Actually, he’s got the private sector motto on his arm. I rely on the government for all of my healthcare (thank you, VA), and if I’d had to rely on private insurance, I’d have been dead six years ago.
I recently saw a humorous (but not really) suggestion that government-supplied health care could be made a lot cheaper by encouraging early death by smoking and drinking.
It has been a long time since there has been such a public debate revealing the insurmountable differences between the people who want unlimited government and those who want to live in a free country. Yes, I’ve put it in extreme black-and-white terms, but that is the nature of the issue. You are either for freedom or you are not, not matter how pure your intentions.
There’s some interesting irony in your first paragraph, pschearer.
On the one hand, we claim that better living habits (no smoking, healthy eating, exercise, etc.) will lower health care costs. The problem is that the death rate is still 100% no matter how good your habits are. Postponing death simply means you’ll die from something else. Meanwhile, your insurance pays for many more years of annual checkups, dentist visits, emergency room care, and various medications.
Yet, it seems that everyone “knows” that healthier habits will result in lower health care costs. Has that been proven?
RayC and pschearer - the problem is the whole ‘early death” thing. Smoking etc. doesn’t kill immediately, or even as fast as it used to. Because of today’s expensive modern medicine, preventable health issues can suck the cash out of the health system for decades, where healthy living has most of its costs near the end.
pschearer, not that is NOT the nature of the issue. Healthcare reform is not unlimited government, no matter how much Rush et all is trying to sell it as such. And Everyone is for freedom, your arguments are inherently illogical and do nothing to advance a reasoned discussion.
Dutchboy1 almost 15 years ago
He’s got the Government health care motto on his arm (except for congresspeople of course).
farren almost 15 years ago
Actually, he’s got the private sector motto on his arm. I rely on the government for all of my healthcare (thank you, VA), and if I’d had to rely on private insurance, I’d have been dead six years ago.
boozoothatswho almost 15 years ago
He’s got the private insurer’s rationing motto on his arm. You didn’t tell us you were old when you signed up.
Digital Frog almost 15 years ago
…but if they die young, they win - the insurance co. has to pay their beneficiary more than what they paid the insurance co…
jpozenel almost 15 years ago
You must be thinking of life insurance DigitalFrog, not health insurance.
pschearer Premium Member almost 15 years ago
I recently saw a humorous (but not really) suggestion that government-supplied health care could be made a lot cheaper by encouraging early death by smoking and drinking.
It has been a long time since there has been such a public debate revealing the insurmountable differences between the people who want unlimited government and those who want to live in a free country. Yes, I’ve put it in extreme black-and-white terms, but that is the nature of the issue. You are either for freedom or you are not, not matter how pure your intentions.
Ray_C almost 15 years ago
There’s some interesting irony in your first paragraph, pschearer. On the one hand, we claim that better living habits (no smoking, healthy eating, exercise, etc.) will lower health care costs. The problem is that the death rate is still 100% no matter how good your habits are. Postponing death simply means you’ll die from something else. Meanwhile, your insurance pays for many more years of annual checkups, dentist visits, emergency room care, and various medications. Yet, it seems that everyone “knows” that healthier habits will result in lower health care costs. Has that been proven?
Digital Frog almost 15 years ago
RayC and pschearer - the problem is the whole ‘early death” thing. Smoking etc. doesn’t kill immediately, or even as fast as it used to. Because of today’s expensive modern medicine, preventable health issues can suck the cash out of the health system for decades, where healthy living has most of its costs near the end.
foxglove16 over 14 years ago
pschearer, not that is NOT the nature of the issue. Healthcare reform is not unlimited government, no matter how much Rush et all is trying to sell it as such. And Everyone is for freedom, your arguments are inherently illogical and do nothing to advance a reasoned discussion.