Can we make the medical system more complicated?

dogs4thewin · Sep 10, 2019

MorkandMindy said:
Well I just got phoned and told my application had been denied again. Medicaid stops at 65 because you are then eligible for Medicare. I explained I have only 34 credits and need 40 to get Medicare so I've been told I'm not eligible for Medicare.

She explained I'm not eligible for Medicaid because I am eligible for for Medicare, but I sort of repeated her back to herself and explained if I'm not eligible for Medicare then I should be eligible for Medicaid, no she said I'm not because I'm over 65 so I'm eligible for Medicare and therefore I'm not eligible for medicaid.

Around it goes. I will soon need blood pressure medicine, I can't buy any without the very expensive signature of an American doctor, it's a monopoly, no other nationality will do. If I go to Mexico and buy it then it is strictly illegal to bring it into the country and it is illegal to fail to declare it.

Forget the nation's future, I'm going to vote communist.

I wonder if you could move to another state and get covered that way as I know Medicaid is partly a state program.

MorkandMindy · Sep 10, 2019

dogs4thewin said:
I wonder if you could move to another state and get covered that way as I know Medicaid is partly a state program.

As I understand it Medicaid is run by each state, and the state is reimbursed 90% of the cost by the US government (from national funds).

As I understand it Medicare is run by the national government and 100% funded from national funds, which might be the reason the state wants me on Medicare instead of Medicaid.

But Medicaid is intended to cover those who cannot afford to pay the exorbitant medical fees themselves and lack insurance, so because I am not yet able to get Medicare I fall into the category that should receive Medicaid. I think with perseverance I will get there.

MorkandMindy · Sep 10, 2019

I would be more than happy to pay a reasonable price for medical care but that option does not exist because the government has for decades blocked free competition in medicine, so I don't feel bad about expecting them to pay.

dogs4thewin · Sep 10, 2019

MorkandMindy said:
As I understand it Medicaid is run by each state, and the state is reimbursed 90% of the cost by the US government (from national funds).

As I understand it Medicare is run by the national government and 100% funded from national funds, which might be the reason the state wants me on Medicare instead of Medicaid.

But Medicaid is intended to cover those who cannot afford to pay the exorbitant medical fees themselves and lack insurance, so because I am not yet able to get Medicare I fall into the category that should receive Medicaid. I think with perseverance I will get there.

I am not sure about NM, but I know in my state ( GA) Medicaid ( even as someone who has been on it is not great because many if not most doctors do not accept it. Which means that you may as well not have insurance in certain areas because the insurance you have does no good since it is hard to find people that will accept it as payment. Frankly, again even as someone who has been on it I cannot say I blame the doctors, nor can I say for sure that I would take it if I were in their shoes.

Tanj · Sep 10, 2019

MorkandMindy said:
I would be more than happy to pay a reasonable price for medical care but that option does not exist because the government has for decades blocked free competition in medicine, so I don't feel bad about expecting them to pay.

You are going to die of cancer believing the lie about free competition for an inelastic demand which is causing you to die from cancer.

Sad beyond words.

I'll say it again, under the single payer no-free-competition-for-about-40-years Australian system you would automatically receive treatment, no-one would even think to utter the phrase "are you eligible", and it would cost you little to nothing out of pocket.

And I say that as someone that has been through a prostate diagnosis, specialist visits, NMR and full biopsy.

Your horrible circumstance exists entirely because your country allows free competition in healthcare.

dogs4thewin · Sep 11, 2019

Tanj said:
You are going to die of cancer believing the lie about free competition for an inelastic demand which is causing you to die from cancer.

Sad beyond words.

I'll say it again, under the single payer no-free-competition-for-about-40-years Australian system you would automatically receive treatment, no-one would even think to utter the phrase "are you eligible", and it would cost you little to nothing out of pocket.

And I say that as someone that has been through a prostate diagnosis, specialist visits, NMR and full biopsy.

Your horrible circumstance exists entirely because your country allows free competition in healthcare.

You can not expect people to work for free healthcare is STILL labor it is still a service provided in many cases after years and 100000s if not millions of dollars. It would make sense to expect people to pay a reasonable amount. In fact, most doctors and hospitals will work with you as long as you are paying something to get the bill paid off. I know the first time my dad had cancer ( second time he had great insurance but anyway the first time mom literally just paid each doctor say 200 a month ( just an example) and she would just keep records and treat the medical bills same as the power bill or house payment just put it in the budget and we never had a problem.

comana · Sep 11, 2019

dogs4thewin said:
You can not expect people to work for free healthcare is STILL labor it is still a service provided in many cases after years and 100000s if not millions of dollars. It would make sense to expect people to pay a reasonable amount. In fact, most doctors and hospitals will work with you as long as you are paying something to get the bill paid off. I know the first time my dad had cancer ( second time he had great insurance but anyway the first time mom literally just paid each doctor say 200 a month ( just an example) and she would just keep records and treat the medical bills same as the power bill or house payment just put it in the budget and we never had a problem.

Single payer/universal coverage/Medicare for all/whatever it may be is not providers working for free, but spreads the cost of healthcare across all taxpayers. People like M&M won’t be in such a dire position trying to find a way to pay for treatment or go without.

Tanj · Sep 11, 2019

dogs4thewin said:
You can not expect people to work for free

What an odd strawman. At what point have I ever said anyone should work for free?

Your' mother's story isn't really helping M&M from not dying.

dogs4thewin · Sep 11, 2019

Tanj said:
What an odd strawman. At what point have I ever said anyone should work for free?

Your' mother's story isn't really helping M&M from not dying.

I did not suggest it was Only that when M&M stated he would be willing to pay a reasonable price and not just expect it to be a given that made sense, and that doctors are ( in fact not heartless money grabbers, but that most of them want to do the right thing and are willing to work with people that put forth a reasonable effort ( like we did).

MorkandMindy · Sep 13, 2019

I pretty much gave up on solving the problem last night, it is a whole lot worse than I had thought. The reason it has taken so long to find out is I've waited before making applications not wanting bad news that will keep me up at night, but there is nothing except bad news out there.

I typed in medicaid over 65 and read lots about it and then when I applied, four times now in two months I was each time declined.

I finally got a helpful explanation which said that on when the enrollment period starts I can apply through the Marketplace and at my income level will receive 775.00 a month in premium tax credits to pay my Medicare premiums. I mentioned that to my sister and she said 'fat lot of good that's going to do, tax credits are against your income tax which at that income level will be zero so you will be getting nothing'.

Despite all the hopeful sounding leads the whole thing has been a depressing waste of time. But at least now I'm down to something a whole lot simpler - the cancer either spreads and kills me or it doesn't.

MorkandMindy · Sep 13, 2019

So I'm pleased to go back to my original plan of training as a programmer to get a good job within two years.

MorkandMindy · Sep 14, 2019

I think I've come up with hopefully the best way to cope with this situation.

The information available is very encouraging

Medicaid Works for Seniors

'Medicaid provides essential care for 7 million seniors.
Medicaid covers nursing home care and other long-term services and supports, as well as other medical care and supportive services that Medicare doesn't cover, which help many low-income seniors and people with disabilities stay independent and healthy.'

The website to apply for medicaid is called yesNM Portal, but it always seems to come up with a reason to say 'no'.

and when I applied to the website for medicaid for over 65s I got a notice that I am eligible, but in the end I wasn't

and the really helpful lady bureaucrat after giving me the bad news about medicare gave me a link to a company that provided, at a commercial rate, supplementary medicare coverage, which considering I didn't have medicare, wasn't really any help.

Given how contradictory the information is and how it changes and how stupid the bureaucrats are, I've decided to spend 1 hour every alternate Thursday afternoon reapplying because one day I may well get it.

And then I'll be sane enough the rest of the week to train for a good job and that might get me a job with medical cover.

pgp_protector · Sep 14, 2019

MorkandMindy said:
In the second book of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Adams explains that the planet of Golgafrinchan had solved it's biggest problem by inventing a story that the planet would soon be destroyed and the population would be sent to the distant largely unoccupied planet Earth in three arks.

Ark A would contain the inventors, creators of art, writers, all the great thinkers. Ark C would have the doers, and Ark B would contain all the middle people, the insurance salesmen and all those administrators that made our lives complicated.

Ark B would be sent first to make sure everything was in place for when Arks A and C arrived, which they never did because they were never built. The whole scheme was to get rid of all the people who were non productive and just got in the way.

After that Golgafrinchan entered a new era of creativity and productivity. But Ark B landed on Earth.

Actually if I recall correctly, the Golgafrinchan population was wiped out by a virus spread from an inadequately sanitized telephone.

Can we make the medical system more complicated?

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