I am ignorant and really don't quite understand how the system works. By law, hospitals and emergency room cannot refuse care for patients in need of medical care. Many patients who cannot pay or do not have status just go to hospital emergency when they really needed medical attention. So, who are those that cannot get medical help when needed? Someone care to explain how our medical care system works?
Agreed. Medicaid is truly "single payer". ACA forced a lot of people out of medicaid and put them on a plan which puts all the costs on them. The system was better before where medicaid covered the poor completely.
No, ER care is only to stabilize critical or emergency conditions. Once a patient has been stabilized they are either released or admitted into the hospital for follow up treatment. The ER is not meant to treat chronic health conditions.
I am not confused and I am aware of the difference. For all of its problems, this is the effect I am referring to:
A flu shot was just an example. Other healthcare is insanely expensive. Just to see a gp for a normal problem is several hundred dollars. To qualify for Medicaid you have to show little to no assets. As you pointed out, if she didnt qualify she can pay is exactly the problem. If she broke her arm it would have cost her thousands if not tens of thousands. Again, I am not saying Obamacare is perfect. But it has helped millions of people get access to healthcare. Maybe the right thing is to expand Medicaid so it's not just a welfare program for the poor but also includes the uninsurable like Medicare does for old people. But for some reason they didn't do that. Maybe this was during a political period where the tea party was powerful enough to block anything that increased the size/power of govt organizations so they needed a private market solution which of course created a whole host of "compromises."
The TEA party wasn't even invented yet. Democrats had the house, the senate, and the President. As I understand it, Medicaid in my state is only based on income, not assets. We have various programs that are not called medicaid but are paid for under the medicaid budget. By the way, I'm a teabager. All it means is TEA Taxed Enough Already. Has nothing to do with anything. Do whatever you want, just don't come to me and ask me to pay more because I'm TEA. I don't know where you guys get your information. Sounds like you have all been brainwashed by the endless propaganda. #1 There is a difference between healthcare and health insurance. Not sure people that live under single payer even comprehend what health insurance is. Not sure what this has to do with infrastructure. But if it did have anything to do with infrastructure, the new wave is for locals to own their own hospitals and clinics. Problem solved.
And one more thing, You can always tell an elitist because they are baffled by someone who would not vote for their own selfish interest. It's hidden in the title. They don't view us (and I'm just a poor working class trader) as equal humans. In their minds all we care about is a paycheck or a benefit. They can't comprehend that people that work in factories and drive trucks and I don't know what all care about the country just like the elites are supposed to be doing.
I presume that you're addressing this, at least partly, to me? If so, you're incorrect in your assessment. I do not vote in the US, but I would be happy to explain why the choice of the American people baffles me.
Not you in particular, just what I would call an establishment, mainstream view of this group of people "they" call the working class. Yes, what baffles you about our recent election?
Well, a lot of things baffle me, but, TBH, it's fine, I'll just live with it. Let's see how it works out, since only time will be the judge.