One In Five Dollars To Go To Health Care

[OhioChick]

Spending To Rise Three Times Faster Than Inflation

POSTED: 11:56 am EST February 26, 2008


WASHINGTON -- By 2017, total health care spending will double to more than $4 trillion a year, accounting for one of every $5 the nation spends, the federal government projects.

The 6.7 percent annual increase in spending -- nearly three times the rate of inflation -- will be largely driven by higher prices and an increased demand for care, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said Monday. Other factors in the mix include a growing and aging population. The first wave of baby boomers become eligible for Medicare beginning in 2011.

With the aging population, the federal government will be picking up the tab for a growing share of the nation's medical expenses. Overall, federal and state governments accounted for about 46 percent of health expenditures in 2006. That percentage will increase to 49 percent over the next decade.

"Health is projected to consume an expanding share of the economy, which means that policymakers, insurers and the public will face increasingly difficult decisions about the way health care is delivered and paid for," CMS economists said.

http://www.newsnet5.com/health/15414155/detail.html

[Mountainman]

1. Stop spending billions on needless wars and it wouldn't be a problem.

We spend around 3 million a day in Iraq. Where does that money go? Nothing changes there. It goes into the pockets of the war profiters.

If people would stop living in fear of "terrorists" we could spend on social justice. Last night the news said the war in Iraq was going better. They never talk about the opportunity costs. The cost of not doing things with that money that we could be doing. I don't give a shit if the war is going swimmingly, I'd rather spend the money on health care!

[sinkingfeeling]

2. We need to take the profit out of 'medical care'. Why does a hospital charge $3 for an aspirin?

[OhioChick]

3. Or......

179.00 for a one day nicotine patch?

Or...Over 25 bucks for a cortisone cream that one could buy at the corner drugstore for 5 bucks.

[izzie]

4. Well some one needs to pay for all those nice MRIs

Having just got out of having 'things' done to me in a hospital I must say I have never seen such a waste of money on almost every thing in my whole life. 4 trips, and I had 14 people to do all this. I used to do this all in one trip to a military based health care place with 6 people and I was done with it all in a few hours. This took me over 6 weeks to do it all and if I was not retired how would I ever have done that and kept a job? I would say it also would keep one from going for a check up. You would be almost forced to wait until you were really ill. When I grew up few people went to doctors as it cost so much and we seem to be no better off than we were in the 30's and 40's unless one is rich. Same as when I was a kid. One thing we had when I was a kid. The state sent some one to the grade schools to check out kids. Taxes had to pay for that but they picked up lots of things.It has all become big business and your tax money still pays for much of it. You can be sure your tax money is paying for a good part of that million dollar machine and also to make it and you repay to use it. Some how we must get with the rest of the world on this health care stuff.

[izquierdista]

5. Wrong.....wrong......wrong

It's not going to health CARE. Health CARE need only cost 4-8% of the GDP, not 20. No, that extra 12-16% of GDP is a working people tax, a transfer from the middle class to the Insurance companies, Big Pharma, HMOs, Hospital Corporation of America, LabCorp, etc. And don't forget, somebody has to pay all those doctors who review claims and think up reasons to deny CARE.

Next person who uses "care" incorrectly gets a smack with a Homey sock.

Homey don't play that word game!