Comments on: Why Is Health Care So Fucked Up?

By: Sky Walker

Sky Walker — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 01:09:54 +0000

Fucking USA healthcare is stone age.

By: David Louis Edelman

David Louis Edelman — Sun, 03 May 2009 09:31:43 +0000

Thanks for this, Patricia.

By: Patriia Rogers

Patriia Rogers — Sat, 02 May 2009 16:39:23 +0000

I have had Medicare for One year- I was very ill. Thought I was depressed. No energy. No anything. Watched hours of The history channel and OPB on TV- Could not concentrtate to read. Could not sleep. Could not even eat. I went to a medical school. The communication was horrific, The attitude of the doctors was fantasically arrogant. Third year residents speaking to me, a 66 year old intelligent woman as if I were a two year old. And what was even more despicable, three cardiac doctors did not communicate with each other. I told all of them they were on the wrong track. This nonsense continued from June 2008 through August 2008. My 28 year old son, almost finished with earning a BA in Psychology kept saying MOM, Mom MOM!!! Try an acupuncturist. He made me an appointment; Knowing me very well, he told me how much fun it would be.. I went. She diagnosed me accurately; I went not being able to walk more than 10 steps without sitting down to rest, shortness of breath edema and “anemia” to walking , hiking, climbing stairs with no problem. The problem was not a “bleed” for which the Traditonal Doctors searched relentlessly and were paid thousands of $$$$ by medicare, nor was it ” heart failure” (more expensive tests- all negatative, except a false positive) It was so simple, years of stress due to dealing with schools and institutions regarding our daughter who was born with trisomy 21 in 1974, had caused my liver and kidneys to be stressed out. There are many more details, but suffice to say- my “five year plan” is to hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachia Trail, a dream of mine for years. Please, people out there, research some alternative medicine. Medicare will not pay for most of it but DO THE MATH !!! It is not the money but the value. Acupunture, sports massage, a nutritionist, a “mindfullness therapist” and I will no doubt live another 30 years if the proverbial truck does not run me down. It is so simple, “brain washing” and apathy are the real killers in this country. Get out of the mainstream and live to see your granchildren go to college!!!! Sincerely, A grateful woman who got”lucky” (smiles) Patricia

By: Maurie

Maurie — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:51:09 +0000

I will never understand the the health system in the United States,
It is the most complicated and backward system in the world.

I don’t get why health insurance should be tied to employment
that is one of the most bizzare systems in the world.

Thank god i live in Australia !
If you need to go to hospital for anything, its free cost’s nothing zip zilch nada.
Most doctors appointments are covered by Medicare, and all visits to hospital
whether you need surgery or not.
All totally free, and over here health insurance is not tied to your employment.

We can take out what we call private insurance, but its not really needed
as government pays for all your medical needs via the good old medicare card
each of us carry.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 15:11:31 +0000

Week 1: Injure my knee on and schedule an appt…2 days later!!! So that’s two days I can’t walk.

Get a referral to see an orthopedic surgeon that same week. He wants me to get an MRI.

Week 2: Get the MRI exactly 1 week after my inital doctors appt. 1 week I can’t walk. Results take another week

Week 3: Haven’t been able to walk for 3 weeks!!! I don’t even know how bad my knee is. I get the results and he wants me to start some PT.
Still haven’t heard back from the doctors for a referral so I call the ins co. They tell me to call my PCP not the orthopedic surgeon for the referral. My PCP says it will take another 3 days. WTF? No one can take 5 minutes out of their schedule to make a phone call and get things rolling. Why is this so difficult?

By: David Louis Edelman

David Louis Edelman — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 15:50:24 +0000

Horia: I can only imagine how many problems that must cause in Romania. I’m beginning to wonder if the medical profession is always going to be three steps behind everyone else no matter what. Here’s hoping that your doctors (and mine!) get with the times soon.

Re Infoquake: Thanks for the compliments! I haven’t seen the Agony Column review and can’t seem to find it on the site — do you have a link? As for the Romanian translation and the review copies, I’ll contact you over e-mail with that info.

By: Horia Nicola Ursu

Horia Nicola Ursu — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 21:54:06 +0000

I can understand what you are complaining about (until recently, I have been working as an assistant manager of a private medical mini-clinic, being in charge of handling the patients’ data), but to most of my compatriots (I’m from Romania), this would sound like science fiction.
In Romania, the Health Insurance system is unique (that is, there are no alternatives to it), non-liberalized, and largely controlled by the Ministry of Health, who’s dictating its policy. Every medical practice has to report to this institution the number of patients it has treated, monthly, and is reimbursed for the care they provided, but only for a strict number of patients (a limit that is being revised only once a year).
In these conditions, it would appear easier to impose to the doctors a forced centralization of the patients’ data. But instead, these idiots are still asking the doctor’s practices to bring the data for reimbursement ON PAPER!!! Only one in five practices posssesses a computer!!! And most doctors are still computer illiterates!!!
I’m still wondering how long would it take for your problems to become our problems… For us, Romanians, that would be a major progress…

PS (totally off-topic): I’ve read the chunk of INFOQUAKE you have posted on your site and a very good review of the novel, at Rick Kleffel’s Agony Column. Congratulations, you’re the first of next year’s most serious competitors for the major awards I’m reading.
I can’t wait for the novel to come out, when and if I can get my hand on it, I’ll review it for my own Newsblog, but also for FICTION.RO, Romania’s only F&SF magazine (of which I am one of the staff reviewers).
And a final question: as you may have noticed, my webpage is in fact Millennium Press’s webpage (Millennium Press being a less-than-one-year-old publisher of great SF & fantasy, owned in part by your truly). Is there any chance I could get an early copy of Infoquake, and your agent’s e-mail address, so we could discuss the possibility of a Romanian translation?

By: David Louis Edelman

David Louis Edelman — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 19:09:50 +0000

You said it, Rob — I’ll bet we could fill up the blogosphere with stories about health insurance idiocy. I just hope you and I are around to see history steamroll right over these punks (and give us real health care too).

Glad you’re looking forward to Infoquake. I’m looking forward to seeing a hefty review of it (praising or damning) on your blog!

By: Rob B

Rob B — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 18:49:19 +0000

All those bullet points you list at the beginning? Those archaic practices are in place so thy can charge a $200 new patient fee just to walk in the damned door.

The way my (actually my wife’s) healthcare provider works is we get reimbursed for our prescriptions, etc. We moved in July and after telling the company on at least three occasions about the new address, reimbursement checks and general paperwork is still being sent to the old address. The companies are so big they can’t even communicate effectively with themselves, and all this unnecessary paperwork drives up the price inflicted upon the customers/patients.

Anyway, great rant David. I’m really looking forward to Infoquake!