[Mack184]

OK..No problem at all. When this story was first presented on another thread, I was under the impression that TVRH & it's parent company Central Florida Health Alliance had merely made a "deal" with United Healthcare to be a "preferred provider". This obviously is not the case. This is an entirely new set-up and everybody needs to read the section in the article VERY CAREFULLY...that states that not all Villagers will be able to access this new health system UNLESS they buy into the United Healthcare plan. You could be next door to the facillty but you won't be able to use it unless you are a member of the Villages/UHC plan. Again..make sure everybody reads that section CAREFULLY.

Now since this a a "member only" operation, UHC is going to control and set up your healthcare options under this plan. There are some insurance companies that are currently doing this. The biggest one that comes to mind is Kaiser Permanente. They are very big on the west coast, although they have some presence in other parts of the US.

Under these groups you can ONLY see THEIR DOCTORS and go to THEIR HOSPITALS. It's the way they control costs. Since there has been no announcement that TVRH & Central Florida Health Alliance have a "deal", you will be sent to a hospital that they have an exclusive deal with. It could be Munroe, It could be U-Florida/Shands or someplace else. If you go to TVRH and they do not have a deal with them, it will require you to go to the hospital or doctor that THEY DESIGNATE to receive care under their plan. Also notice that NOWHERE in the article was there a mention of TVRH or their partner Leesburg General. They did however mention Shands.

So first & foremost, if you join this type of plan, you will no longer be able to go to your current doctor and have the visits covered unless of course your doctor joins Villages/UHC. You must go to their doctors for the coverage to pay.

So those who join the plan will most likely NOT be able to use TVRH, but will need to go to whereever they want to send you. So TVRH and their doctors will be serving those who aren't part of the plan, and thus have a smaller revenue stream, and thus have less staff because they can't afford them and so on. A domino effect.

And..I cannot wait to see this board once people try going to these new centers only to be turned away because they are not members. Again, people need to read this article CAREFULLY and understand this. This is a "members only" plan. Just because you live in TV does not mean you can use this service. You've gotta buy into the plan.

Now once again, the genius of Gary Morse is fully on display here. You come in as a new resident and not only do you buy a nice home & a "lifestyle" you can buy into a health care system as well. It's a brilliant stroke of marketing. I'd like to use about 10% of this guy's brain. He's amazing.

The quality or service of this set-up is at this point fully unknown. But it will be vastly different from the way things currently are working. It will require heavy participation from residents to make it profitable. And don't be misled, this is about profits..NOT your well-being. (BTW..I am not now nor have I ever been a believer in the idea that profits are evil.) Only time will tell how it works out.