Reply #18: As has been pointed out many times already.

[lapfog_1]

They will still exclude on pre-existing conditions. Only now it will be credit score. Most people (in the current system) that have had issues with health care (serious medical things) also have items reported in their credit history. I, for an example, had a good (but not great) health insurance, and an undiagnosed birth defect called WPW (a heart condition). My cardiologist scheduled me for surgery. He negotiated with my health insurance just what would happen and how much the charges would be. After I'm in the operating room and already given knock out drugs, he mentions that he brought in another surgeon to "help". I'm out of it. The day I got home there was two pieces of mail waiting for me. The first was a letter from my insurance company telling me that they are dropping everyone in my "class" in California. The second was a bill from the hospital for $10,000 (give or take). The insurance had paid what the cardiologist agreed to, but that didn't include the second surgeon. So they didn't pay. And even after I was well enough to go fight the hospital and the cardiologist over the charge, they had given it to a collection agency. I eventually worked out a deal where I could pay over time, but my credit has NEVER been the same since then.

Under this current bill, no insurance company will HAVE to take me once they see my credit score (mid-500s now).

And I suspect they won't.

And I think you need to read the fine print. Apparently Howard Dean seems to feel that they CAN charge up to 50% more for people with certain pre-existing conditions. Blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc. Just like they can charge older people (like me) up to 4 times as much as younger people.

And mandates suck. We didn't scream about mandates because there was going to be a public option.

And then there is the list of other problems, such as insurance companies moving to states with the least regulation and most friendly insurance commission... and still doing business in your state.

And on and on and on.

If the only thing this bill does is subsidize some fraction of those 30 million (remember that the vast majority will have to pay some part - up to 9% of their GROSS income - or 11% if you believe Dean, and even if their premiums are covered, there will be co-pays and medicine and other stuff like some medical devices that are not covered at all). But we can cover these people other ways, with little pieces of legislation, just like we already did with SCHIP.

Without doing a huge insurance industry giveaway.

There is NO cost containment in this bill. ZERO.

We can't even order drugs online from Canada. For up to 10 times less than prescription medicine here.

No, there isn't anything to love in this bill, and to keep painting it as some sort of reform and a "once in a lifetime opportunity" is just being disingenuous.