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The Spectacle Blog
One of the main arguments made by proponents of a government-run health care option is that it would have lower administrative costs than private health care plans, but as Merrill Matthews of the Council for Affordable Health Insurance explains:
Speaking of scams, the argument that Medicare's administrative costs are 2% is one of the biggest scams out there.
Public figures for Medicare's administrative costs count only what it takes to print reimbursement checks. Normal operating costs — rent, management, health insurance, taxes, capital to start a business and new equipment — which private insurers must include in their administrative costs, are counted elsewhere in the federal budget.
Official Medicare administrative costs simply exclude what most companies must include. No administrative cost savings exist in the public plan, and the true costs will never be counted because they'll be hidden in the federal budget.
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More Blog Posts by Philip Klein
http://spectator.org/blog/2009/05/06/medicare-myths
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Pingback| 5.6.09 @ 10:40AM
Medicare Myths | But As For Me links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Bob| 5.6.09 @ 11:01AM
While this may well be true, Medicare "saves" money in two major areas -- marketing and taxes. Generally, marketing accounts for a minimum of 5% of sales in group insurance companies and taxes are about 4%. That's a total of 9% that Medicare would not have to pay in any event. It is highly unlikely that those "normal operating costs" are anywhere near that 9%.
There will be operating cost savings. But that is not the issue, is it? It would be nice to see a full comparison of cost structures. I know approximately what they are for private group insurance companies since I used to work in that business. But I have no idea what they are in Medicare.
Philip, can you bring some objectivity to this?
Old Texican| 5.6.09 @ 1:54PM
Bob
Good post! Good questions!
Simple answer: "FEATHERBEDDING".
Goodness knows the large health insurance companies suffer the same "empire building" bureaucrats......BUT remaining competitive cuts that impulse to a minimum.
We are in the medical field. Medicare pays pretty well.
The problem is what it costs tax-payers....HUGE!
Marc Jeric| 5.6.09 @ 2:53PM
There is a tremendous amount of fraud in the Medicare plan, and even more of it in Medicaid. I have calculated that an average Medicare recipient makes 33 doctor's visits per year - well, it costs him or her nothing, so why not? Also, some doctors just phony up their books with those visits - why not? - nobody is checking those books and billings.
Socialism leads to lies, theft, crime - I should know; I escaped from a communist country some time ago.
jacksmith| 5.9.09 @ 2:15AM
Swine flu (A-H1N1) and Healthcare In America
Well my fellow Americans, and people of the World. That was yet another very close potential catastrophe. Especially for those of us that live in America with our busted, greed driven, private for profit healthcare system. What ever you do World. Don't copy our current healthcare system.
If that virus (A-H1N1) had emerged just a few months earlier our busted healthcare system in America would have collapsed. Just like our economy almost did. And hundreds of thousands more Americans, if not millions would have needlessly lost their lives. As hospital ER's became choked with the sick, and dying.
All on top of the hundreds of thousands of Americans who needlessly lose their lives in America each year from a rush to profit by the private for profit healthcare industry. Rich, middle class, and poor a like. Insured, and uninsured. Men Women, Children, and Babies.
This was yet another big WAKE-UP! call for America, and for our Government. It's time for Congress to end the debate. And stop dancing around the issues of how they can continue to try and justify protecting the private for profit healthcare industry, and the private for profit healthcare insurance industry. These industries are killing hundreds of thousands of Americans every year in America, and endangering our National security.
"the health-care system is, first and foremost, for the American people—not the companies that profit from it." (Tom Daschle | NEWSWEEK)
IT'S OVER! The Private for profit healthcare experiment in America is dead. It FAILED! And it was a DISASTER!
"NOT FOR PROFIT, TAX PAYER SUPPORTED, SINGLE PAYER, AUTOMATIC, FREE UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE FOR ALL. Is the ONLY! way to go.
Essentially HR676 (enhanced, and expanded medicare for all). Just like every other CIVILIZED! country in the developed World has. There is no other way to truly fix or reform our current disastrous healthcare delivery system. NONE!
Congress, fix our healthcare crisis while you still have time.
President Obama, VP Biden, the Obama administration and the rest of his advisors, along with Speaker Pelosi and Harry Reid are doing an excellent job of protecting you. And also an excellent job of representing you and the best interest of the World. But it's time for the rest of Congress to get on board.
To those of you who keep standing up and fighting for single-payer universal healthcare for all. YOU! are Americas true HEROES! And I am proud of you. :-) Don't let up.
God Bless And Keep You All
Jack Smith — Working Class