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Market-Based Health Care
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mises



Joined: 05 Nov 2007
Location: retired

PostPosted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 8:30 pm    Post subject: Market-Based Health Care Reply with quote

Quote:
"If you are insured, under-insured, or uninsured, we can see you for any medical issue. Lack of insurance should not be a barrier to quality care. Our fees are reasonable and we ask for payment at the time of service with a valid credit or debit card (Visa, MasterCard or Discover). We do not work with insurance companies, since their cost structure, rules and mandates can sometimes get in the way of a caring physician-patient relationship. Our overhead costs are kept low by not filing and tracking insurance claims, and we pass those savings on to you. You will receive a copy of the day�s note and a receipt which you may send to your insurance company to apply the charges toward your deductible."


Quote:
Service Price
One Problem $36.00
Two Problems $54.00
Three Problems Why don�t you schedule a physical?
Complete Physical $110.00 (lab extra)
Incise and Drain Abscess $70.00
Joint Injection $70.00
Forms filled out $16.00
Email $10.00
After Hours Phone Calls $10.00
Nebulizer Treatment $35.00
Biopsy Lesion $70.00 (pathology extra)
Skin Scraping $15.00
Urinalysis $15.00
Strep Test $15.00
Influenza Test $25.00
EKGs $25.00
Lacerations Negotiable
Trim Toenails $25.00
Trim Corn $25.00
Wart Treatment $25.00
House Calls starting at $90.00
Pap smears $25.00 (pathology reading extra)
Counseling $90.00 / 50 minutes

http://www.timewisemedical.com/prices
http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2010/01/market-based-health-care-reform-cash.html


That is what private health care looks like. An affordable price list. A cash (or credit/debit) transaction. No middle man. The insurance firms are the problem. Why should you give insurance to see a Dr about a cold? Can't you just pay 30bucks?

Quote:
MP: This approach sounds a lot more promising than 2,000 pages of government healthcare "reform," doesn't it?



And then you add insurance for catastrophic events.
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Fox



Joined: 04 Mar 2009

PostPosted: Mon Feb 01, 2010 4:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think there's a lot of strength to the case of simply paying for all minor to moderate treatments with cash up front. I still prefer the catastrophic ones to be covered under a government plan than a private one; insurance is one of those businesses where a large portion of potential customers are liabilities rather than assets. It's only natural to expect a company to try their best to dump liabilities, and as such, they can't be trusted on this matter. Universal health care for major issues coupled with paying in cash for minor and moderate ones -- combined with reducing general practicioner to a bachelor's degree -- would do a lot of good I think.
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conrad2



Joined: 05 Nov 2009

PostPosted: Mon Feb 01, 2010 6:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Insurance companies suck out about 30% of total US expenditures for health care. And for what? They treat no patients, they dont perform surgeries, they dont find cures. They skim a lot of money and thats it. This is complete madness. I believe in capatalism, but you should at least be required to perform some service or function to earn a profit. Health care is far to important. Every single doctor in the US should refuse to treat anyone until health insurance companies are outlawed. This will help thier bottom line as well.
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ontheway



Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Location: Somewhere under the rainbow...

PostPosted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 9:06 am    Post subject: Re: Market-Based Health Care Reply with quote

mises wrote:
Quote:
"If you are insured, under-insured, or uninsured, we can see you for any medical issue. Lack of insurance should not be a barrier to quality care. Our fees are reasonable and we ask for payment at the time of service with a valid credit or debit card (Visa, MasterCard or Discover). We do not work with insurance companies, since their cost structure, rules and mandates can sometimes get in the way of a caring physician-patient relationship. Our overhead costs are kept low by not filing and tracking insurance claims, and we pass those savings on to you. You will receive a copy of the day�s note and a receipt which you may send to your insurance company to apply the charges toward your deductible."


Quote:
Service Price
One Problem $36.00
Two Problems $54.00
Three Problems Why don�t you schedule a physical?
Complete Physical $110.00 (lab extra)
Incise and Drain Abscess $70.00
Joint Injection $70.00
Forms filled out $16.00
Email $10.00
After Hours Phone Calls $10.00
Nebulizer Treatment $35.00
Biopsy Lesion $70.00 (pathology extra)
Skin Scraping $15.00
Urinalysis $15.00
Strep Test $15.00
Influenza Test $25.00
EKGs $25.00
Lacerations Negotiable
Trim Toenails $25.00
Trim Corn $25.00
Wart Treatment $25.00
House Calls starting at $90.00
Pap smears $25.00 (pathology reading extra)
Counseling $90.00 / 50 minutes

http://www.timewisemedical.com/prices
http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2010/01/market-based-health-care-reform-cash.html


That is what private health care looks like. An affordable price list. A cash (or credit/debit) transaction. No middle man. The insurance firms are the problem. Why should you give insurance to see a Dr about a cold? Can't you just pay 30bucks?

Quote:
MP: This approach sounds a lot more promising than 2,000 pages of government healthcare "reform," doesn't it?



And then you add insurance for catastrophic events.



Exactly correct.

Ordinary health events are just expenditures, just like buying food. We don't buy insurance for being hungry, we go to the store. Same for health care.

Major medical is enough.

It was government regulation of insurance companies, mandating coverage of non-insurable items, state restrictions on competition across state lines, plus the income tax - all socialist interventions - that got us into the current mess.

Solution: deregulate health care providers, open the industry so that more medical schools can open and more providers can offer services - doctors, nurses, med techs, medical specialists should all be able to do more without restrictions, repeal the income tax, deregulate insurance companies to allow coverages desired by the consumer and not mandated by the govt, allow insurers to sell policies nationwide.
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mises



Joined: 05 Nov 2007
Location: retired

PostPosted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 9:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ron Paul earned 6$/hr in the late 60's as an OBGYN in Dallas at a private hospital. Since then, something has gone haywire.

The interesting thing about the company I listed above is that it exists without competition. So 40bucks to see a Dr is without market competition to drive down costs. It is also without a reform (as Fox mentioned) on who is able to provide medical services. You don't need 8 years to learn how to deal with a broken toe. 4 would suffice (more than suffice). Open it all up and prices will come right down. Catastrophic insurance will be affordable too. I have catastrophic insurance on my car and spend 130$ a month (and that covers other people I might harm up to a few million bucks).
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bacasper



Joined: 26 Mar 2007

PostPosted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 9:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

mises wrote:
You don't need 8 years to learn how to deal with a broken toe. 4 would suffice (more than suffice).

Really? What if that toe becomes infected? Or gangrenous? Or the patient is diabetic? Or any of a hundred other possible complications?

Do you really want to go to McDoc's for that?
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mises



Joined: 05 Nov 2007
Location: retired

PostPosted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 9:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

In 4 years, that can be covered. And with hyper-specialization, the students would learn 1) the trade (broken toes) and 2) how to spot potential complications that must be referred to infection specialists etc. Would it be impossible to learn signs/symptoms of larger problems in 4 years?

Anyways, typical GP's don't have specialized knowledge about anything. Jack of all trades, master of none. To take an example, how many know about Vitamin D? Are they up on the research? How about low-carb diets? Do they know? Or do they know enough about everything to pass exams but not enough about one thing to be of any use. Really, aren't they just drug dealers anyways?
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Sergio Stefanuto



Joined: 14 May 2009
Location: UK

PostPosted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 12:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I remain firmly convinced that a freer, competitive marketplace is the solution to America's government-created healthcare farce.

I strongly discourage a massive government system, particularly in the belief that doing so will bring down costs. There is a fundamental difference between bringing down costs and not paying costs. In the UK and Canada, there's a considerably greater chance than in the US that you might be dead by the time they find out what's wrong with you, and that will "bring down the cost" of medical care because you won't need any.
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Fox



Joined: 04 Mar 2009

PostPosted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 3:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

bacasper wrote:
mises wrote:
You don't need 8 years to learn how to deal with a broken toe. 4 would suffice (more than suffice).

Really? What if that toe becomes infected? Or gangrenous? Or the patient is diabetic? Or any of a hundred other possible complications?

Do you really want to go to McDoc's for that?


This are all pretty basic things that are easily preventable, though. Infection and gangrene are fairly easy to prevent via common sense measures. The patient being diabetic is ultimately just a matter of information; it doesn't matter if you went to college for 4 years or 40 years, you won't become psychic. Either the patient will tell you they're diabetic or they won't. The list goes on.

The important thing to remember is that this proposed reform won't eliminate highly educated doctors, it just delegates them universally to specialist status, which is where they should be. If your general practicioner runs into a complication with your toe that he just can't handle, t