A case against private/public controlled hospitals

[creed 1,650]

I really don't get into politics like most on here, but after watching the news for a few minutes yesterday, the issues of non-government controlled hospitals having various levels of unpreparedness makes sense. Some of these hospitals have their own supply depots that run as a separate business and their goal is to minimize inventory levels to reduce costs. I think it would be difficult for the government to mandate business rules to non-government hospitals entities that contradict their for-profit mandate. So my question is, should hospitals be owned/controlled by non-government entities? 

Isn't the health of the citizens one of the cornerstones of our democracy?

[AUDub 11,184]

21 minutes ago, creed said:

I really don't get into politics like most on here, but after watching the news for a few minutes yesterday, the issues of non-government controlled hospitals having various levels of unpreparedness makes sense. Some of these hospitals have their own supply depots that run as a separate business and their goal is to minimize inventory levels to reduce costs. I think it would be difficult for the government to mandate business rules to non-government hospitals entities that contradict their for-profit mandate. So my question is, should hospitals be owned/controlled by non-government entities? 

Isn't the health of the citizens one of the cornerstones of our democracy?

On the one hand, the situation with Covid-19 would have sucked even if we did have a Medicare for all type model. Absorbing this blow requires a s*** ton of overhead, and there's no way to run a system with that much overhead efficiently.

On the other, healthcare should be a right, and standards need to be set to ensure a healthy populace and get a good ROI. If that means doing away with privatized healthcare (something I fundamentally disagree with being privatized to begin with), so be it.

It's not a fundamental human right. Those are things that you are born with, and are only lost when others take them away from you. Things like life, liberty, freedom to speak and act and associate as you see fit. Those are fundamental. Anything that someone else has to give you is not a fundamental right.

But that doesn't mean it shouldn't be socially provided, i.e. a civil right. Education is not a fundamental human right but all wealthy societies have decided that it's in our best interest to guarantee some form of basic education for everyone. I put healthcare in the same category. It's something that we wouldn't reasonably expect anyone to go without. It's something that almost none of use would choose to live without ourselves, and so it only makes sense that any society that has the money should provide to every citizen.

[Gowebb11 9,375]

I’ve historically been against the ‘Medicare for all’ Healthcare approach. But it’s pretty hard to argue we have the best healthcare in the world when we can’t maintain an adequate supply of otherwise commodity products like masks and gloves, not to mention respirators. That’s ridiculous by any standard. My guess is  after this crisis is over, a lot of us will think differently about our nation’s healthcare priorities and fixes that are needed.  

[McLoofus 35,182]

If it's a given that I'm going to pay taxes for roads, and police, and a military, and that those things will benefit me or at least be deployed in an attempt to benefit me, then it is batsh** crazy to me that I'm not also afforded healthcare paid for by my tax dollars.

But what's worse is how much profit motive dictates the actual healthcare provided or, worse, not provided. It's literally dollars over lives. And not in a "keep the lights on" way, but in a "add zeros to a few guys' retirement accounts" way. 

 

 

[Brad_ATX 13,654]

1 hour ago, McLoofus said:

If it's a given that I'm going to pay taxes for roads, and police, and a military, and that those things will benefit me or at least be deployed in an attempt to benefit me, then it is batsh** crazy to me that I'm not also afforded healthcare paid for by my tax dollars.

But what's worse is how much profit motive dictates the actual healthcare provided or, worse, not provided. It's literally dollars over lives. And not in a "keep the lights on" way, but in a "add zeros to a few guys' retirement accounts" way. 

 

 

Preach.  My wife has a ton of health conditions and we've spent a lot of money over the last decade trying to get her answers.  The amount of time we've spent fighting with insurance companies and doctors to get certain treatments or procedures approved has cost her at least two years of her life because no action was being taken by those who we needed the most to do something.

[McLoofus 35,182]

16 minutes ago, Brad_ATX said:

Preach.  My wife has a ton of health conditions and we've spent a lot of money over the last decade trying to get her answers.  The amount of time we've spent fighting with insurance companies and doctors to get certain treatments or procedures approved has cost her at least two years of her life because no action was being taken by those who we needed the most to do something.

I am so sorry. It is deeply disturbing for me. I can't imagine the emotions you and your wife grapple with in addition to the practical consequences. 

I see it every day. I think people would be absolutely shocked at how much of a healthcare organization's resources are dedicated just to trying to get paid. Because the payers try so hard not to pay them.

And we're not even getting into the obscene price gouging by pharmaceutical and supply manufacturers. 

 

But hey, as long as we don't raise our taxes a little and as long as those taxes don't pay for the care of brown people, I'll keep paying out the ass for insurance and copays and deductibles and expensive medications and some CEO's yacht and, in cases such as yours, not the care necessary for our health.