Why Obamacare is the best thing that's happened to this country in years

[LoAmmi]

With our records, we would record the information once. (If later it was found that a mistake was found, it could easily be corrected.) I have noticed though that with computers, a mistake is multiplied over and over again--a teeny tiny error on a phone bill or so becomes gigantic. Of course it always starts out as human error (the "garbage-in" part) but by the time one is able to bring it to the attention of someone able to correct the error, the error is great and the people calmly say "oh that's just a computer error"--that why it's said that it "takes a computer to really mess up."

I have never heard this expression. That isn't a computer error and anybody describing it as such is certainly not in IT. You are describing the exception not the rule. For every giant error you can point out, I can point out the hours and hours saved by having a computer system generate things based upon the input.

Husband worked with computers in the VA Hospital from the middle 1980s to 2003, when he retired.

You really can't compare even 2003 to today. There have been massive improvements to systems including filters to prevent input errors and the like.

 

[MKJ]

Digital medical records have been in the works for years, more and more doctors have been adopting them. They are cheaper - one of the biggest costs in records management is storage space. They are also more easily transfered around which is a big deal to the institutions that use them. As more and more doctors and hospitals adopt them, it becomes harder for smaller medical groups to avoid them, as the various institutions they deal with are no longer set up to deal with paper records.

Blaming this on Obama or the affordable health care act is idiotic. And I say this a s a person who tends to be somewhat suspicious of the possibility of security abuses of electronic data (though there are real advantages to electronic data as well). As it happens my background is in records management and includes dealing with a lot of sensitive documents - I can tell you that the complete digitization of information has been in the works for many many years and is primarily industry driven. If anything, government has been somewhat slow to make changes compared to industry.

 

[Davidnic]

Considering you need a federal court order approved in many ways in a very specific fashion to get a look at what library books a convicted mass murdered was reading...and we can keep that digitally secure, I am betting that if we wanted to...we could keep digital medical records fairly safe.

 

[LoAmmi]

Considering you need a federal court order approved in many ways in a very specific fashion to get a look at what library books a convicted mass murdered was reading...and we can keep that digitally secure, I am betting that if we wanted to...we could keep digital medical records fairly safe.

I don't have statistics at hand to back this up, but as I said I am in the IT security field and have had training from government agencies regarding this stuff.

The vast majority of the time records are compromised not by hackers, but by insiders looking to sell the information or by careless users. Everybody likes to think of the notorious hacker trying to gain access to your information, but hackers go after low hanging fruit or specific big targets in general. Yes, if you run a network with no real firewall and everything open, your data is probably going to be compromised. Yes, if you are the FBI you are going to be targeted by hackers. I seriously doubt Dr. Brown's family practice is the target of hackers. It is far more conceivable for a dishonest employee to take records and sell them (which happens with both physical and digital records) or an unencrypted device with that data being lost or stolen.

 

[AMDG]

All the other digital records were supposed to be safe too. (Or so we were told--they were digital--"what could go wrong?" I guess they never thought about employees taking home whole laptops of the records and "forgetting" them in their car.)

It's happened. Many times. There is identity theft. It's cost thousands. There are even thriving businesses that do nothing but try to protect folks. There is also a thriving business selling personal records by people who have managed to get hold of them.

Heck, even my son-in-law had to clean up a mess when someone was using his government issued social security card (you know the one kept on digital records by the government so it's supposedly safe.) You have no idea the problems *that* caused!

Want to see a scary movie about the so-called "safety" of computerized records? It's an old Sandra Bullack one called "The Net."

Oh well this is supposed to be a thread about Obamacare and not the scary things concerning digital records. Like I said before, I don't think it is fair to make doctors sink thousands of dollars (they don't have) to just comply with this Obamacare regulation concerning digital records when they were doing fine with the paper records before and had no intention of revamping their offices. Oh, I forgot. You know who pays for that extra expense don't you? It costs the doctor so he has to simply pass the expense on to his patients.

 

[Wolseley]

Considering you need a federal court order approved in many ways in a very specific fashion to get a look at what library books a convicted mass murdered was reading...and we can keep that digitally secure, I am betting that IF WE WANTED TO...we could keep digital medical records fairly safe.

And therein lies the rub, doesn't it?

If there's a profit to be made by having access to this stuff---either by selling information, or control of care, or any other purpose, somebody will want to make sure that those records aren't as "safe" as the patient himself might want them to be.

 

[LoAmmi]

All the other digital records were supposed to be safe too. (Or so we were told--they were digital--"what could go wrong?" I guess they never thought about employees taking home whole laptops of the records and "forgetting" them in their car.)

So physical records were never compromised in the history of the world?

 

[LoAmmi]

Want to see a scary movie about the so-called "safety" of computerized records? It's an old Sandra Bullack one called "The Net."

Also watch "Hackers". Both are documentary-like in their portrayal of events!


I can just watch Jesus Christ Superstar to learn about Christianity, right?

 

[Tallguy88]

Also watch "Hackers". Both are documentary-like in their portrayal of events!


I can just watch Jesus Christ Superstar to learn about Christianity, right?

And Monty Python's Life of Brian.

 

[AMDG]

An old CBO report (old as in July 2012) shows that they now say that Obamacare (which the Supreme Court says is a TAX) will cost us 2.6 Trillion for just 10 years.

Obamacare Now Estimated to Cost $2.6 Trillion in First Decade | The Weekly Standard

Guess who will have to pay? As you are digging in your pocket to come up with the extra taxes, remember, nothing in life is free.

Lay-offs and unemployment from Obamacare, reduced hours from Obamacare, people losing their health insurance and doctors because of Obamacare, sequestration, even more lay-offs, higher and higher taxes. Shame y'all weren't interested in the passed House Bills that acted to solve this mess or in a business professional who actually turned-around failing businesses. It all acts together. Fiscal cliff here we come!

 

[TheOtherHockeyMom]

Ok, you made me have to go and do this...
Eric Idle - "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life" - STEREO HQ - YouTube

 

[LoAmmi]

An old CBO report (old as in July 2012) shows that they now say that Obamacare (which the Supreme Court says is a TAX) will cost us 2.6 Trillion for just 10 years.

(Some people aren't frightened by the word tax (or the truth))

 

[AMDG]

(Some people aren't frightened by the word tax (or the truth))

Be my guest. To you know you Dems. that are always talking about being "saviors" of the middle class (which lies directly in the sites of Obamacare and in Obama's tax plans), well I'm not part of *any* party (think both are just playin a game) and I'm poor and no longer have a job while my husband is retired plus I'm "in the winter of my life". IOW, the taxes are going to hurt you a lot more than they hurt me. As a matter of fact, I'm having to tell myself that it's not nice to tell say "I told you so" when you finally realize your short-sightedness.

 

[LoAmmi]

Be my guest. To you know you Dems. that are always talking about being "saviors" of the middle class (which lies directly in the sites of Obamacare and in Obama's tax plans), well I'm not part of *any* party (think both are just playin a game) and I'm poor and no longer have a job while my husband is retired plus I'm "in the winter of my life". IOW, the taxes are going to hurt you a lot more than they hurt me. As a matter of fact, I'm having to tell myself that it's not nice to tell say "I told you so" when you finally realize your short-sightedness.

Where have I identified myself as a Democrat exactly? This is like the fourth or fifth time where you have decided to label me something that I have never identified as. Please stop. It is rude.

I want a single payer system and would be willing to pay more in taxes to cover a system. You can "I told you so" as much as you'd like if that gets through, since it's "I agreed to it".

 

[MikeK]

To you know you Dems. that are always talking about being "saviors" of the middle class (which lies directly in the sites of Obamacare and in Obama's tax plans), well I'm not part of *any* party (think both are just playin a game) and I'm poor and no longer have a job while my husband is retired plus I'm "in the winter of my life".

This is my favorite sentence.

 

[AMDG]

Where have I identified myself as a Democrat exactly? This is like the fourth or fifth time where you have decided to label me something that I have never identified as. Please stop. It is rude.

Snipped to portion being addressed. Longer post above.

First, why do you assume that I was referring to you? There are others here who claim to be saviors of the middle class. Is it just because you love Obama? Well, in case you don't know it, Obama, a Progressive, is from the Dem party. The Progressives "ate" what was once the Dem party. (I ought to know, I was once Dem. as was JFK. Dems. were once Classical Liberals. They believed in a "rising tide lifts all boats", they were a "Ask NOT what your country can do for you, ask what YOU can do for your country", JFK had us go to the moon. We were once a proud country under JFK. Now? Not so much. JFK wouldn't even know the Dems. anymore. They are now more of a mob of "what's in it for me".)

No, I was not necessarily referring to you. That you thought that I was seems a bit disturbing.

 

[Chany]

Snipped to portion being addressed. Longer post above.

First, why do you assume that I was referring to you? There are others here who claim to be saviors of the middle class. Is it just because you love Obama? Well, in case you don't know it, Obama, a Progressive, is from the Dem party. The Progressives "ate" what was once the Dem party. (I ought to know, I was once Dem. as was JFK. Dems. were once Classical Liberals. They believed in a "rising tide lifts all boats", they were a "Ask NOT what your country can do for you, ask what YOU can do for your country", JFK had us go to the moon. We were once a proud country under JFK. Now? Not so much. JFK wouldn't even know the Dems. anymore. They are now more of a mob of "what's in it for me".)

No, I was not necessarily referring to you. That you thought that I was seems a bit disturbing.

You quoted him in your snippet and typed "you" in a highly confusing form. You also now appear to say he loves Obama, which has yet to be seen.

 

[WarriorAngel]

Higher taxes are a punishment...
For those who like them - consider along with those taxes are the shoving of immoralities down our throats.

3 cheers all.

 

[AMDG]

You quoted him in your snippet and typed "you" in a highly confusing form. You also now appear to say he loves Obama, which has yet to be seen.

The word "you" *is* rather confusing--it is both singular and plural. Maybe that's why there are some who use the word *youse" to indicate the plural you and why some use "y'all" for the same purpose. (Being from the Southern states, I am often guilty of that--and am also corrected by some others in OBOB. Then one of the few times I correctly use "you", I'm attacked for that! Can't win for losing.)

BTW the word directly after that "you" was plural. Figured that showed that I was speaking of more than one and for some time there have been folks that have claimed to champion the middle class. It was also brought up with Obama's class warfare during the election. You. More than one. Not a specific person. In addition, Obamacare was passed solely by the Dems. There wasn't a single Repub. vote and Obama dismissed any of their suggestions. He even had to bribe his own party to pass the bad legislature. Sounds like anyone who likes Obamacare, likes Obama.

 

[LoAmmi]

First, why do you assume that I was referring to you?

Because you said:
Be my guest. To you know you Dems. that are always talking about being "saviors" of the middle class

Is it just because you love Obama? Well, in case you don't know it, Obama, a Progressive, is from the Dem party.

When did I say I loved Obama?