"Cost, fines make uninsured wary" - Is there a better way?

[WhiskeyGirl]

A 24-year-old with a diabetic condition, he pays $800 per month for prescription drugs, all without the benefit of an insurance plan.

I wonder if he would be helped if the pharmacy/drug provider showed how much other people pay for the same drugs?  Medicare person…  Private insurance …  Medicaid …

Why doesn’t everyone have access to the same fair prices?

I wonder how much a person on Medicaid would pay for the same drugs?

On the other hand, Michael Elliott, an uninsured 33-year-old from Davenport, said he doesn't think he would be helped.

"The way I handle things now is I make an appointment with my doctor when I need to see him, and I pay $50 per visit," he said. "I just pay out of pocket; it's cheaper for me."

Elliott opposes the requirement on philosophical grounds, too.

The subsidies are a key part of making reform work. The payments are more generous for people at the lower end of the income scale and decrease as incomes go higher. Subsidies are offered, on a sliding scale, to people earning up to four times the federal poverty level, which is $22,050 this year for a family of four and $10,830 for an individual.

Will jobs losses continuing to rise, how will the government plan look when unemployment is at 25% and rising?  I think this IS a real thing to consider.

For example, a family of four making $88,000, which is not covered, could face a cost of $8,771 to buy a moderately priced insurance policy, according to Kaiser.

It's a rare, but not unheard of, family in that circumstance. Tolbert said only 9 percent of the approximately 48 million uninsured have incomes at or above that level.

She added, "while $9,000 may seem like a lot, relative to choices and access today, it's likely an improvement."

How many of those families would rather have private insurance that DOESN’T include race, ethnic, or political manipulation when it comes to treatment, payments, and waiting lists? 

What is the better deal when your families health is at stake?

The money has to come from somewhere.  Should the family really believe it’s all about them in the government plan?

Does it matter how cheap/affordable a plan is if your family can't get treatment due to racial, ethnic, or political manipulation?

http://www.qctimes.com/news/local/article_bf3a604a-c691-11de-b892-001cc4c002e0.html