Trump/GOP still trying to kill us through "healthcare"

[cassandra]

Well, the Senate still has to pass it, but they will make some pretty significant changes after taking a harder look at it.  Once that is done, they will send it back to the House, and I'm not sure the House will pass it with the Senate's changes.  So, things are still very much in the air.  It's really scary.

TtL there is still a chance of some developed world status?  Why do they pretend on the BBC as if it's a 'done deal'? I suppose it's a form of fake news.   

     
           But I'm pleased to hear it. So he's had his little 'win', but it's not over till the fat lady sings. Phew

[Jean]

Cas, maybe the BBC is just sick and tired about the people here who are whining about our health care, even tho it is not going to be a done deal ( I dont think ) any time soon. Some of the people on here ready to have a stroke, no matter what happens. Now, I think that is scary!!!

[MooseMom]

Well, Trump had all of the House members who voted for this monstrosity bussed over to the White House for a celebratory beer party in the Rose Garden, so I can see why it would look to "outsiders" like it was a done deal. 

Jean, I hope we all don't have a stroke because we probably won't be left with affordable health care if it's left all up to that ferret faced Paul Ryan.  And we all of us have a pre-existing condition, so...  Do you have anything constructive to add to this discussion?  Do you have any particular further knowledge about the House bill that you can share with us?  What would you like to see the Senate add/delete/change in the House bill, if anything?

[MooseMom]

If you consider Consumer Report to be a credible source, this is an interesting article on the affect Obamacare had on the rate of personal bankruptcies due to the inability to pay medical bills.

http://www.consumerreports.org/personal-bankruptcy/how-the-aca-drove-down-personal-bankruptcy/

[Jean]

 OMIGOSH!!! I was not aware that every post had to be constructive. Now that I know that rule I will be ever so careful to follow it. I have not read the bill, has any one here read it?? Personally I think it would be very constructive for all of us to read the bill, even tho, at this point all we can do is worry. Worry gets you nowhere, and the stress could possibly give you a stroke!!! No one on this post or any other post has any control over this bill, so all you are doing is worrying. Definitely NOT constructive. Calling your POTUS nasty names will not do anything for any one. But if it makes you feel good, then I suggest a new post, so you can all vent. Talk to you soon MM, I just know you are sitting and waiting for my response.

[Simon Dog]

The ironic thing is that ESRD patients who have made it to Medicare have less to worry about that persons with other equally severe pre-existing conditions who have to buy insurance through the non-employer marketplace.    Medicare patients already have access to a wide variety of supplemental policies, and the procedures for Medicare+supplements is not under attack.   If I had to buy private insurance and the seller would know a priori that it would pay more in claims than my premium, I would be worried, as I would be at the mercy of the government to assist me in that theft to stay alive.

[MooseMom]

The ironic thing is that ESRD patients who have made it to Medicare have less to worry about that persons with other equally severe pre-existing conditions who have to buy insurance through the non-employer marketplace.    Medicare patients already have access to a wide variety of supplemental policies, and the procedures for Medicare+supplements is not under attack.   

First of all, we don't know how the current administration is going to "reform" Medicare.

Secondly, how about people who are pre-dialysis or who have conditions that will eventually lead them to dialysis?  If they get the care they need, they might not ever have to be a dialysis patient. 

Lastly, what about transplant patients who are no longer eligible for Medicare?  They have one hell of a pre-existing condition.  Some of those people are your fellow IHDers.

[MooseMom]

OMIGOSH!!! I was not aware that every post had to be constructive. Now that I know that rule I will be ever so careful to follow it. I have not read the bill, has any one here read it?? Personally I think it would be very constructive for all of us to read the bill, even tho, at this point all we can do is worry. Worry gets you nowhere, and the stress could possibly give you a stroke!!! No one on this post or any other post has any control over this bill, so all you are doing is worrying. Definitely NOT constructive. Calling your POTUS nasty names will not do anything for any one. But if it makes you feel good, then I suggest a new post, so you can all vent. Talk to you soon MM, I just know you are sitting and waiting for my response.

Yep, I was indeed awaiting your response, and you didn't disappoint.

Have you read anything about the bill?  Oh, sorry.  You don't take questions, do you.  FYI, I've read as much of the bill as I can get access to, and I bet I'm not the only one to do so. 

You are right, though; doing nothing but sitting around worrying is not constructive.  But you know what IS?  Calling your representative and making your views known.  Attending events where you get to ask your representative questions.  And guess what, Jean?  That's what I've done, and that is what I will continue to do.  We as Americans DO have control in the form of holding our representatives accountable and reminding them of their promises.  Remember, the entire House is up for reelection next year, so the pressure is on (or did you not know that?).

[nursey66]

I am so sad that the republicans want to toss all the people with pre-existing conditions out into a separate pool for health care insurance !  What happened to everyone being treated eaqually ? Pre-existing  medical conditions are being singled out as less valuable citizens !  They should remember that everyone is just one medical  diagnosis from being on the " pre-existing condition " list  !

[Jean]

Yes indeedy, I said, and let me quote myself ( I have not read this bill ). I am glad you and others have. If others have, rather than listening to News stations who invariably do not report correctly. Cant even blame Bill O'Reilly any more. For those who have the time and the energy, I am grateful for them calling and sending letters to their reps, which indeed, I do. Attend rallys? No, cant do that, not physically capable and with the thugs being hired to break up rallys, I will not put my poor beat up body in that path. So, I do what I can, when I can. And I am sorry but you may think you have comtrol. Not really, but if it makes you feel better I am all for it. And Oh gosh, Oh golly, I did not know the entire house was up for re-election. HAHAHA, I am joking, of course I knew that. Have a nice day.

[Michael Murphy]

The list of preexisting conditions is out and yes dialysis is on it.  So either no insurance or 5 tims the premium are a possibility for all of us under this Republican  bill.  We have finally seen the death panels the right has been hysterical about for the last 10 years.  It's the Republican members of Congress who have chosen death for people with preexisting conditions.  For the record he is not my POTUS, he is Putins choice for POTUS.  As to respecting the office I believe he deserves as much respect as Obama was and is shown by the right.  So as long as he is in office his title is Presidunce.

[LorinnPKD]

Not just dialysis.

It's also renal failure, kidney disease in general, transplant, diabetes, depression (which is flabbergastingly common for kidney patients, I wonder why...), paraplegia.  That hits every one of us here at least once, and some of us can pretty much fill up a bingo card.

This whole thing has been so triggering.   I've really been in a good mental health space since I started D and have been hopeful because of the available support in getting through this.  Watching my local congressman gleefully tear down a system designed to help the most vulnerable Americans is incredibly disheartening.  It wasn't perfect, but it was much better and fair than what they are proposing.

[MooseMom]

Yes indeedy, I said, and let me quote myself ( I have not read this bill ). I am glad you and others have. If others have, rather than listening to News stations who invariably do not report correctly. Cant even blame Bill O'Reilly any more. For those who have the time and the energy, I am grateful for them calling and sending letters to their reps, which indeed, I do. Attend rallys? No, cant do that, not physically capable and with the thugs being hired to break up rallys, I will not put my poor beat up body in that path. So, I do what I can, when I can. And I am sorry but you may think you have comtrol. Not really, but if it makes you feel better I am all for it. And Oh gosh, Oh golly, I did not know the entire house was up for re-election. HAHAHA, I am joking, of course I knew that. Have a nice day.

I am very glad that you do what you can, when you can, because your health and your life are important.  I don't know what the final bill will look like, but I hope it will have all the provisions that you, Jean, might need to have a good quality of life and that will also leave you free from worry.

I don't have "control", but my vote counts just as much as Bill Gates' or Donald Trump's.  The collective votes of people who may be hurt by whatever the final result of this bill count, too.

Take care of yourself, and I do hope you have a good day.  The weather is beautiful here today, and if it is nice where you are, I hope some spring sunshine will be uplifting to you.  Do you have a nice park or garden nearby that you can enjoy? 

[Michael Murphy]

If the Presidunce and his congressional minions pass the current house bill it will make dialysis too expensive for me.  I just started planning for the head stone I will need if the grinches kill health care.  Something like died too soon planted by Republicans.

[LorinnPKD]

I don't have "control", but my vote counts just as much as Bill Gates' or Donald Trump's.  The collective votes of people who may be hurt by whatever the final result of this bill count, too.

The best part of me wants to believe this is true, but unfortunately the power belongs to the people who are paying for it.  Our lovely elected officials, especially on the federal level, are obliged to raise wheelbarrows full of money every year.  Hundreds of thousands.  Their position depends on how much money they can raise.  Half of what they do every day is fundraising in congressional call centers.  And when they fundraise, they make promises.  And they act on those promises to secure future funding from donors.  And once in office, they also have the added edge of incumbency.  It's very hard to unseat an incumbent.

So we elect the officials, but once they are in, they are beholden to the $$$ donors, not to us.

[Shaks24]

Hopefully the senate will add an amendment that gives each Trumpcare policy holder a $25 coupon on your choice of cremation services or maybe a casket.  Seriously though, it would be hard to write a bill any worse than what the house passed.  Here is an article to remind us of what Trump promised on healthcare compared to what the house bill delivers. Trump is a liar! Lets hope the senate moves it so far towards the center that the bill is stalled and unpassable by the right.

http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/332164-how-the-house-healthcare-bill-measures-up-to-trumps-promises

[PrimeTimer]

My epithet will read: Died while on-hold with the insurance company.

[Michael Murphy]

Prime time, better then mine.

[Bill Peckham]

The AHCA isn't a healthcare bill in any traditional sense, republicans aren't arguing that health care outcomes will improve. The entire point is for the people covered to make the pool of money available to support healthcare smaller. The House legislation removes over 600 billion in tax support over 10 years and it imagines less money coming into the pool from premiums - due to state waivers that would allow insurance policies that will cover less and thus have lower premiums.

It is hard to know how many states will allow partial insurance policies and so we don't know exactly how much less money will be in the pool but something on the order of 100 billion a year. But that's the house bill. To what degree the Senate will go along with with removing this much money from the pool? We don't know, but I haven't heard Senators complaining about the tax implications of the bill.

The clear republican policy preference is that there should be at least 60 billion dollars less per year available to pay for healthcare. Given that policy, the people currently receiving that medical care will not receive that care (short of coming up with the money themselves or receiving charity care).

Thus, it isn't just the house bill, the republican approach requires that 10s of millions of people receive less medical care (while thousands of people pay less in taxes). Whatever the details and side deals that $60+ billion a year paid for something, removing the funding does not change the need. Those funding cuts will lead to avoidable pain, suffering and death.

[Michael Murphy]

The 600 billion is easy to explain the republicans want a major tax cut and need to fund it so it's revenue neutral or the democrats can block it in the senate.  When dealing with republicans just follow the money.  They don't care about people wo die as long as they have lower taxes.

[MooseMom]

and it imagines less money coming into the pool from premiums - due to state waivers that would allow insurance policies that will cover less and thus have lower premiums.

Yes.  This is the heart of the matter.  Listen very carefully as GOP congressmen extol the virtues of this new bill's lowering of premiums.  That insurance policies will cover less is the part they aren't talking about.

[MooseMom]

https://www.kidney.org/news/national-kidney-foundation-statement-macarthur-amendment-to-american-health-care-act

[LorinnPKD]

^ I love that, MooseMom.  Thank you for posting it.

One of my senators is on the committee writing the new AHCA legislation.  I'll be sending this link to him.

[Simon Dog]

Lower costs without a single mention of MDs, hospitals, or pharma companies getting paid less.   It doesn't work that way.

[MooseMom]

Lower costs without a single mention of MDs, hospitals, or pharma companies getting paid less.   It doesn't work that way.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.  We have a local community hospital that has now been gobbled up by Northwestern University Healthcare's octopus of a system.  I used to volunteer there about 7 years ago, and I scarcely recognize it, anymore.  I had to go there to get a blood draw, and the refurbished entry is now an "atrium", and there's also now a pianist.  Oh, and there's valet parking.  I couldn't help but wonder how much of the money to furnish us with a pianist could go to someone else's mammogram.  Where does all of that money come from?