OK faithful readers, today I digress a bit from emerging technologies to address what I consider to be one of the most serious domestic issues facing our country today.
Among the debates currently disrupting our national identity is of course health care. Everyone is talking about the new health care law; at times eschewing its value, other times in praise of it's new guidelines. The stated goal is access to health care for all right?
Wrong. Access to health care cannot reasonably called access when the monthly cost to participate is exhorbitant. Such is the case with an employer I know. This organization provides access to health insurance which is terrific as long as you are healthy and never face a serious illness. However, because there is no stop-loss on prescription drug coverage (something many plans now provide for), the consequences could be tragic for anyone diagnosed with a serious and/or chronic condition that requires specialty medication.
For me, under this plan, I would have to pay $540 every 4 weeks for just one medication. The fact that I also take about a dozen other medications to manage what is a serious and chronic health condition for which there is no cure, only disease management, complicates the issue even further. Ultimately the monthly cost to me to participate in this group health insurance plan would exceed $1200 monthly. By the way, that is for the individual plan.
There are few individuals I think, who can afford healthcare that exceeds their mortgage payment. So can this reasonably be called access to health care? Its hard for me to see it as so.
Add to this heated debate, the new Well-Mark office in downtown Des Moines where no expense has been spared to provide employees with a great place to exercise!! Please tell me who pays for this? Oh, that's right, those who are insured through Well-mark are paying for it.Through the nose I might add as they raised rates by 18% earlier this year.
I wonder how any executive in today's economy could justify a business plan that calls for an 18% increase in costs to customers so that employees can have their own professional gym.
What about you?
I don't have much knowledge on Obama health care plan but coming from a developing country, I know government provided health care. Nearly fifty percent people do not have insurance and they have to rely on government health care. I think most American have health care provided by company but what about others who donot afford to get one. I think if done right universal health care is far better than current one. I think it is working in most European countries.
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