So with the high cost of energy and that subsequently driving the cost of many things including delivering goods and services, it is small wonder that healthcare is starting to see people cut back.

I’ve seen a good number of articles already on people allowing their insurance coverage to lapse. They are forgoing the premium cost in an effort to save money. That’s a big short-term gamble. It’s a HUGE long-term gamble. Chances are, if someone drops their coverage, they won’t see a need to pick it back up until, well, they really need it. And then it’s too late.

And people are starting to cut back in other ways, too. In the face of efforts by employers to implement wellness programs and disease management programs, people are starting to act counter to that arguably wise practice. A recent WSJ post documents how Americans have begun to forgo those screenings and …

People find it hard to believe that healthcare is far more like used car sales than well…even used car sales.

So here comes another article on it from Kiplinger’s on how negotiable those pesky healthcare bills can be. This one talks about  a nearly 70% discount on the hospital bill.

“The doctors said he’s comin’, but you’ gotta pay in cash”

-The Eagles

We’ve enjoyed a bit of a free ride for the past several decades when it comes to healthcare. Employers and the government have picked up much of the tab. But now we are starting to pay the price literally. Increasingly we are asked to pay for medical services. Locally, The Tennessean just featured a piece on a doc who is going to charge his patients $1,500 annually to maintain access to him. We had best get used to it.

I have nightmares of other businesses becoming like our current healthcare system. In these night terrors, I go to buy groceries, pay a $20 co-pay and then get the bill 30-45 days later, can’t understand what it is I got, have already consumed the product and am expected to pay far more than I would ever have dreamed it might …

Kudos to the Nashville Business Journal Health Affairs Editor-in-Chief Susan Dentzer for her insightful comments on many issues surrounding healthcare at the recent Nashville Healthcare Council gathering.

The attention grabbing headline of her corresponding article about the potential for healthcare to be the next sub-prime mortgage crisis rings true though I’m not sure it can all be pinned on HSAs as she does in her article.

Compare the two industries and beyond the similarities in dollars paid out, there are some disturbing lessons begging to be learned.

Housing runs in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for a family. Healthcare has the potential to do the exact same.

Mortgages can easily hit $1200 per month in expense. And at $1200-1400/month for family healthcare coverage, average healthcare premium costs alone are comparable to the size of a mortgage note for many families.

And houses have to be maintained. You need a new roof …

So it would appear that I’m not the only one less than thrilled about the balance billing practices of some hospitals:

Here’s what the WSJ had to say.

So the Mass. attempt at “socialized” healthcare turned one year old today. CONGRATS!

Our resident Bostonians on staff @ change:healthcare, George and Vic, must be so proud. Oh wait, they’ve already fled the state to be here.

Nevertheless the plan seems to be working well according to Julie Appleby of USAToday - residents are getting better coverage…and premium rate increases of 5.1 to 9.4% unless you take the person profiled in the article who got a 45.7% increase in premium over the first year’s premium. Wow! Even the private insurance industry is hard pressed to pull that one off!

An excerpt from the article: “I almost fell on the floor,” says Pelletier, 55, of Newbury. “Costs are getting out of control.”

No kidding.

People will eventually make the connection. The decisions you make regarding their healthcare - when to go, whom to see, and what to pay - are what ultimately determines the …

The best thing about this job is that we get to meet some really great people. Today we met some outstanding folks who are going to make a difference.

Cover America made a stop right here in Nashville today and a few of the change:healthcare team had a chance to catch up with them. The cross country trek to capture stories of consumers’ difficulties with the healthcare system is part of a Consumer Reports effort on the healthcare front.

We really enjoyed meeting Meg, Blake, Pauline and Liz. Even got our photo with the RV in Centennial Park, in the shadow of Hospital Corporation of America (oh, how we love the irony of that one). Many thanks to these folks for what they are doing - fighting for the healthcare consumer.

Meg is getting a much deserved break after three weeks …

…

Got some nice ink today from our friends over at The Tennessean in the Healthcare section. Thanks to Getahn Ward there.

And double congrats to our friends at Data Advantage who got some in the same article. They have a nice new web site, too.

Be sure to check out what Data Advantage is doing with their Hospital Value Index.

And don’t miss their article in the WSJ!

Congrats!

I guess I’m a little confused with all of this concern over socialized healthcare. Seems like we’ve already got it . So what’s the big fuss?

Insurance = Socialism

Insurance is based on the concept of socialism.  Assemble a group and they all contribute to the group for the better of the whole to protect the individual. That’s what insurance is. We all pay in. Some really need it and use it and benefit from the group spread of the risk. Others don’t need it as much and they help cover the others who do with an eye toward having their future needs covered. Insurance is based on the most core principles of socialism.

Medicare = Socialism

Medicare is socialized healthcare. The government groups all people over 65 into a single pool. Everyone paid in with taxes and the government covers the majority of costs. So Medicare is already socialized. Ask anyone using …