Comments on: Insurers Accused Of Underpaying Patients

CBS Evening News: New York AG Investigates Whether Health Care Companies Perpetuated Fraud

[tbuckl]

This should not shock anyone in this country. Our health care sucks! "This story is indicative of the medical insurance business and, really, every insurance business. Their primary business is to make money at their customer''''s expense without regard to ethics, a sense of right and wrong or just general decency." This is on the money and and best represents Corp. America and how they relate to the US Citizens. These folks just keeps stealing from us and tells us it good for us. Bullsh***! I have no respect for these folks, none at all, and I am not alone.

[tycobb111]

demswin08 -- We need national health care for all or you are going to see the death age rate going lower and lower.

You should show us the stats behind this claim. As I recall, human life expectancy has been increasing since the Great Depression as medical technology has advanced.

[sandy19731]

Hillary was right.

[jayfred2002]

This story is indicative of the medical insurance business and, really, every insurance business. Their primary business is to make money at their customer''s expense without regard to ethics, a sense of right and wrong or just general decency. The ideal idea behind insurance is to pay a customer for loss, whatever that might be. The idea isn''t to scam a customer, promising you''ll pay for a loss, then try every hook and crook to deny that customer a right and just payment for said loss. Now, I''m not saying insurance firms should fork over money to individuals without regard to making sure the customer isn''t trying to scam them with false claims. I''m saying if a customer presents a legitimate claim for a legitimate loss then an insurance company has an obligation, legal, ethical, moral or otherwise, to pay that claim. There should be no restrictions, no use of "usual, customary and reasonable rates" doctrines, to making a claim payment. One of the things I hope President Obama will do is go after these firms who deny just payments and just courses of treatment and, instead of fining these insurance companies, start to put their executives in prison. The only way our society is going to rid itself of these practices, whether it be in insurance, finance or others, is to hold executives and employees of these firms criminally accountable for their actions.

[jackster12-2009]

I''m 42. I run four times a week, don''t smoke, and almost never get even a cold. My wife is 36. She neither smokes nor drinks and she''s also in good shape. We have two children, ages four and two. Both are perfectly healthy, knock wood. We also don''t bungee jump, bullfight, or swallow swords. Heck, we don''t even drive much. We live in the city, so no car necessary.

Yet, guess what we pay per year for health coverage? I''m self-employed, so it''s all out of pocket... approx. $17,000. Yes, no typos there. And what does it get us? We have to fight for EVERY penny of reimbursement, on things that are clearly stated IN THEIR POLICY as covered. Every single penny. It''s ridiculous. If that''s us, what options are out there for other families who can''t pay those rates?

[jackster12-2009]

I''m 42. I run four times a week, don''t smoke, and almost never get even a cold. My wife is 36. She neither smokes nor drinks and she''s also in good shape. We have two children, ages four and two. Both are perfectly healthy, knock wood. We also don''t bungee jump, bullfight, or swallow swords. Heck, we don''t even drive much. We live in the city, so no car necessary.

Yet, guess what we pay per year for health coverage? I''m self-employed, so it''s all out of pocket... approx. $17,000. Yes, no typos there. And what does it get us? We have to fight for EVERY penny of reimbursement, on things that are clearly stated IN THEIR POLICY as covered. Every single penny. It''s ridiculous. If that''s us, what options are out there for other families who can''t pay those rates?

[cyberus-2009]

Big whoop ... $50 million .. it''ll just be added to everyones revised rates next year

[erasmus606]

I was talking to a person (American), who said that when they went for surgery, they had to deal with the insurance company first. They also had to deal with the anaesthesiologist. We deal with no one. We go to the doctor, the doctor sends us to a specialist and the specialist books us into the hospital for the operation. We go to the hospital on the day of the operation, have the operation and stay for a few days, or go home. We deal with no one. We get no bills, nothing.

[mrjoshcan]

Also, Why are Canadian pharmacies with U.S. stakes so appealed to medical advice and derivatives prone to limiting Medicare and Medicaids total surgical care that every American retiree over 40 deserves. Why then could not basic social advocacy remove complection pimples, however, also trained to treat a Dental, Hearing, and Vision ailment? Incomplete with no lack of advances in scientific awareness, but a lack of skilled field capability into the heart of the matter. Even Computer Software Specialist or Sweater Knitting friend educated last year like myself, who was told didn''t have the grades or aptitude to become an MD. Closets to poverty and is not paid-in-check for their work either. Doug [e-mail]

[erasmus606]

Let me just say that there is NOTHING like having the peace of mind, knowing that you and your family and friends are all taken care of. We don''t live with the constant worry about what''s going to happen if we, or our kids should get sick. And if they get sick, we don''t have to worry about the insurance company backing out of paying, getting extra charges, or losing our homes. We don''t have to worry about dying from lack of healthcare.

You can say whatever you like about our healthcare, but we all live in peace, knowing that we are ALL taken care of.

[erasmus606]

And I never have to wait for treatment...I walk right in my doctor''''s office plop myself down and say I have a problemo...NOW! And I''''m always seen. No waiting, ever, unless I choose to wait.

Posted by TexHillGirl at 12:45 AM : Jan 14, 2009

If I was to phone my doctor tomorrow morning, I could be in the office that afternoon. If they are booked up, I would get one the next day. If it was an emergency, they would probably squeeze me in the same day. If not, and I couldn''t wait, then I would just have to walk into one of the many clinics, to be seen to.

I have my own family doctor. I can go whenever and however often I want.

[erasmus606]

I mean, where does their government get the money?

Posted by TexHillGirl at 12:42 AM : Jan 14, 2009

Why are you such an idiot?

The government gets the money from US! Single people pay around $50 a month, couples $90 a month, and families $100+ a month.

How much do you pay? Goes to show you how much your insurance companies rip you off, huh?

[rudy6543]

And I never have to wait for treatment...I walk right in my doctor''''s office plop myself down and say I have a problemo...NOW! And I''''m always seen. No waiting, ever, unless I choose to wait.


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Posted by TexHillGirl at 12:45 AM

You''re such a damm liar. Do you ever, ever tell the truth?

[rudy6543]

We need universal health care in this country asap. Even older people who suddenly find themselves in real need for health care, can find that the government will send them a letter confiscating their property when they can''t afford health care and the state must pick up the tab. This is ridiculous. Hosipitals charge 3 times the amount they charge insured patients. US health care is the biggest scam running to date.

[cbsblogger]

The first step in improving healthcare and reigning in costs should be to remove the all of the health insurance companies from the supply chain. They add big time overhead, they do nothing positive and they turn a health care nightmare into a real nightmare at a time when people are least able to deal with it.

Give all citizens us a single payer plan that functions identically and equally with the plan of the President and Congress.

If and when it needs fine tuned, Congress will in their normal self serving way fix it.

[dale234]

The report only talks about the higher than expected costs for the person going "outside the plan". The other side of the story (which was not addressed by this report) is what would the costs have been had the client gone to a Dr. or health facility "inside the health plan". It''s my understanding that is the prudent thing to do, and the client would have much less "out of pocket" expenses!

It is amazing the type of charging and tracking systems companies like Amazon have set up. It is a pity that the health care providers and the insurance companies cannot replicate such a system. Every healthcare service should have a series of identification numbers and recognizable charges and reimbursement schedules by the first and second insurers, discounts by healthcare providers, and coverage by the patient. As a patient schedules a visit and as a doctor prescribes a service, the charges and estimates of the necessary services should be computable on line instantly. When the patient and doctor place their electronic signatures settlements should be done instantly similar to buying a book on line. Minor errors and data entry errors can be caught online or later on in extraordinary cases. Such a system will allow patients to get fast relief and healthcare providers get their funds instantly and with little clerical costs.

[erasmus606]

You did not mention that fact that many of us in the northren border states travel to or use Canadian pharmacys, because the drugs cost a third of what they do here.

If our medical system is so great, why would people be using Canadian pharmacies?

Posted by the74blaster at 12:01 AM : Jan 14, 2009

That''s true. Our medications do not cost an arm and a leg. The goverment regulates this. AND we can also trust that what it says is in the bottle, is INDEED what''s in the bottle.

[the74blaster]

Hey, TexHickGirl, just curious, if Canada''''s nationalized health care sucks so much, then why has erasmus606 been such a proponent?

I mean, all I have seen is YOU bashing Canadian nationalized health care with some irrelevant study and have not taken it head on by saying how the U.S. healthcare system is better.

I''''m an American and I own a small business and pay employee benefits. I am telling you: the U.S. medical care system is a joke. It is a cash cow for insurance companies.

You have been arguing for an hour and haven''''t said word one on how the U.S. has succeeded.

There aren''''t many americans that would say the U.S. healthcare system is a success.

Posted by Inverse137 at 11:42 PM : Jan 13, 2009,

You did not mention that fact that many of us in the northren border states travel to or use Canadian pharmacys, because the drugs cost a third of what they do here.

If our medical system is so great, why would people be using Canadian pharmacies?

[erasmus606]

I like Wiki...I just learned that Sammy Hagar is 61 years old.

Posted by Inverse137 at 11:43 PM : Jan 13, 2009

Oh.:)