On Mon, Nov 29, 2010 at 6:31 PM, Bob Blick wrote: > > On Mon, 29 Nov 2010 17:03:25 -0500, "Carey Fisher" said: > > > Demand is way up; someone else (employer, insurance co and govt) is > > paying > > for it so demand has gone through the roof. THAT is the cause of high > > medical costs. Common sense to me... > > That logic has big holes in it. > > Medical care is expensive at retail, ie: when I go to the hospital and > pay cash. > That makes no sense. I've offered to pay cash for discounted medical services and they readily agreed because it cuts down on the paperwork. Loo= k how many "admins" a doctor's office has versus doctors and nurses - maybe a= s much as 3 or 4 to 1 due to the administrative burdens of filing claims for = a myriad of insurance companies etc. > > It costs the insurance companies, medicare, etc 70 percent less, because > they get discounts. > Yeah, they're big enough to strong-arm the doctors. Sorta like organized crime selling protection. > > Notice what I said. If I pay cash, it costs more. The insurance > companies push the cost(to themselves) DOWN. > Offer cash for a discount. I'll bet you a USD1.00 they'll say yes. > > I don't know many people who can go to the doctor for free, even with > "good" insurance there seems to always be a co-pay of some sort. That > blows your argument completely out of the water because it keeps demand > low, and the insurance companies are happy. > > Medical care was cheaper 50 years ago. Is that such a surprise? You > couldn't get a CT scan back then, either. > You couldn't get a computer back then either for less than a few million USD. Now, they're dirt cheap. Moore's law applies to CT and MRI machines too. > > A flu shot is cheap because it's a flu shot. Brain surgery is expensive > because it's... brain surgery. > I believe that medical care has risen more than any other sector in terms o= f cost to the consumer. And it's really going to go up if our elected representatives continue to make bad choices. > The $10 Tylenol? That is retail, if you paid cash to the hospital. No > way does the insurance company pay that. But you don't see those > receipts. And it always costs more to buy something that is served to > you. It costs $10 for a bottle of mineral water at a restaurant, too. > The $10 Tylenol in the hospital is to help pay for indigent care (people wh= o can't afford medical care) at the hospital as well as the administrative load. > > Insurance companies are not stupid, and they have clout. They don't pay > any more than they have to, they negotiate hard, hard, hard. And they > make a profit year after year. > > Cheerful regards, > > Bob > Have fun! Carey > -- > http://www.fastmail.fm - The way an email service should be > > -- > http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive > View/change your membership options at > http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist > --=20 http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist .