Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby
(Post 2391118)
We can't afford regular Medicare, plus a supplemental, or Medigap or whatever. Advantage covers more than regular Medicare, almost always at the same price as regular Medicare (which is deducted from our Social Security checks).
With original Medicare A there's a $1676 deductible, before it starts to pay.
For Part B, there's the $174/month premium out of your social security check, and a $240 deductible before it starts to pay. And then, it'll only pay 80% of costs for covered services, you pay the other 20%.
You also have to pay 20% of *MOST* (not all) approved inpatient hospital doctors services not covered by Medicare A.
You pay co-pays for doctor visits beyond the mandatory preventative coverage (which might or might not still exist next year).
Neither A nor B cover prescription medicines, you'd have to get part D, and pay the premium for that, to get coverage (which is really just reduced cost for most drugs, 0 cost if you can get mail-order).
If you want all those co-pays to be covered, you ALSO have to get Medigap, to pay for the deductibles and co-insurances/co-pays. Medigap has its own premium costs.
So you can pay - double what Social Security checks take out ($174/month) to get the same coverage that Medicare Advantage covers, or you can pay just the $174/month to get that coverage.
The problem isn't with the plan. The problem is with the entire system. Basic medical care should be 100% covered, no premiums, no co-pays, no co-insurance, no deductible, for EVERYONE in this country. Citizens or non-citizens, legal or not legal. Prisoners get better health care than some people in this country right now. That's just not right.
Yearly checkup, vaccines, antibiotics to treat infection, yearly labs/bloodwork, wound care, prostate exam, mammography, colonoscopy, yearly skin check, twice-yearly dental cleaning or perio maintenance and yearly x-rays, a vision and hearing test every year. This should ALL be covered by the taxpayer dollar.
Once you get all THAT covered - then people can be required to decide which ADDITIONAL services they want with insurance (or not). It shouldn't be competitive. Companies shouldn't be profiting off the gamble that someone will be healthy, and the patient betting on being sick. ALL health care should be non-prof. Not charitable - but non-prof. There's a difference between giving something away, and not making bank on profits.
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