MEDICARE AND MONEY

Like everyone else, the high expense of health care really bothers me.

Can our little family afford it. Yeah, for now - but what about in the future? Here's why we're worried:

Our system of health care in this country is reported to be the most expensive in the world: about $8,200 per person spent on health care annually.

So how do we compare with other countries?  Canada - $4,400.  France - $4,000.

Average hospital stay in the USA - costs about $18,000.
In Canada, the Netherlands, and Japan - $4,000 to $6,000 less.

Outcome in the US? Mediocre at best. As many as 100,000 die from medical errors annually. According to World Health Organization - U.S. system ranks 37th out of 191 countries - well below France (1st place) and just above Slovenia and Cuba.

Despite the high cost of medical care in this country, Medicare is still not allowed to negotiate lower drug prices like private carriers. Why are we wasting the bargaining power of 49 million Medicare beneficiaries?

Why are our drug companies allowed to negotiate with the makers of generics to delay the introduction of lower priced drugs? *Why are drug stores allowed to recommend generics strictly because the drug store chains make much more money filling prescriptions with generic drugs - which are not held to the same rigorous testing of brand names?

Answer: A possible 435 reasons. It's called "Congress".

Why do we continue to allow Congress to favor drug companies simply out of a loyalty to the campaign contribution mess? Should 435 people be allowed to make us pay for a health system that squanders as much as $750 billion on "unnecessary services, excessive administrative costs, fraud and various other problems" simply because they lack the guts to act on our behalf?

Some studies conclude that Medicare spending would decline by almost 30% if wasteful costs could be eliminated. Here's a thought.

As a kid did you ever attend a school with mandatory uniforms?

Why not insist that for Congress members as well? On each uniform they would be required to wear patches - like race car drivers - golfers, etc of all the companies who are buying their vote and cancelling your own?

*Supreme Court by 5 to 3 ruled deals between brand name and generic companies can be challenged as anti-competetive. We'll see.