Do you have $300,000 saved for healthcare?

Question

According to the NCHC:
Retiring elderly couples will need $200,000 in savings just to pay for the most BASIC medical coverage. Many experts believe that this figure is conservative and that $300,000 may be a more realistic number.

If this is the case, do you believe poor people deserve to die because they can't save that amount of money in their lifetime?

Also, how do you feel about this fact: Although nearly 47 million Americans are uninsured, the United States spends more on health care than other industrialized nations, and those countries provide health insurance to all their citizens.

Why can other industrialized countries provide healthcare for all it's citizens while spending less than America does on healthcare (and America still leaves 47 million people uninsired)?

Answer 1

As long as our representatives are insulated from health care costs, we can look forward to little if any relief. Health care is going to be only for those who can afford it and to all those who claim that they are healthy and why should they be forced to pay for those who aren't, I can only say, don't get into an accident.
It is the big hush that covers the room when you say National Health Plan, but for those who work and now can't afford a family plan, something will have to be done, and we can't afford


as a nation to keep sticking our heads in the sand and hoping families will be able or willing to spend more of their take home on insurance even as their wages buy less in the marketplace.

HMOs were supposed to cover the use too much plan, they found that people don't use their plans more than necessary. The insureance companie raised their rates anyway to make more of a profit. That, not a single other thing is whats making rates so high. If you ask anyone who lives in on a coast or in FLorida how the insurance companies are doing on their claims, you will get one nasty earful. Even Trent Lott, who lost his family home in Katrina is suing his insurance company who is refusing to pay.
Insurance is shared liability, the larger the pool the smaller the amount needed to cover the loss. Companies now only want to cherry pick the healthiest ones and not insure the older or previously ill ones. In this case spreading around the cost over all citizens is actually cheaper than leaving the very ill or poor on their own or on the public dole. No one sane wants infectious poor people dying on the streets in the United States.

Answer 2

Great question-I'll be curious to see answers. I'm not poor but middleclass which is not so well thought of these days. It seems that the middle class cannot expect even basic healthcare. I went to college and worked hard, no welfare or other govt benefit. Yet-it seems I would just die. I could use my retirement savings but then, i'd be poor and old-both. Seems ironic i'd be better off in another country, after paying taxes all these years.

By the way, there are health plans that actually SAVE the state money-see Mitt Romney R-my question is-I worked all my life-took nothing from the govt-and was middleclass. is it best to be poor then? That seems anti-capitalist-encouraging people to be poor. One big illness would wipe out my couple hundred thousand savings.

Answer 3

Whether you have insurance or not, health care costs what it costs. We don't set the rates. One reason its so high is because of insurance. When people think that its like "free" they use the hell out of it, increasing demand for the provider of care. Its artificial demand. If a study were done you would find that those of us with no insurance don't "get sick" or see doctors nearly as frequently as the insured. Thats because when we go, we pay. All the campaign to get us all insured is promulgated by the health care and insurance industry. They're in bed together to bilk us out of our money at a faster rate. They constantly need "more" kinda like the federal government.

Answer 4

There are a few things to keep in mind.

First, the high cost of American healthcare is driven by our lawsuit crazy culture. If we did something to cut back these idiotic lawsuits.. we would do far more to fix our healthcare system than doing ANYTHING else.

Secondly, there is no such thing as free healthcare in ANY country... it's just a different system of getting billed for it.

And finally, there's a very big difference in the quality of healthcare you're going to get in the "free" system and one driven by a free market.

Answer 5

America is very good in terms of standard of living as compared to other countries. Thus, everybody must support government projects particularly those for the protection of the elderly.

Answer 6

probably about 15 percent tops would have that much saved (in addition to their normal retirement, which seems to be what you're saying)

so what's going to happen to the other 85 percent?

I have a feeling they will take out their frustration at the voting booth... since the elderly vote more than every other age group...

Answer 7

Have you seen what those other countries consider to be healthcare??

Go to the hospitals in Seattle in November and December when all the Canadians (with socialized medicine) come down for treatment because the Canadian Medical system has run out of money and is shut down.

In Italy (socialized medicine) my cousin has Hepatitis C from a blood transfusion 10 years ago. The medical system did not test their blood supply for Hepatitis C for years after it was standard here in the US.

And how many of those 47 million "Americans" would have medical care if they returned to their native country instead of being here illegally?

Be careful what you wish for you may get it.

Answer 8

Ok, it is going to cost 300,000 and there are 47,000,000 unisured

So we need to add 14.1 trillion to the deficit every how many years?

Answer 9

That is a LIE.
Don't be gullible.
Ask a retired person and they will tell you that you are being lied to.

There are millions of retired people paying for their health insurance. Do you really believe that they have $200,000 to $300,000 saved up??????????????????????
Use your head, kid.
(You better worry about your Soc Sec. The Democrats are going to have it wiped out. You little kids aren't going to have any to draw.)
DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE POOR. THEY HAVE FREE HEALTH CARE FROM THE TAXPAYERS.

Answer 10

Don't worry. The 100 hour plan addresses that issue.