America Has the Best Health Care
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009If you paid someone to mow your lawn, and they decided that they didn’t want to but kept the money, would you agree that it is fair or lawful?
If you paid a grocery store for groceries, but instead of giving you the groceries they decided to keep them and the money, is that fair or lawful?
If you paid a company to cover your expenses in case of injury or to provide medication at a reduced cost but they instead decided not to pay your medical bills or help with medication, is that fair or lawful?
We all know it is illegal for someone to be paid to provide a product or service but decided not to and kept the money anyway. So why do so many people think it is perfectly ok for health insurance companies to do this?
Here is my scenario: I am a software developer, I have had 5 different jobs in the last 7 years. Every time I get a new job there is a 60 day waiting period for the companies insurance to kick in. I can’t afford health insurance for my wife and I on my own. So I use the companies discount. Because of the 60 day waiting period at each company, my health insurance is not considered “continuous coverage” so all my pre-existing conditions are not covered. I have been paying for insurance for most of the 7 years, but only got to use it for about 7 months. So I am paying for a service that is not being provided. This is wrong and needs to change.
I should have been smart and just saved up the money I wasted on health insurance to pay for what I was also paying for out of my own pocket. $300 a paycheck for, let’s say 6 years = $300*26*6 = $46,800. I paid the same amount one would for a decent car, but got almost nothing for it. In fact I only saved about $1,500 from using my health insurance. The reason I kept paying for it was because I don’t want to get injured and have to pay for that out of my pocket, but what my health insurance companies promised to provide was a lot more than just injuries.
So if you tell me that the U.S. has the best health care, I’ll beat you to a bloody pulp… rhetorically.