health, including detailed usage of prescription drugs.
If anyone can read this article and still say with a straight face that private insurance companies should have a seat at the healthcare negotiating table they are in deep denial.
I especially think that folks should read the attached "Vista Guide for Medical Underwriting" ... I am not linking directly to it but i think it is must reading. My personal favorites among the automatic denial drugs are the ones for treating diabetes. My mom is type II diabetic. According to the American Diabetes Associate, approximately 24 million americans are diabetic.
There is another interesting quote in the article "They don't want to buy a claim,". If nothing else, this article should serve as a reminder that insurance companies are in it to make money. There is nothing wrong with that if the product is a car, or a house, or an airplane. There is something obscene about making a profit based on a bet you have made that your clients will be less ill than average.
Single Payer Healthcare (NOT INSURANCE) is the only model that works consistently. If you want to only cover "the basics" with that plan then fine, but be ready to explain why the line is drawn where it is in the case of every procedure. I have no problem with the idea that purely cosmetic (in the ordinary meaning of that term) surgery not be covered but the idea that if I take nitroglycerin it is automatically disqualifying appalls me.
If it doesn't appall you I really want to hear why not. And just saying "socialism,socialism" isnt an argument. I want someone to explain why this is the best system that we can come up with and why single payer is not as good.
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