Comments for Health News Colorado

Comment on Opinion: For exchange, harsh reality about to hit the fan by thephotoguy

thephotoguy — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 23:46:35 +0000

As Mr. Miller all but suggests, most of these issues would be solved easily under a single-payer system. The most straightforward way to do that would be politically impossible: expanding Medicare to cover everyone, regardless of age or condition. Much of the necessary bureaucracy is already in place, Medicare already operates more efficiently than most private insurance companies in terms of administrative costs, and the age cohort most likely to use the services, the elderly, will in large part be already familiar with procedures and whatever hoops have to be jumped through. It’s politically impossible because people who like to call themselves “conservative,” (e.g., Kevin Lundberg) are not interested in the welfare of the general public, only the welfare of corporations and those fortunate enough to have incomes well above the median. Philosophically, these so-called “conservatives” are advocates of “cowboy health care,” where we all operate in an ethical and financial and health care vacuum wherein we make informed choices based on the sort of market conditions Mr. Miller mentions above. Too bad the vast majority of folks cannot make informed choices because the necessary information isn’t made available to them, a problem made worse by the fact that health care is usually not something that’s discretionary – people need it when they need it, for the most part, and the individual consumer has virtually zero bargaining power. The “market” is thus very heavily skewed in favor of health care providers and those who supply them with tools and equipment. In short, the notion of a health care “free market,” so dear to the hearts and minds of lawmakers like Mr. Lundberg, is a dangerous and cruel delusion. It doesn’t exist.

In the meantime, while we agonize over how to get health care exchanges going – bureaucracies that would be unnecessary in every other industrialized nation on the planet, where health care is both more cost-effective and provides better health outcomes than in this country – those other industrialized societies provide quality health care to citizens without anyone going bankrupt or losing their home to medical expenses, health care providers are well-paid (though not members of the 1%), and their life expectancies are often better than ours, as well. Not many people here actually want health insurance. What Americans want is health CARE – at a reasonable price, and that’s effective.

Comment on Guns, poor mental health system lead to record suicide toll by thephotoguy

thephotoguy — Thu, 20 Aug 2015 00:48:59 +0000

My guess is that the NRA response to this article will be that these tragedies could be avoided if only ALL Coloradans were carrying a sidearm.

Comment on Navajos fight diabetes epidemic with junk food tax by thephotoguy

thephotoguy — Wed, 05 Aug 2015 16:46:00 +0000

The sugary-beverage/soda industry doesn’t care about Navajo health – or anyone’s health. The goal of any big corporation is profit. The health of the customer is far, far, far down the list of priorities.

Comment on Opinion: Sweet drinks cause serious dental problems along with obesity by thephotoguy

thephotoguy — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 21:34:08 +0000

A timely reminder. My own personal bias is that dental care is the 500-pound gorilla in the medical care room. Very few health care “experts” talk about topics like this one, and in my 70+ years, I’ve spent far more money out of my own pocket on dental care than I have on injuries or illnesses.

Comment on Fixed-price surgeries come to Colorado retirees by Lis

Lis — Tue, 28 Jul 2015 21:46:10 +0000

A very good reference for pricing, more comprehensive than the Colorado All-Claims Database, is the Healthcare Bluebook. https://healthcarebluebook.com/ Also, see how a private, for-profit surgery center handles pricing. http://www.surgerycenterok.com/ Consumers can also buy laboratory tests online. All of the vendors I’ve seen send you to the same local labs. Slowly but surely, secrecy and price-fixing are falling apart.