Health Terrorists: Consumers pay for improvements for government, providers, and insurers but get little

Giving in to Health Terrorists might be a better name for HR 6331 which passed the House and will go to Senate. Short Title Might be: We'll pay you just shut up and leave us alone. H.R. 6331: Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 is all the buzz having passed the House. G-d save us from the "Improvement" Acts is my take. There's also a companion bill in the Senate, S. 3101: Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008.

For months we've been talking about stakeholders. Patient stakes are simple: Access to Affordable Quality health services. Well, not much to say about how this new legislation addresses those concerns but all these new federal dollars will be addressing the threats, warnings and greed of the other stakeholders: Providers (yup, the doctors who threatened not to take on patients or to stop taking Medicare patients got their desire: No reduction in Medicare payments for their services, so much for cost control. Oh yeah, and all the blah blah blah new provisions about efficiency address new reporting requirements, communication between doctors and the government, and if they do it right? Yup, there's more money available.

Health insurers? They do great. Remember, the government (federal and states) don't want to be in the health insurance business under this administration. They're willing to pay out dollar after dollar to wash their hands of the problem. Why not? It's our money that they're paying out. So how does this "Improvement" Act help? Well, it expands the Medicare Advantage program to rural areas through incentives. Medicare Advantage is that popular new way to exploit consumers...private health insurance APPROVED by the federal government. These plans charge MORE to consumers for the convenience of offering everything that general population gets by showing a single insurance card. If this doesn't provide you with enough warning about these programs made popular because they add profit to health insurance companies AND allow the federal government to wash its hands of actually overseeing Medicare, go to the Medicare.gov website and read all about them. You pay more for the privilege of lower co-pays and more coverage. As a matter of fact, supplemental insurance is replaced by these plans. Sounds like a miracle? Not really, you will pay more, you may be asked to comply with additional rules for coverages (after all, they are PRIVATE insurance companies), and your rates will go up and up. Oh yeah, they might also add on additional requirements such as the "case management" that we all know and love now where you get a call from a subcontracted third party which identifies itself as your insurer and nannies you about your diet.

Psychiatric services are expanded in terms of cost of such services to consumers. (Of course, because they're fairly cheap compared to lets say...cancer surgery). Which leads to the expansion of other "preventive" services. (Yup, they're cheap.)

Kidney patients might benefit from new coverages and amounts of coverages. This will now be a bigger profit center than before so expect lots of news coverage about the plague of kidney disease as these guys seek new patients.

Diabetes? Well, it gets some increases too.

And us? We'll all think that there are some improvements because we want to be happy with what we're paying for expanded coverage for the poor and geographically remote mixed in with some promotional stuff for those with psychiatric issues or diabetes with the bulk of the money going to providers because after all, those kind-hearted healers have been threatening that they will have to turn people away if they don't get what they want (ultimatums work for the organized).

I feel badly for the current Medicare eligibles and for myself as a future Medicare eligible. The changes in this "IMPROVEMENTS" bill will benefit few, will cover many with more of health care LITE: Preventive services for top dollars.