nurktwin 2,143 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 (edited) Do you believe that ObamaCare is constitutionally right requiring you to buy healthcare insurance or pay a penalty? Edited March 23, 2012 by nurktwin Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DCAHNM 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 I'm not well-versed on the subject, but I think this healthcare issue is making the USA more like a communist country. So, I voted "no". Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nurktwin 2,143 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 I said no because I don't think the government can force people into buying health insurance any more than they can force you into buying a banana split. And if people can't afford the insurance, how can they pay a fine??? What are they gonna do, put everyone in jail? They are already releasing killers because there is no room for them. If the government wants to force something on me, it should be my choice to except it or not and it should be free!!!!!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kelly 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 The president's name is Obama, not O'Bama Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mudcrutch 285 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 Can anyone explain or show me where it says I need to have healthcare or else " ... " ? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
weird monkey 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 It's a pity corporations have such a stranglehold on our government. We could have a decent public system, if insurance companies didn't insist that they and their policies be a part of it. I took a survey (about how much people know about the plan), and it looks like I'd have more coverage, pay a little less, and my deductible would be $750 instead of $5000. I could actually go see a doctor and have part of my tests paid for. What a concept! I turn 50 in October and I am terrified that my premium will skyrocket again, like it does everytime I have a 'significant birthday. I read the NYTimes op-ed piece by Greg Smith about why he quit Goldman Sachs, and a recent article about how Bank of America has been operating in the last 15 years (and continues to), and I am pretty certain that this country is going to continue its downward spiral. Sometimes I wish I were blissfully unaware and could just slam Obama care, because it is a very flawed plan (but no donut hole like the Bush administration did to Medicare, so the insurance co driven theme has that going for it). Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TomFest 576 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 Whether the healthcare law is constitutional or not is a tough question, and will soon be decided by the Supreme Court. Given that they are every bit as partisan as anyone else on Capitol Hill (Republican by a 5-4 margin), my guess is that they will stay with party lines and by a 5-4 margin, overturn all or parts of the law. It has been suggested that there is a possibility that 1 or more of the right-leaning judges will break with party lines, but I'll believe that when I see it. My personal feeling is that healthcare for all Americans is a great idea. I just don't know where the trillion dollars per year will come from to pay for it. I guess we already are paying for it, aren't we? Nothing is truly free. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SingsInFrench 262 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 If you pose the question with the words, "O'bama Care" it's already obvious where you stand, Nurk. Not exactly an impartial question. I don't know if it's going to be ruled constitutional to require everyone to carry health insurance, although most states require auto insurance and they fine big-time if you don't have it. It's not cost-effective for the rest of us to pay for health-care costs for people who don't have insurance and use emergency rooms for their first-line medical care. The affordable health care act by 2014 will provide affordable health care for everyone. No need for anyone not to carry insurance. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wild1forever 152 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 Nurk, you should have included a "not sure" option to the poll. The Supreme Court will decide this soon enough. And if people can't afford the insurance, how can they pay a fine??? What are they gonna do, put everyone in jail? No. Read the law: http://www.kff.org/healthreform/upload/8061.pdf To those who object to Obamacare: what is your alternative? Or do you think our current system is just fine as is? If you exercise the choice to go without insurance, what happens if you get sick and can't afford the medical treatment? Are we supposed to let you die? Or will taxpayers be on the hook for your medical costs? Has anybody here tried to buy individual health insurance outside of a group policy or Medicare? The Mr. is not ill, has never had a heart attack, but has high cholesterol which is controlled through medication. NOBODY would insure him; thankfully, we were able to get insurance through the HIPAA program, which kicks in after you've exhausted COBRA (among other requirements). I've been very tempted to go without insurance but if someone in our family does get sick, I'd don't want to give our life savings to doctors and hospitals...so we're stuck with monthly premiums that are WAY more than our mortgage payment. I don't think Obamacare is a perfect solution (I would rather see a single-payer system myself), but our system cannot continue in its current form. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agirl 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 I think, "NO"! We need healthcare for everyone, but I don't like this solution. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nurktwin 2,143 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 Sorry about the spelling, guess I should have had a coffee before posting! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Beamish 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2012 (edited) Constitutional? I'm not a judge, so I'm not qualified to weigh in on the question as stated. However, as someone who cannot afford health insurance (my employer only covers dental), I can weigh in on what it's like to not able to afford the cost of going to a doctor when I need to. I literally cannot afford to be sick, nor can I afford medication. If I get something as ordinary as strep throat, I run the risk of losing what's left of my right kidney, because I cannot afford the doctor visit or antibiotics needed to stop the staph from spreading. I'm not making a middles-class income. We worker drones are expected to show up healthy for work on a regular basis, despite dismally low wages that aren't enough to cover health care costs. I live with that stress every day, so I'm not quick to bash attempts to address what to me is a humanitarian issue, not just a financial one. Wish I had a painless solution to suggest. As for it turning the U.S. into a "socialist country": when Bush took control of the banking industry due to the rampant savings and loan corruption, that was a socialist act- government control of an entire business sector. We didn't have anything to say then, interestingly, which infers that when it's in our best interest, we aren't as afraid of socialism as we claim- or does it infer that we don't actually understand what socialism is? They've been doing free college education and free health care for decades in Sweden, hardly a bastion of the Red Menace. I'm not thrilled with President Obama's plan or its proposed affects on our economy, but in my opinion, it's a step towards a finding a solution to a hydra-headed problem, not a step towards communism. Edited March 23, 2012 by Beamish Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Liberty 191 Report post Posted March 24, 2012 No, because consitutionally, it isn't right. It's a document over a thousand pages long that has no system set up yet, because they have to approve it before they can begin to establish it, so no one can actually vote on it knowing what it will do. From what I've read on it, some sounds beneficial, but I think in the long run, it might not be the best issue. I do a lot of research with politics and government, and I'm all for freedom. I don't like the idea of being on welfare and living off of the government and letting them take care of me. I don't think the government should have the right to protect us from ourselves. IE Smoking laws, seat belt laws, etc. But the idea of it is not following the Constitution. Our founding fathers were willing to go to war and fight and die for freedom, yet so many people today won't even vote for it. I think that in the future, we will see a repression that people want to shake, and will try to revolt like we did in the revolution. It's only a matter of time; it's just that so many people don't understand the way the current government works compared to how our government was supposed to work and was meant to work initially. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Amber 70 Report post Posted March 24, 2012 The biggest problem we have and no one ever tried to address is the fact that we do not have a healthcare "system" at all! There isn't anything systematic about it. There is no one entity overseeing it, preventing overuse, misuse or underuse of tests or procedures. Doctors do not consult with one another on a patient....the patient just flips back and forth between specialists, all totally unaware of what treatments the others have prescribed. Millions of dollars in tests are done unneccessarily each year because doctors are afraid not to order them because of lawsuits. Insurance companies tell the doctor what he can order, how long the patient can stay in a hospital and what medicines he can prescribe. There is no "system" to it. I tend to believe in a single payor system, but with the freedom to pick the group of doctors you prefer. Everyone pays a premium, but people who abuse the priviledge requesting procedures that are unnecessary, should be fined. There is no reason to do a pap smear on an 85 year old woman who is terminally ill already. Likewise, the number of office visits racked up for no justifiable reason other than psychosomatic behavior (or drug seeking) by a patient should have to be paid out of pocket by the patient. If it is later determined that the patient really did have an illness, the physician should have to reimburse the patient with interest. If anyone filed a lawsuit that was determine to be not "intentional" negligence by the physician, the person filing the suit should be fined and made to pay all court costs. Then, doctors could stop practicing defensive medicine and costs would decrease. It is said that the largest part of the healthcare costs in America are caused by 5% of the population. These are the chronically ill patients who often are not compliant with doctor's orders or who do not have the benefit of an organized plan of care where all physicans communicate and work together to treat the whole patient. What we need is a healthcare SYSTEM for all that is not predicated on making a lot of money for a corporation or insurance company. Then we could all afford healthcare. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Magnolia 171 Report post Posted March 24, 2012 I am enjoying reading this discussion, you are all so knowledgable on the subject. I admit I am not. My first instinct was to say "I like the way things are now" only because I am very lucky in that I have very good coverage (at small cost to me) through my job, and hell yes, I have had to use it to the hilt these last 2 1/2 years. I've had excellent care and doctors who DO in fact consult with each other on my treatments. But, reading some of your comments, especially Beamish, I see that I am in the minority. I believe that everyone deserves the kind of care I have had. How this can be accomplished, I admit I have no idea. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PumpkinBumpkin 1 Report post Posted March 24, 2012 If you pose the question with the words, "O'bama Care" it's already obvious where you stand, Nurk. Not exactly an impartial question. I don't know if it's going to be ruled constitutional to require everyone to carry health insurance, although most states require auto insurance and they fine big-time if you don't have it. It's not cost-effective for the rest of us to pay for health-care costs for people who don't have insurance and use emergency rooms for their first-line medical care. The affordable health care act by 2014 will provide affordable health care for everyone. No need for anyone not to carry insurance. :038: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nel 71 Report post Posted March 25, 2012 I think the term, "Obamacare," is intentionally derogatory. It's a shame that some people in this country refuse to educate themselves on the benefits of the Health Care Reform law. For decades taxpayers have been picking up the doctor and hospital tabs for millions of uninsured people....many of whom refused to purchase it. At least this president is trying to do something that. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Liberty 191 Report post Posted March 26, 2012 I agree with you there Nel, but I'm not sure that the obamacare law they're trying to pass is a good solution. It's such a large bill, and the way numerous writers get to get bills to pass is by adding in other things that barely have anything to do with the bill in the first place. It's a "you scratch my back, and I'll scratch your back" kind of deal. The actual bill, like I said, approves a system, but doesn't have how the system will work in the bill... they want to pass it before they put any effort into any "verify by fail" ideas, which I think is a rather idiotic plan. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
