TOTALLY GEEKED!

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Obamaconomy

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Not a good omen for small town life.

ed11563 · Guru

This is probably because their union contracts are coming up for new negotiations.

Obamacare is similar to Medicare, both give insurance to people who could not afford hospital care previously,

and both pay for needed hospital care.

The fact that all (almost all) insurance companies now pay using a DRG system

(Diagnostic Related Groupings) that provides a fixed payment upon admission, based on the projected

reasonable cost of care for the diagnosis upon admission, means that

hospitals are actively trying to reduce out of pocket costs as much as possible.

That's been going on for decades.

These layoffs have nothing to do with the Affordable Care Act.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Yes they do.

It's happening all over.

I know what to do_sometimes · Frozen Sucks!

lilyofcourse wrote:
Yes they do.

It's happening all over.

I'm not a defender of the ACA but I have to say that there is a trend to get people out of the hospital and into a rehab facility as quick as possible. As hospitals decrease staff or shut their doors, rehab facilities are growing. I think this is just a shift of where health care workers will be needed, not that the positions are going away.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

I knew that there would be the "Obamacare has nothing to do with what is happening in health care"type comments. if course if anything good happens , Obama is there to take credit. If not , then Who me? Not me.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Going back to the days of convalescent homes.

Well. Everyone will have insurance even if they don't have doctors or hospitals.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

The trend for fastracking patients has been going on since the 90s.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Yup. You will have a card saying you are entitled but nobody to take care of you. Health INSURANCE is not the same thing as health CARE. But yeah who cares if all my local towns die.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Saw this and thought it fit here

ed11563 · Guru

lilyofcourse wrote:
Yes they do.

It's happening all over.

It's been happening for 30 years. You're just noticing now? Because NOW you can blame Obama instead of Medicare?

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Of course. Obamas actions have no consequences. How silly of us thinking the govt co opting the healthcare industry would have any effects.

jlbear71 · Guru

Blame the health insurance companies and managed health care. Ever since HMOs came into existence, they have been trying to find ways to reduce paying for medical costs.

Blame medical practitioners (doctors, hospitals, pharmaceuticals) who inflate prices so high that without insurance, medicine is too expensive for the average person. $25 for a regular Tylenol at a hospital!?! I can buy 500 pills for less than that.

Blame the education/student load system. It cost an average of $180,000 in student tuition to turn out a doctor. In order to pay off their loans, they need to make/charge more.

Yes, I am sure that the Affordable Care Act plays a role in this but, more than likely, a very small one considering how long this has been going on.

jlbear71 · Guru

Oh, and the hospital here (major metropolitan area) have been laying off staff for over 15 years.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Deny deny deny

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

ed11563 wrote:
lilyofcourse wrote:
Yes they do.

It's happening all over.

It's been happening for 30 years. You're just noticing now? Because NOW you can blame Obama instead of Medicare?

No. I said almost 8 years ago now that this Ocrap wouldn't work because the test run hadn't worked.

Medicare and Medicaid are both government run health care. And they couldnt keep those above water.

They pay pennies on the dollar to providers, hospitals and care givers. Yes hospitals closes all the time.

But not we are about to see.

Health care for all is a joke now.

Why anyone thinks government has any place in healthcare is beyond me.

This is reaping what was sewn.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

I quit working about three years ago. But until then I was actively working full time as an RN. I have not seen lay offs so much as hospitals trying to cut costs ALL THE TIME. Even if it affected patient care and/or safety. Hospitals don't give a rats arse about patient care. Their bottom line is making money. My very first job, my very first day, as a nurse I was left completely alone on Easter Sunday with ten patients on a surgical ward. Remember, I had just walked out of school. I had never seen a real emergency. I had never seen a code. I had never seen ANYTHING. At the time I thought I could deal with it. I mean, I read all those books didn't I? I went to school! I could handle it! Looking back I realize how horrible a situation it was. If there was an emergency I would NOT have known how to handle it. And this was what the HOSPITAL wanted.

What I've seen over and over again in my career is that when someone quits they just don't fill the position. Then they expect everyone else to pull more of a load to cover it. For example, at one hospital I worked at we had a supply person. They came and stocked our supply room. When they quit it started falling on the nurses to stock their own supply room. People believe nurses are just sitting at the desk waiting around on them but that's not always true. And some will say, "Oh it only takes 20 minutes to stock the supply room. That's not a big deal." It IS a big deal That's 20 minutes less I had to spend with patients. You start adding in all these extra little chores for nurses and you will find out that nurses do very little actual nursing. It's sad and disheartening to those who entered the field to truly help people.

And there's a high burn out rate. Management expects more and more and more and they never have anything nice to say. Only criticism about how you could get MORE done. Of course, once a year we have national nurses day and we get a cheap canvas bag, an ink pen, and a coozy all with the hospitals name on it. Gee thanks, cause you can never have enough beer coozies. Rolls eyes.

Lindley · Guru

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
I quit working about three years ago. But until then I was actively working full time as an RN. I have not seen lay offs so much as hospitals trying to cut costs ALL THE TIME. Even if it affected patient care and/or safety. Hospitals don't give a rats arse about patient care. Their bottom line is making money. My very first job, my very first day, as a nurse I was left completely alone on Easter Sunday with ten patients on a surgical ward. Remember, I had just walked out of school. I had never seen a real emergency. I had never seen a code. I had never seen ANYTHING. At the time I thought I could deal with it. I mean, I read all those books didn't I? I went to school! I could handle it! Looking back I realize how horrible a situation it was. If there was an emergency I would NOT have known how to handle it. And this was what the HOSPITAL wanted.

What I've seen over and over again in my career is that when someone quits they just don't fill the position. Then they expect everyone else to pull more of a load to cover it. For example, at one hospital I worked at we had a supply person. They came and stocked our supply room. When they quit it started falling on the nurses to stock their own supply room. People believe nurses are just sitting at the desk waiting around on them but that's not always true. And some will say, "Oh it only takes 20 minutes to stock the supply room. That's not a big deal." It IS a big deal That's 20 minutes less I had to spend with patients. You start adding in all these extra little chores for nurses and you will find out that nurses do very little actual nursing. It's sad and disheartening to those who entered the field to truly help people.

And there's a high burn out rate. Management expects more and more and more and they never have anything nice to say. Only criticism about how you could get MORE done. Of course, once a year we have national nurses day and we get a cheap canvas bag, an ink pen, and a coozy all with the hospitals name on it. Gee thanks, cause you can never have enough beer coozies. Rolls eyes.

njn that is a crappy thing to do to a new nurse.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

Lindley wrote:
njn that is a crappy thing to do to a new nurse.

You know what Lindley? It's an even crappier thing to do to the patients.

Lindley · Guru

My dd was lucky, when she first started nursing after she graduated the hospital had her shadow a nurse for a few weeks before she was on her own.

I bet you were real nervous.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

Lindley wrote:
My dd was lucky, when she first started nursing after she graduated the hospital had her shadow a nurse for a few weeks before she was on her own.

I bet you were real nervous.

I was too fresh, eager, and naive to be nervous!

Lindley · Guru

I bet you are a good nurse.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

I was a pretty good nurse when I was nursing. At least I thought so! I loved my patients. MOST of them!

Domestic Engineer · Guru

Sis had insurance thru ObamaCare. It's not paying because she was taken to an out of network hospital. When the ambulance reached her she was already unconscious, yet she was supposed to somehow tell the paramedics to take her to an in network hospital versus the closest hospital. disbelief

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

While I agree that private insurance companies have not been the greatest and have run up costs I will say without a doubt there isn't one instance I know of where the government has run anything more efficiently, better, and more cost effective than private companies.

Lindley · Guru

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
While I agree that private insurance companies have not been the greatest and have run up costs I will say without a doubt there isn't one instance I know of where the government has run anything more efficiently, better, and more cost effective than private companies.

That is so true

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Domestic Engineer wrote:
Sis had insurance thru ObamaCare. It's not paying because she was taken to an out of network hospital. When the ambulance reached her she was already unconscious, yet she was supposed to somehow tell the paramedics to take her to an in network hospital versus the closest hospital.

Well once everyone gets their chip, that won't happen any more.

I know what to do_sometimes · Frozen Sucks!

Domestic Engineer wrote:
Sis had insurance thru ObamaCare. It's not paying because she was taken to an out of network hospital. When the ambulance reached her she was already unconscious, yet she was supposed to somehow tell the paramedics to take her to an in network hospital versus the closest hospital.

This has been happening for years and years. Certainly something has to be done. Who knows which hospitals are in network. I doubt most people know which hospitals are in network.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

I agree that insurance is very confusing. Which I think is often the point where they do purposefully try to confuse or stonewall. It is kind of how they operate. There is no reason that hospitals could not charge and bill like businesses do. You get an estimated cost before you have a new roof put on. There is no reason you shouldn't be able to get estimated costs for elective procedures, lab work and on and on. Yes, an emergency you won't know that but the vast majority of issues are not emergencies. And, of course if there are complications, then yes it will cost beyond that, but for most routine stuff, this should be able to be clearly spelled out. The problem is that is all just one big shell game between insurance companies who do everything in their power to not pay, and hospitals and providers who simply want to be paid for the work that they do.

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

ed11563 wrote:
This is probably because their union contracts are coming up for new negotiations.
Obamacare is similar to Medicare, both give insurance to people who could not afford hospital care previously,
and both pay for needed hospital care.
The fact that all (almost all) insurance companies now pay using a DRG system
(Diagnostic Related Groupings) that provides a fixed payment upon admission, based on the projected
reasonable cost of care for the diagnosis upon admission, means that
hospitals are actively trying to reduce out of pocket costs as much as possible.
That's been going on for decades.

These layoffs have nothing to do with the Affordable Care Act.

That is because the "reasonable cost" set by the government for reimbursement is not reasonable at all. They expect the hospital to make it up by charging others more.

You are in denial about Obamacare having nothing to do with this.

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

jlbear71 wrote:
Blame the health insurance companies and managed health care. Ever since HMOs came into existence, they have been trying to find ways to reduce paying for medical costs.

Blame medical practitioners (doctors, hospitals, pharmaceuticals) who inflate prices so high that without insurance, medicine is too expensive for the average person. $25 for a regular Tylenol at a hospital!?! I can buy 500 pills for less than that.

Blame the education/student load system. It cost an average of $180,000 in student tuition to turn out a doctor. In order to pay off their loans, they need to make/charge more.

Yes, I am sure that the Affordable Care Act plays a role in this but, more than likely, a very small one considering how long this has been going on.

The government pays VERY LITTLE on any claim. And since the health care facilities let them, that gives insurance companies the leverage to pay less as well. If you submit the SAME CLAIM to a private insurer - government insurance programs will pay about half what a private insurer pays.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

jlbear71 wrote:
Blame the health insurance companies and managed health care. Ever since HMOs came into existence, they have been trying to find ways to reduce paying for medical costs.

Blame medical practitioners (doctors, hospitals, pharmaceuticals) who inflate prices so high that without insurance, medicine is too expensive for the average person. $25 for a regular Tylenol at a hospital!?! I can buy 500 pills for less than that.

Blame the education/student load system. It cost an average of $180,000 in student tuition to turn out a doctor. In order to pay off their loans, they need to make/charge more.

Yes, I am sure that the Affordable Care Act plays a role in this but, more than likely, a very small one considering how long this has been going on.

flan

JPT · Senior Member

ed11563 wrote:
This is probably because their union contracts are coming up for new negotiations.
Obamacare is similar to Medicare, both give insurance to people who could not afford hospital care previously,
and both pay for needed hospital care.
The fact that all (almost all) insurance companies now pay using a DRG system
(Diagnostic Related Groupings) that provides a fixed payment upon admission, based on the projected
reasonable cost of care for the diagnosis upon admission, means that
hospitals are actively trying to reduce out of pocket costs as much as possible.
That's been going on for decades.

These layoffs have nothing to do with the Affordable Care Act.

THis

JPT · Senior Member

jlbear71 wrote:
Blame the health insurance companies and managed health care. Ever since HMOs came into existence, they have been trying to find ways to reduce paying for medical costs.

Blame medical practitioners (doctors, hospitals, pharmaceuticals) who inflate prices so high that without insurance, medicine is too expensive for the average person. $25 for a regular Tylenol at a hospital!?! I can buy 500 pills for less than that.

Blame the education/student load system. It cost an average of $180,000 in student tuition to turn out a doctor. In order to pay off their loans, they need to make/charge more.

Yes, I am sure that the Affordable Care Act plays a role in this but, more than likely, a very small one considering how long this has been going on.

And this

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Ok. Keep pretending. What me worry?

WYSIWYG · Guru

I'd love to lay this one on Obamacare, but the truth of the matter is insurance companies have been underpaying hospitals for years (it's also true that hospitals have been overcharging for years, but that's probably more for a different thread). It started long before Barack Obama was even in politics, much less President.

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

WYSIWYG wrote:
I'd love to lay this one on Obamacare, but the truth of the matter is insurance companies have been underpaying hospitals for years (it's also true that hospitals have been overcharging for years, but that's probably more for a different thread). It started long before Barack Obama was even in politics, much less President.

But Obamacare has only made it worse. An attempt to "fix" the situation has amplified it.

I know what to do_sometimes · Frozen Sucks!

What I see as a much more disastrous situation created in the interest of saving money is the shuttering of medical facilities in the more remote areas. People living in small town USA will now have to travel long distances for care.