Our Union Brothers are highly trained (2 months OJT) technicians. We demand full dental including cosmetic.
Today Federal health care rules take effect. In case you live under a rock, the major insurers raised their premiums 20-25% last week. No cost to anyone the Prez said. Watch your payroll deductions about polling time.
Good to know that cheapskate uninsured motorcycle crash survivor will now get a lifetime of medical care on your tax and premium dollar. No responsibility is the American way.
Only 25%! That’s got t be the lowest increase in years. And now they’ll actually have to pay out instead of dropping you or capping payments if you get sick.
LOL - great comic. Hey, don’t get me started on healthcare - I’m in the trenches (work in an ER) - you want to know what is wrong with our healthcare system and why people with insurance (and people who try to do the right thing and pay their bills) are paying 4 times what they should? Work with me for a shift and your jaw will drop - two groups are to blame - lawyers and POS repeat offenders who always have enough money for beer, cigs, and tatts but never have any money to pay for their ER visit, most of which have to do with the lifestyle that smoking, drinking excessively, or hanging around tattoed freaks and redneck/gangsta types that they inevitably end up fighting with or getting diseases from.
What really sucks is that the people who REALLY need the ER care have to wait while we deal with the losers (none of whom are every thankful for their free care) - the amount of pain med abuse and ODs is appalling.
Why don’t conservatives complain about the people who purposely don’t buy health insurance, because they know the restof us will pay for their care for them? They are freeloaders, and conservatives don’t seem to care that they do it. In fact, they try to protect the right of those moochers to make the rest of us pay for it.
@Varnes, with no insurance, all you get is free ER care. So that alone is an incentive to be more responsible.
Obamacare takes away real insurance (HSA with high deductible) and forces everyone except the rich to buy a private (or government if they do the public option) HMO.
Real insurance costs as much as an HMO *if* you hit the deductible. Unlike an HMO, if you stay healthy, you get to keep more than half. Many high deductible providers cover preventative care even below the deductible (they define what is “preventative”).
ER care for irresponsible people is expensive, but, just making subsidized/free preventative care available doesn’t make them use it. Forcing people takes away freedom. (E.g., in UK they forced a morbidly obese man into a high security hospital to force him to lose weight.)
On balance, simply increasing free preventative care (esp. diabetes treatment) for the more responsible among the poor would greatly decrease ER expense without compromising freedom.
^- And all we have had so far is sickness care; I’m looking forward to the tweaks and fixes that will get us on the road to Single Payer. One at a time, step by screaming step.
Lewreader: what did you expect? The law requires the insurance companies to spend no more than 15 percent of their gross income on non-health-care-related overhead (claims processing, salaries, and of course those all-important executive bonuses). Currently the overhead figure is more like 30 percent (highest in the world), so the companies were faced with two options: hold income constant and reduce spending on claims denial and bonuses, or keep the overhead constant and greatly increase the amount collected in premiums. Guess which one they chose…
BTW, the “cheapskate uninsured motorcycle crash survivor” is about as real as the “welfare Cadillac” fantasy. Bikers are actually more likely than the average citizen to have health insurance.
PUDDLEGLUM do you mean biker who is responsible? In my city we have very young people riding rice rockets at high speed dressed in sneakers, shorts and tank tops. Helmets and eye protection would infringe on their freedom, as would mandatory insurance. I don’t know if unemployment pays health insurance.
My old girlfriend the nursing instructor, ex-ER and CCU nurse, used to refer to bikers (actually all, but primarily as ^^above) as ‘Organ Donors’. “There goes another Organ Donor Machine.”
We just had the marvelous Danielle Hébert from Vancouver playing here in Altadena, and while I have misgivings about her transpo, she’s having one heckuvan adventure touring the US on her old Suzuki, doing music and living light. Here’s her travel blog.
margueritem over 13 years ago
All right, the truth at last!
rayannina over 13 years ago
I’ve had that health plan for years …
ksoskins over 13 years ago
Contrary to appearance, Bucky is really a teapot.
zero over 13 years ago
^ That explains his dome… ^ *
esoteric historical reference + dated slang for head + Republicans = soscdward over 13 years ago
If you can’t afford health care, Just Die!
lewisbower over 13 years ago
Our Union Brothers are highly trained (2 months OJT) technicians. We demand full dental including cosmetic.
Today Federal health care rules take effect. In case you live under a rock, the major insurers raised their premiums 20-25% last week. No cost to anyone the Prez said. Watch your payroll deductions about polling time.
Good to know that cheapskate uninsured motorcycle crash survivor will now get a lifetime of medical care on your tax and premium dollar. No responsibility is the American way.
pdchapin over 13 years ago
Only 25%! That’s got t be the lowest increase in years. And now they’ll actually have to pay out instead of dropping you or capping payments if you get sick.
grey2112 over 13 years ago
LOL - great comic. Hey, don’t get me started on healthcare - I’m in the trenches (work in an ER) - you want to know what is wrong with our healthcare system and why people with insurance (and people who try to do the right thing and pay their bills) are paying 4 times what they should? Work with me for a shift and your jaw will drop - two groups are to blame - lawyers and POS repeat offenders who always have enough money for beer, cigs, and tatts but never have any money to pay for their ER visit, most of which have to do with the lifestyle that smoking, drinking excessively, or hanging around tattoed freaks and redneck/gangsta types that they inevitably end up fighting with or getting diseases from.
What really sucks is that the people who REALLY need the ER care have to wait while we deal with the losers (none of whom are every thankful for their free care) - the amount of pain med abuse and ODs is appalling.
Digital Frog over 13 years ago
I think Bucky’s got a handle on it…
Varnes over 13 years ago
Why don’t conservatives complain about the people who purposely don’t buy health insurance, because they know the restof us will pay for their care for them? They are freeloaders, and conservatives don’t seem to care that they do it. In fact, they try to protect the right of those moochers to make the rest of us pay for it.
Sherlock Watson over 13 years ago
And Bucky’s opponent, a talking wingnut from the planet Lipton, will accuse him of working with Dirk Raider to put together death panels.
alan.gurka over 13 years ago
If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.
stuart over 13 years ago
@Varnes, with no insurance, all you get is free ER care. So that alone is an incentive to be more responsible.
Obamacare takes away real insurance (HSA with high deductible) and forces everyone except the rich to buy a private (or government if they do the public option) HMO. Real insurance costs as much as an HMO *if* you hit the deductible. Unlike an HMO, if you stay healthy, you get to keep more than half. Many high deductible providers cover preventative care even below the deductible (they define what is “preventative”).
ER care for irresponsible people is expensive, but, just making subsidized/free preventative care available doesn’t make them use it. Forcing people takes away freedom. (E.g., in UK they forced a morbidly obese man into a high security hospital to force him to lose weight.)
On balance, simply increasing free preventative care (esp. diabetes treatment) for the more responsible among the poor would greatly decrease ER expense without compromising freedom.
Sandfan over 13 years ago
The irony here is that all talk of health care is making me ill.
Trebor39 over 13 years ago
With all the pros and cons, we still need health care in this country.
pbarnrob over 13 years ago
^- And all we have had so far is sickness care; I’m looking forward to the tweaks and fixes that will get us on the road to Single Payer. One at a time, step by screaming step.
puddleglum1066 over 13 years ago
Lewreader: what did you expect? The law requires the insurance companies to spend no more than 15 percent of their gross income on non-health-care-related overhead (claims processing, salaries, and of course those all-important executive bonuses). Currently the overhead figure is more like 30 percent (highest in the world), so the companies were faced with two options: hold income constant and reduce spending on claims denial and bonuses, or keep the overhead constant and greatly increase the amount collected in premiums. Guess which one they chose…
BTW, the “cheapskate uninsured motorcycle crash survivor” is about as real as the “welfare Cadillac” fantasy. Bikers are actually more likely than the average citizen to have health insurance.
lewisbower over 13 years ago
PUDDLEGLUM do you mean biker who is responsible? In my city we have very young people riding rice rockets at high speed dressed in sneakers, shorts and tank tops. Helmets and eye protection would infringe on their freedom, as would mandatory insurance. I don’t know if unemployment pays health insurance.
HabaneroBuck over 13 years ago
grey2112, right on! It is so obvious to anyone who has actually been to a hospital much!
pbarnrob over 13 years ago
My old girlfriend the nursing instructor, ex-ER and CCU nurse, used to refer to bikers (actually all, but primarily as ^^above) as ‘Organ Donors’. “There goes another Organ Donor Machine.”
We just had the marvelous Danielle Hébert from Vancouver playing here in Altadena, and while I have misgivings about her transpo, she’s having one heckuvan adventure touring the US on her old Suzuki, doing music and living light. Here’s her travel blog.