20-30% of every health care $ spent in the US is profit

[Bozita]

Bush policies making instant billionaires.

From Thom Hartmann's program.

Source is the Thursday edition of the WSJ.

[upi402]

1. and only 3% overhead for medicare

What was that HMO CEO's salary? 1.5 Billion? Did I hear that right driving home?

[barb162]

2. WHat do you think the number was under Clinton, Bush 1, Reagan

Johnson, etc.

I find it amaaing how much tests cost at the doctor's office these days. But back 10 or more years ago, I was amazed at the high costs too.

Doctors have the right to profit under the present system.

[Bozita]

5. $1.8 BILLION a year to the CEO of a corp underwriting "Part D" policies?

My brother's a doctor. We're not talking doctors making a profit here.

[barb162]

11. The CEOs of all corporations are making outrageous

sums these days, way more than at any time in the last several decades. It's despicable but our system allows it. Until stockholders start screaming and kicking out boards of directors who okay this crap, nothing will change.

[Donnachaidh]

7. to profit? They are as GUILTY of price-gouging as the OIL companies

I worked at a medical parts factory. Making tiny silicon bits for cataract surgery. Took approximately
half a teaspoon of silicon to make it.

We were required to pump out 1800 of these an hour. The company sold these for 5 CENTS a part.

FIVE CENTS.

Guess what the doctor bills insurance companies for these very same parts?

SEVENTY FIVE DOLLARS -- EACH.

********************OBSCENE*********************** Profit margins, especially in light of the fact that this doctor had 20 patients lined up for surgery in his office.

profit? :puke:

[mom cat]

10. That is gouging!

[barb162]

12. I worked for a pharmaceutical / medical products firm

and yes, the doctors can overcharge and make obscene profits. Then again, the prices my company was charging for certain drugs, well,let's just say they were making billions in profit a year. You know what else? Think of the plastic in the average pair of eye glasses or contacs. Just a few cents but look what you get charged.

[Fridays Child]

3. And probably another 60% goes to the kinds of administrative costs...

...that would become virtually unnecessary under universal health care. Actually, I've read that the percentage is even higher than that. Processing insurance claims, authorizing treatments, dealing with a dozen different formularies, billing, collections--all of these functions would either be eliminated altogether or minimized drastically.

Unfortunately, a lot of workers would lose their jobs but a concerted effort could be made to train and re-employ them. The upside is that a lot of insurance business executives would also be out of work. And I don't feel sorry for them, at all.


Artful Goddess

[babylonsister]

4. You don't even want to here about the defense budget that's

not protecting anyone apparently.

[aquart]

6. Privatization: another costly Republican failure.

[FyurFly]

8. Makes me feel ill n/t

[NVMojo]

9. and how much of that goes to catkiller Frist and his clan?