If you are going to call my Kaiser Permanente Advantage Plan a Scam, multiple times! I challenge you to have someone from Kaiser Permanente on your show. They have offices in Portland or you can contact the main offices in California. As it is your presentation yesterday was totally one sided.
It is about time that someone tried to explain the morass that they created when they tried to screw everyone by privatizing the Medicare system. It may be wonderful for anyone near the non-profit HMOs, but it's impossible if you don't live in those areas.
We all paid into a specific system that was supposed to be equally beneficial for all when we reached a certain age. The system was meant to be strong and be able to leverage prices. Instead you have individual corporations negotiating prices among providers and the insurance company; this weakens what should be negotiated as a whole.
The "skin in the game" supplemental system is a nightmare as is sorting out if there is an Advantage program that might work for where you live and with what your health requires. I would take it a step further by saying what we are doing is literally STUPID and intentionally CONFUSING. I am pretty sure stupid and confused is exactly what they were going for when they fucked with the law.
Thanks for the book Professor Hartmann. I respect your work more every day I read the Report.
I listened to your show today about Medicare. You completely ignore what YOU pay for a Medigap Insurance Policy (ie the 20% coverage). This is several thousands of dollars per year. I do not pay that. ZERO. I pay low copays and at the end of the year it is below $200. 4 years ago I did have cancer and surgery. The total was below $300. I might add that companies would not line up (and I would not receive tons of junk mail) if these companies did not make huge profits on these Medigap policies. The medigap policy companies pay big money to hide the Advantage Plans and you have been taken. Admit what you pay for Medigap. Remember, that is annually. My Pharmaceutical's are cheap, The Doctors are great. Every employee loves the company, the facilities are excellent and I get free health club privilege's at excellent facilities.
I am very happy with my (only 5 star rated plan in the state) Kaiser Permanente Advantage plan. I honestly think that it is a model for Medicare for all. "Kaiser Permanente is one of the largest nonprofit healthcare plans in the United States, with over 12 million members." It is certainly better than the For Profit Medicare Gap plans that Thom is promoting. I have much lower costs, great care and excellent facilities. No complaint's from me.
https://www.medicare.org/articles/how-does-medicare-advantage-reimbursement-work/
Advatage (Part C) vs Medicare (Part C) https://www.medicare.gov/Pubs/pdf/12026-Understanding-Medicare-Advantage-Plans.pdf
If you are going to call my Kaiser Permanente Advantage Plan a Scam, multiple times! I challenge you to have someone from Kaiser Permanente on your show. They have offices in Portland or you can contact the main offices in California. As it is your presentation yesterday was totally one sided.
https://healthy.kaiserpermanente.org/oregon-washington/health-wellness/life-care-plan/advance-health-care-directive/oregon-guide
https://about.kaiserpermanente.org/
It is about time that someone tried to explain the morass that they created when they tried to screw everyone by privatizing the Medicare system. It may be wonderful for anyone near the non-profit HMOs, but it's impossible if you don't live in those areas.
We all paid into a specific system that was supposed to be equally beneficial for all when we reached a certain age. The system was meant to be strong and be able to leverage prices. Instead you have individual corporations negotiating prices among providers and the insurance company; this weakens what should be negotiated as a whole.
The "skin in the game" supplemental system is a nightmare as is sorting out if there is an Advantage program that might work for where you live and with what your health requires. I would take it a step further by saying what we are doing is literally STUPID and intentionally CONFUSING. I am pretty sure stupid and confused is exactly what they were going for when they fucked with the law.
Thanks for the book Professor Hartmann. I respect your work more every day I read the Report.
I listened to your show today about Medicare. You completely ignore what YOU pay for a Medigap Insurance Policy (ie the 20% coverage). This is several thousands of dollars per year. I do not pay that. ZERO. I pay low copays and at the end of the year it is below $200. 4 years ago I did have cancer and surgery. The total was below $300. I might add that companies would not line up (and I would not receive tons of junk mail) if these companies did not make huge profits on these Medigap policies. The medigap policy companies pay big money to hide the Advantage Plans and you have been taken. Admit what you pay for Medigap. Remember, that is annually. My Pharmaceutical's are cheap, The Doctors are great. Every employee loves the company, the facilities are excellent and I get free health club privilege's at excellent facilities.
https://kp.kaiserpermanente.org/medicare/mc5s?WT.mc_id=225711&WT.seg_1=Bing-zzzMedicarezzz-CLRD-c-BPK-e-kp%20org%20advantage%20plus-a79f4296b84d1d130e7823af85d6fa2f&WT.srch=1&WT.tsrc=ps&WT.seg_2=&cid=&&msclkid=a79f4296b84d1d130e7823af85d6fa2f&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=KP_MDCR_NON_MCS_CLRD_NON_N2_N3_N4_BPK_N5_PHR_N6_General&utm_term=kp%20org%20advantage%20plus&utm_content=General&gclid=a79f4296b84d1d130e7823af85d6fa2f&gclsrc=3p.ds
I am very happy with my (only 5 star rated plan in the state) Kaiser Permanente Advantage plan. I honestly think that it is a model for Medicare for all. "Kaiser Permanente is one of the largest nonprofit healthcare plans in the United States, with over 12 million members." It is certainly better than the For Profit Medicare Gap plans that Thom is promoting. I have much lower costs, great care and excellent facilities. No complaint's from me.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaiser_Permanente