Currently my healthcare plan is cash. The quality me the care is adequate but the cost is crazy. I went to emergency room today. They offer a 40% discount to people with no insurance, if they pay within the first thirty days. I understand this is a policy to encourage users to pay their bill fast, but it seems to me that if they can afford a 40% discount, then that is nearer their costs. If you need to spread the cost past thirty days, no discount. So the people least able to afford healthcare are paying full fare. In fact, I would bet that the full price care is being paid by no-one with insurance. I would expect that the Blue-Cross’s and Medicares out there have rate plans for what they pay for what. This seems regressive to me.
I think the majority of the un-insured in this country are the lower middle-class. I can afford to pay for care and would prefer medical insurance and will likely have insurance pretty soon. Its the lower middle class that seems to really get chewed up in this deal.
Another oddity I noticed tonight…my hospital has a McDonald’s in the Cafeteria. That seems a bit disingenuous when most healthcare workers are encouraging their patients to lower their saturated fats and calorie intake.
