This morning, I read an excellent analysis of the free lunch mentality that is being used to promote many government programs, including the affordable scare shaft. That reading inspired me to write my own post on the topic of universal health care in America.
People who are inspired to work in healthcare are often compassionate and self giving individuals. These are the values that society attributes to doctors and medical training institutions have reinforced this view at least as far back as the days of Hippocrates. This view of doctors is further perpetuated through television shows that display dedicated doctors performing herculean resuscitation attempts on the dying. Consider the movie - I am Legend, where a doctor stayed behind while his family was evacuated because he felt obligated to continue helping the victims of a new plague, and needed to remain in the epicenter. This is what society expects from doctors and it is what doctors, to some extent, expect from themselves and their colleagues. However, there comes a point when one has had enough of all this idealism and it typically occurs while most doctors are still in training, during their residency years.
Much of the training occurs in medical centers that cater to the indigent and the poor. There, doctors get to see some really nasty individuals who are hell bent on destroying their lives and don't want to listen to your advice, no matter how nicely you try to speak to them. You risk your life trying to draw blood from a heroin junkie, knowing that if you accidentally stick yourself with that needle you might develop AIDS yourself. In a respiratory isolation room, you try to examine the eyes of an emaciated homeless man, hoping that your mask will protect you from his tuberculous cough. The rewards for such self sacrifice sometimes come in the form of being spit on by an out of control drunkard or verbally abused by either one of the above described lovely individuals, or their family members. We carry on being idealistic crusaders by developing a protective and paternalistic bond to these sick and twisted people and convince ourselves that it is our duty to care for them, because they are so helpless and hopeless. So when the idealistic coat of illusion begins to wear thin, we become labelled as callous.
Another form of abuse all doctors and nurses witness comes in the form of entitled deception. People show up asking for help and they feel that it is their right to have you work for them, without any compensation, because they are sick and must be taken care of. They are often very demanding on the hospital floor, constantly complaining about their food and their tv, and you think to yourself why on earth are they remaining in this hospital room? When time comes to send them home, they won't leave because there is no one to wait on them at home like there is in the hospital. Then you try to work on a solution with a social worker so that they can get a "free" maid at home and they finally agree to leave. Some families drop off their demented parents, and leave for a vacation. By the time you realize that their supposed acute change in mental function most likely occurred over 1 year ago and start trying to reach their family to take them home, they are long gone and unreachable. They will show up about 1 week later and act horrified that you would even consider placing their demented parent in a nursing home. That is not a valid solution for them because "they are so caring"; the reality is that when someone goes to the nursing home, their social security check becomes deposited into that nursing home rather than being left to be spent by the kids. There comes a point when you do not view these free loaders and their free loading families with sympathy. And before you go all teary eyed for the abused and demented elderly, you should realize that their kids were raised this way and most likely mimic their parents from an earlier time. These folks feel an entitlement to their care but hold no obligation to pay for it.
Another group of deceptive freeloaders come in the form of out-of-country visitors. Some fly here to obtain their expensive cancer treatment or a cardiac catherization and as soon as their treatment is done, they fly back to their country. They often do not have a real address and there is no practical way to collect their payment. In several years when they need another procedure, they return and often with a different name and address. We sometimes hear horror stories about some hospital in Mexico where a patient is kept hostage until their bill is fully paid, but there is a good reason for such measures. It would never work in this country because of all our idealistic do-gooders in politics and various forms of administration.
One of the selling points for instituting this affordable health scare shaft, is that it would force people who use medical care but don't currently pay into the system, to pay for it by forcing everyone in this country to contribute. Would it actually accomplish this? Lets consider the above groups and how they would be affected by this legislation. Would it really collect any money from the entitled free-loader who doesn't have a job? No, it wouldn't collect a dime from them, and they will likely be even more demanding than ever. Would obamacare collect anything from tourists who come here for expensive medical procedures? No it wouldn't, and the politicians will not pass any laws to address this problem.
How about the problem that has to do with a legion of lawyers who try to profit from dissatisfied patients. Most of these lawsuits come from communication difficulties between doctors and patients, and considering real world examples I described above, strained communication is the rule rather than an exception. Real professional misconduct rarely gets reported. Often hospitals and insurance companies settle rather than fight off a frivolous suit, because it is cheaper for them. It is a rare case where a doctor will insist on being vindicated in the court, because these doctors also want the nuisance to be over quickly so that they can return to work. Was Tort reform addressed by this healthcare act? No it wasn't.
Proponents of Affordable Care Act claim that it will allow this country to afford its medical expenses by forcing people who do not currently pay for their health care, to pay. That is a lie. The people who scam our hospitals now, will not contribute a dime. The people who pay for their care now, will have to pay even more to afford a myriad of new government agencies that will oversee their prompt payments. The only thing this bill will accomplish is to shift more power and control of our lives into the hands of government bureaucrats, and that was it's only true intention.
