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Early bedtime?
Looks like everyone went to bed early last night. Hope all got a great night's sleep. Will be on the
golf course freezing my butt off with temps in the low 40's and 20mph winds. Has anyone had a dog that tore it's ACL? I'm trying the non-surgical 'restricted movement' approach: http://tiggerpoz.com/index.html But, it has its setbacks. My dog still will try to jump on the couch or bed (a definite no-no) if not watched or penned. She tried jumping onto my lap a couple weeks ago and the right rear leg just caved out from under her, going sideways at the stifle (knee). Of course, if she had surgery she'd still try to run and jump, risking undoing the surgical treatments, whichever one I chose to have done. The author of the site above is against immediate surgery. But, the vets who do the surgery are very much against 'not' doing the surgery immediately, citing all sorts of dire consequences. Oh well, it's thoughts like these that go through one's head at 2:30 in the morning just to ensure a good night's sleep is not happening. Have a great day all!! |
Early bedtime?
Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery
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Early bedtime?
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote:
Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery That's the damn truth right there! |
Early bedtime?
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 16:56:56 -0400, Poco Deplorevole
wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery That's the damn truth right there! === And if your only tool is a hammer, everything looks like a nail... |
Early bedtime?
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. |
Early bedtime?
wrote:
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. Naive to the point of absurdity. -- Posted with my iPhone 7+. |
Early bedtime?
7:35
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. ...... Saving details but the surgeon who crammed the defibrillator into my chest couldn't have cared less whether I needed it or not.... |
Early bedtime?
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote: 7:35 On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. ..... Saving details but the surgeon who crammed the defibrillator into my chest couldn't have cared less whether I needed it or not.... I was only referring to the skill involved in shoving that into your chest without killing you, although that is not a very complicated procedure. Whether you actually needed it is my main problem with doctors. They may know everything about the human body but a lot do not have any real diagnostic ability. It is a unique ability and pretty much impossible to teach if you do not have that kind of mind. I will say the doctors in DC are better than they are around here. |
Early bedtime?
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 20:44:46 -0400, Keyser Söze
wrote: When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. Naive to the point of absurdity. OK what do non-surgical doctors do to cure you? You get pills, injections, creams or something you shove up your ass. These days that choice seems to depend on the sales pitch and freebies they get from the drug salesman as much as anything. |
Early bedtime?
On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 11:21:01 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 7:35 On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. ..... Saving details but the surgeon who crammed the defibrillator into my chest couldn't have cared less whether I needed it or not.... I was only referring to the skill involved in shoving that into your chest without killing you, although that is not a very complicated procedure. Whether you actually needed it is my main problem with doctors. They may know everything about the human body but a lot do not have any real diagnostic ability. It is a unique ability and pretty much impossible to teach if you do not have that kind of mind. I will say the doctors in DC are better than they are around here. This piece of space wizardry Im carrying cost about $50,000 to have done. The installation procedure takes aprox. 20 minutes. Lets say he gets $1000.00 a piece and can do 6 a day. What's he care if you need it or not? Then you have several follow up appointments which I get charged for. I'll quit there but you get the pic. Im sure... |
Early bedtime?
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:49:10 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote: On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 11:21:01 PM UTC-5, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 7:35 On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. ..... Saving details but the surgeon who crammed the defibrillator into my chest couldn't have cared less whether I needed it or not.... I was only referring to the skill involved in shoving that into your chest without killing you, although that is not a very complicated procedure. Whether you actually needed it is my main problem with doctors. They may know everything about the human body but a lot do not have any real diagnostic ability. It is a unique ability and pretty much impossible to teach if you do not have that kind of mind. I will say the doctors in DC are better than they are around here. This piece of space wizardry Im carrying cost about $50,000 to have done. The installation procedure takes aprox. 20 minutes. Lets say he gets $1000.00 a piece and can do 6 a day. What's he care if you need it or not? Then you have several follow up appointments which I get charged for. I'll quit there but you get the pic. Im sure... === That's a big chunk of cash but you wouldn't exactly want to have it done by the lowest bidder either. I wonder how much of that $50K goes to cover insurance of the various groups involved. |
Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 06:33:26 -0400 (EDT), justan wrote:
Wrote in message: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 20:44:46 -0400, Keyser Söze wrote: When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. Naive to the point of absurdity. OK what do non-surgical doctors do to cure you? You get pills, injections, creams or something you shove up your ass. These days that choice seems to depend on the sales pitch and freebies they get from the drug salesman as much as anything. What surgery would you recommend for Harry to cure jock itchor compulsive nail biting or sleep apnea or osteopenia? First thing I'd do is unsubscribe him from 'Digital Desire'! |
Early bedtime?
8:16 On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:49:10 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 11:21:01 PM UTC-5, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim - show quoted text - === That's a big chunk of cash but you wouldn't exactly want to have it done by the lowest bidder either. I wonder how much of that $50K goes to cover insurance of the various groups involved. ..... Wayne, I really didn't want it done either. The heart doc had my wife convinced that if I took two more steps id go into AFib and be dead before I hit the floor. Odd, after I got one stent, it wasn't long before I felt better than I had in years, but he said my heart was failing. So I agreed to the procedure to give my wife some piece of mind. That plan backfired because now she's afraid it's going to light me up. I can't win... Oh yeah I found out that when they say " you may as well do it, after all your insurance will cover it." What's that tell you? With 20% deductibles and many follow up device tests and apointment, It told me a lot... |
Early bedtime?
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:49:10 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote: On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 11:21:01 PM UTC-5, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 7:35 On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. ..... Saving details but the surgeon who crammed the defibrillator into my chest couldn't have cared less whether I needed it or not.... I was only referring to the skill involved in shoving that into your chest without killing you, although that is not a very complicated procedure. Whether you actually needed it is my main problem with doctors. They may know everything about the human body but a lot do not have any real diagnostic ability. It is a unique ability and pretty much impossible to teach if you do not have that kind of mind. I will say the doctors in DC are better than they are around here. This piece of space wizardry Im carrying cost about $50,000 to have done. The installation procedure takes aprox. 20 minutes. Lets say he gets $1000.00 a piece and can do 6 a day. What's he care if you need it or not? Then you have several follow up appointments which I get charged for. I'll quit there but you get the pic. Im sure... You can always say no and find another doctor |
Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
wrote:
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:49:10 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 11:21:01 PM UTC-5, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 7:35 On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 13:05:04 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: Drs like to cure, John. Surgeons like to do surgery When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. ..... Saving details but the surgeon who crammed the defibrillator into my chest couldn't have cared less whether I needed it or not.... I was only referring to the skill involved in shoving that into your chest without killing you, although that is not a very complicated procedure. Whether you actually needed it is my main problem with doctors. They may know everything about the human body but a lot do not have any real diagnostic ability. It is a unique ability and pretty much impossible to teach if you do not have that kind of mind. I will say the doctors in DC are better than they are around here. This piece of space wizardry Im carrying cost about $50,000 to have done. The installation procedure takes aprox. 20 minutes. Lets say he gets $1000.00 a piece and can do 6 a day. What's he care if you need it or not? Then you have several follow up appointments which I get charged for. I'll quit there but you get the pic. Im sure... === That's a big chunk of cash but you wouldn't exactly want to have it done by the lowest bidder either. I wonder how much of that $50K goes to cover insurance of the various groups involved. Seems reasonable when I had an angiogram where they stick a wire up the arm. $43000. No cutting in to the chest, or devices implanted. |
Early bedtime?
10:10
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:49:10 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 11:21:01 PM UTC-5, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim - show quoted text - You can always say no and find another doctor ..... Oh I will. I've learned a valuable lesson. When the battery goes out on this thing I won't have it replaced. I'll have it removed. I'm aware of the complications of the lead wire removal too. Only takes 20 min. to install and maybe 4 hrs to pull everything out. They say once you have it you may as well keep it. Nope! I'm 61 and I'm not going to have this thing dictate my life. |
Early bedtime?
10:42 AMBill
- show quoted text - Seems reasonable when I had an angiogram where they stick a wire up the arm. $43000. No cutting in to the chest, or devices implanted. ---- Dooood! |
Early bedtime?
"Doctors seem to just keep doing stuff as long as your insurance will
pay. " In many cases it kinda seems that way, doesn't it? |
Early bedtime?
On 3/23/17 11:40 AM, Tim wrote:
10:10 On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:49:10 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 11:21:01 PM UTC-5, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 19:09:26 -0700 (PDT), Tim - show quoted text - You can always say no and find another doctor .... Oh I will. I've learned a valuable lesson. When the battery goes out on this thing I won't have it replaced. I'll have it removed. I'm aware of the complications of the lead wire removal too. Only takes 20 min. to install and maybe 4 hrs to pull everything out. They say once you have it you may as well keep it. Nope! I'm 61 and I'm not going to have this thing dictate my life. I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. |
Early bedtime?
On 3/23/17 11:47 AM, wrote:
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 09:28:11 -0400, Poco Deplorevole wrote: On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 00:25:54 -0400, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 20:44:46 -0400, Keyser Söze wrote: When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. Naive to the point of absurdity. OK what do non-surgical doctors do to cure you? You get pills, injections, creams or something you shove up your ass. These days that choice seems to depend on the sales pitch and freebies they get from the drug salesman as much as anything. My guy, an internist, has found things that he didn't treat, but he did send me to the right guy for treatment. The abdominal aortic aneurysm was the most significant of his findings. The surgeon who repaired it called him a miracle worker for finding it. You got lucky. There are plenty of quacks in the medical profession. They told my wife she needed an emergency appendectomy. This was not the laparoscope deal, it was a cut you open and look around thing. She ended up with a scar that looks like she lost a sword fight and it took a year of rehab. They did not find anything wrong. oops sorry, but good news, your insurance covered it. (back when insurance covered stuff) I have already told you all about the easter egg hunt they went through my insurance coverage on for my wrists, turns out nothing there either. (One PT session where the girl told me to do what the doctors told me not to do) Doctors seem to just keep doing stuff as long as your insurance will pay. My GP sent me to an orthopedic surgeon, a damned good one, to further investigate my wrist problems. He was very careful with tests and x-rays, and also sent me to a good rheumatologist for co-consult, and who ran a series of different blood tests. They concurred on carpal tunnel rather than a couple of immune diseases and while they were deciding, I took some steroids. I had one wrist/palm done and then the other, first class surgery, and I've enjoyed a great recovery. I'm sure my health insurance was hit hard, but my out of pockets were limited to $10 for each doctor's visit and a total of $400 for both surgeries. That's why I pay for the good insurance. Oh...and the insurance covered OT afterwards for both wrists. I trust my doctors. |
Early bedtime?
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 12:46:14 -0400, Keyser Soze
wrote: On 3/23/17 11:47 AM, wrote: You got lucky. There are plenty of quacks in the medical profession. They told my wife she needed an emergency appendectomy. This was not the laparoscope deal, it was a cut you open and look around thing. She ended up with a scar that looks like she lost a sword fight and it took a year of rehab. They did not find anything wrong. oops sorry, but good news, your insurance covered it. (back when insurance covered stuff) I have already told you all about the easter egg hunt they went through my insurance coverage on for my wrists, turns out nothing there either. (One PT session where the girl told me to do what the doctors told me not to do) Doctors seem to just keep doing stuff as long as your insurance will pay. My GP sent me to an orthopedic surgeon, a damned good one, to further investigate my wrist problems. He was very careful with tests and x-rays, and also sent me to a good rheumatologist for co-consult, and who ran a series of different blood tests. They concurred on carpal tunnel rather than a couple of immune diseases and while they were deciding, I took some steroids. I had one wrist/palm done and then the other, first class surgery, and I've enjoyed a great recovery. I'm sure my health insurance was hit hard, but my out of pockets were limited to $10 for each doctor's visit and a total of $400 for both surgeries. That's why I pay for the good insurance. Oh...and the insurance covered OT afterwards for both wrists. I trust my doctors. In my case I ended up with 2 MRIs, a bunch of blood tests and enough X rays to light up a small city. I had 3 different kind of braces/cuffs, Prednisone, Dichlofenac, Ibuprophen, Naproxen and finally a prescription for Methotrexate that I threw in the trash as soon as I read the warning pamphlet. (the others are pretty scary too) When I went back to the sports doctor who started this mess he sent me to the PT girl. She said I should throw away all of the braces, stop the drugs and do all the things that they told me not to do. In a week I was cured. Looking at my EOBs, these *******s bled my insurance for over $100,000 for over a year and never fixed a thing. The $50 an hour PT girl could have fixed me on day one. The rheumatologist that gave me the Methotrexate was the biggest quack of all. He did not do any tests, looked over the records and sent me on my way with a diagnosis of Psoriatic Arthritis because his only other thing would have been Rheumatic Arthritis and that was already eliminated by the RH factor test. I knew how that one was going to come out as soon as I read the posters in his waiting room. It was the only two bullets in his gun. I have already said the doctors I knew in DC were much better than the ones down here and I did have a wife inside the tent to warn me off of the quacks up there. There were plenty of them. All the people she worked for could do was deny privileges and that was not as easy as it should be. There was a (PSRO) meeting once a week to discuss how the hospital could side step malpractice suits and mitigate the damages if they couldn't. Listening to the recap of that meeting was depressing. |
Early bedtime?
11:39 AMKeyser Soze
- show quoted text - I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. ..... Can't be much worse than the people who get payed well to perform unnecessary procedures. |
Early bedtime?
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 10:42:59 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote: 11:39 AMKeyser Soze - show quoted text - I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. .... Can't be much worse than the people who get payed well to perform unnecessary procedures. In just about any other context, Harry would be complaining about the "pay for service" model of American health care. It is amazing how he can work both sides of the table so well but I guess it is natural for a person who pimps government unions. |
Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
On 3/24/2017 9:06 AM, wrote:
On Fri, 24 Mar 2017 07:51:41 -0400, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 3/23/2017 2:23 PM, wrote: On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 10:42:59 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 11:39 AMKeyser Soze - show quoted text - I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. .... Can't be much worse than the people who get payed well to perform unnecessary procedures. In just about any other context, Harry would be complaining about the "pay for service" model of American health care. It is amazing how he can work both sides of the table so well but I guess it is natural for a person who pimps government unions. A few months ago (at the recommendation of a couple of veteran friends) I applied for health care services through the VA. I haven't had a primary care physician for a while (he unfortunately died at a young age of leukemia) so I was basically starting from scratch. Turns out *all* vets are eligible for health care through the VA as long as they served at least 24 months and have an honorable discharge. There is a means test of sorts but some forms of income are not considered, nor are your bank accounts and your income only contributes to the determination of what priority classification you are eligible for. There are 8 classifications, 1 being the highest, 8 the lowest. You could be a multi billionaire but if you are an honorably discharged vet, you will still qualify, although probably in the lowest (8) priority classification. So, the VA sent me a letter welcoming me and sent a booklet that is personalized for what types of services, hospitalization, checkups, tests, etc. that I am eligible for. In total, I have better coverage by far than I had under the Blue Cross policy that we used to pay $1,400 a month for. I even have coverage for nursing home expenses and/or full time home nursing services if the day ever comes that I need them. The VA assigned a primary care physician in a VA clinic that is about 5 miles from my house. I've had three appointments so far, including full blood work, colon-rectal cancer tests and other tests to establish a baseline. The doc spent over an hour with me at the first appointment getting background data, etc. BTW ... related to a recent thread here ... one of the questions was if I had guns in the house and, if so, are they secure. Anyway, the only thing wrong with me is slightly elevated blood pressure. Doc said it's not "horrible" but prescribed some meds to get it a bit lower. I don't like taking meds and I know that once I get more physically active once the cold and snow stops my BP will drop but in the meantime I'll take the meds. My only out of pocket cost is an $8 co-payment for a 90 day supply of the pills. If I need to be hospitalized for some reason there is a $97 per day co-payment for the first 21 days. After that, there is no payments by me. No co-payments for doc visits, checkups, tests, etc. The VA is totally independent from Medicare and the VA does not charge Medicare for services. I am seriously thinking about dropping Part B and it's cost and dropping the gap insurance policy I have for Part B through Tufts. I don't need them if I use the VA for health care which will save me about $350 a month. Bottom line is: The VA isn't a health insurance program. It's a health care program. The Boston area VA (which governs the facilities I use) is the highest rated VA health car are in the nation. So far, I have been very impressed. === It's good to know that the VA is delivering quality service for you and that some parts of the government are working well. The guys that have been wounded in action deserve nothing but the best. Yeah, I was a little skeptical at first given all the bad press the VA has received over the years ... some areas deservingly so ... but so far my experiences have been very positive. Friendly people and virtually no waiting for your scheduled appointments. Longest "wait" I've had was six minutes beyond the scheduled appointment time. |
Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
On 3/24/17 10:03 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 3/24/2017 9:44 AM, Keyser Soze wrote: On 3/24/17 7:51 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote: On 3/23/2017 2:23 PM, wrote: On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 10:42:59 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 11:39 AMKeyser Soze - show quoted text - I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. .... Can't be much worse than the people who get payed well to perform unnecessary procedures. In just about any other context, Harry would be complaining about the "pay for service" model of American health care. It is amazing how he can work both sides of the table so well but I guess it is natural for a person who pimps government unions. A few months ago (at the recommendation of a couple of veteran friends) I applied for health care services through the VA. I haven't had a primary care physician for a while (he unfortunately died at a young age of leukemia) so I was basically starting from scratch. Turns out *all* vets are eligible for health care through the VA as long as they served at least 24 months and have an honorable discharge. There is a means test of sorts but some forms of income are not considered, nor are your bank accounts and your income only contributes to the determination of what priority classification you are eligible for. There are 8 classifications, 1 being the highest, 8 the lowest. You could be a multi billionaire but if you are an honorably discharged vet, you will still qualify, although probably in the lowest (8) priority classification. So, the VA sent me a letter welcoming me and sent a booklet that is personalized for what types of services, hospitalization, checkups, tests, etc. that I am eligible for. In total, I have better coverage by far than I had under the Blue Cross policy that we used to pay $1,400 a month for. I even have coverage for nursing home expenses and/or full time home nursing services if the day ever comes that I need them. The VA assigned a primary care physician in a VA clinic that is about 5 miles from my house. I've had three appointments so far, including full blood work, colon-rectal cancer tests and other tests to establish a baseline. The doc spent over an hour with me at the first appointment getting background data, etc. BTW ... related to a recent thread here ... one of the questions was if I had guns in the house and, if so, are they secure. Anyway, the only thing wrong with me is slightly elevated blood pressure. Doc said it's not "horrible" but prescribed some meds to get it a bit lower. I don't like taking meds and I know that once I get more physically active once the cold and snow stops my BP will drop but in the meantime I'll take the meds. My only out of pocket cost is an $8 co-payment for a 90 day supply of the pills. If I need to be hospitalized for some reason there is a $97 per day co-payment for the first 21 days. After that, there is no payments by me. No co-payments for doc visits, checkups, tests, etc. The VA is totally independent from Medicare and the VA does not charge Medicare for services. I am seriously thinking about dropping Part B and it's cost and dropping the gap insurance policy I have for Part B through Tufts. I don't need them if I use the VA for health care which will save me about $350 a month. Bottom line is: The VA isn't a health insurance program. It's a health care program. The Boston area VA (which governs the facilities I use) is the highest rated VA health car are in the nation. So far, I have been very impressed. So, shifting the burden is ok for a Republican, even a wealthy one. Figures. Using benefits that the government says I earned is "shifting the burden" in your eyes? I figured this would **** you off. No, it just illustrates something else that is wrong with our health care system. If you suffered a serious battle injury or debilitating injury while in the service, I see nothing wrong with providing you with good healthcare at no cost for the recovery, even a lifelong recovery, for that problem or problems. Why should the VA pay for treatment of your HBP, especially since any sort of means test would indicate you can afford to buy private health insurance or pay for a private doctor without any difficulty. |
Early bedtime?
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 11:47:40 -0400, wrote:
On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 09:28:11 -0400, Poco Deplorevole wrote: On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 00:25:54 -0400, wrote: On Wed, 22 Mar 2017 20:44:46 -0400, Keyser Söze wrote: When I was in DC I spent a lot of time around doctors, some of the best in town. (My ex was the senior "lay" person in a big DC hospital administrative staff) I found the surgeons to be the most skilled. They have a trade that requires physical ability. They actually fix things. The rest just throw pills at you and hope the problem goes away. Naive to the point of absurdity. OK what do non-surgical doctors do to cure you? You get pills, injections, creams or something you shove up your ass. These days that choice seems to depend on the sales pitch and freebies they get from the drug salesman as much as anything. My guy, an internist, has found things that he didn't treat, but he did send me to the right guy for treatment. The abdominal aortic aneurysm was the most significant of his findings. The surgeon who repaired it called him a miracle worker for finding it. You got lucky. There are plenty of quacks in the medical profession. They told my wife she needed an emergency appendectomy. This was not the laparoscope deal, it was a cut you open and look around thing. She ended up with a scar that looks like she lost a sword fight and it took a year of rehab. They did not find anything wrong. oops sorry, but good news, your insurance covered it. (back when insurance covered stuff) I have already told you all about the easter egg hunt they went through my insurance coverage on for my wrists, turns out nothing there either. (One PT session where the girl told me to do what the doctors told me not to do) Doctors seem to just keep doing stuff as long as your insurance will pay. You've been unlucky. When I was 16 I got a horrible pain in my lower stomach. Dad took me to emergency room. Appendicitis was diagnosed, with immediate surgery. I woke up later and felt a hell of a lot better. Almost all of my experience, until '92 anyway, has been with military doctors. I've had only one 'bad' experience when after spending four months in Walter Reed they still couldn't pinpoint anything and diagnosed a 'nonspecific pleural infection'. That was after they did a month with chest tubes followed by a thoracotomy. I still believe they did their best, although it wasn't fun. |
Early bedtime?
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Early bedtime?
On Friday, March 24, 2017 at 8:59:02 AM UTC-5, Keyser Soze wrote:
On 3/23/17 2:23 PM, wrote: On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 10:42:59 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 11:39 AMKeyser Soze - show quoted text - I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. .... Can't be much worse than the people who get payed well to perform unnecessary procedures. In just about any other context, Harry would be complaining about the "pay for service" model of American health care. Yet another figment of your imagination. Why would I object to fee for service? The PPO I use is based upon that model, and I pay for those services via my health insurance premiums and a reasonable co-pay. It is a little humorous that virtually every time you claim you know what I am thinking, you are wrong. It isn't my fault that you posted a personal experience of yours in which the original care and recommendations weren't what you needed. Perhaps you should spend more time picking the right physicians. A couple of years ago, I went to see my doc because I felt awful, with a fever and a cough and as soon as I got into the exam room and she came in, she said, "you're going down to the ER right now for immediate tests because I think you have pneumonia and the hospital will give me test results in less than an hour, and our lab here in the office takes at least a half a day." Well, she was right...pneumonia...so I was given the right meds and put on an IV. It's your responsibility to pick the right doctors and other medical providers. Obviously, you didn't. Harry, you really should pick some other subject to argue over. this one isn't working well for you. |
Early bedtime?
On 3/24/2017 10:15 AM, Keyser Soze wrote:
On 3/24/17 10:03 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote: On 3/24/2017 9:44 AM, Keyser Soze wrote: On 3/24/17 7:51 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote: On 3/23/2017 2:23 PM, wrote: On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 10:42:59 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 11:39 AMKeyser Soze - show quoted text - I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. .... Can't be much worse than the people who get payed well to perform unnecessary procedures. In just about any other context, Harry would be complaining about the "pay for service" model of American health care. It is amazing how he can work both sides of the table so well but I guess it is natural for a person who pimps government unions. A few months ago (at the recommendation of a couple of veteran friends) I applied for health care services through the VA. I haven't had a primary care physician for a while (he unfortunately died at a young age of leukemia) so I was basically starting from scratch. Turns out *all* vets are eligible for health care through the VA as long as they served at least 24 months and have an honorable discharge. There is a means test of sorts but some forms of income are not considered, nor are your bank accounts and your income only contributes to the determination of what priority classification you are eligible for. There are 8 classifications, 1 being the highest, 8 the lowest. You could be a multi billionaire but if you are an honorably discharged vet, you will still qualify, although probably in the lowest (8) priority classification. So, the VA sent me a letter welcoming me and sent a booklet that is personalized for what types of services, hospitalization, checkups, tests, etc. that I am eligible for. In total, I have better coverage by far than I had under the Blue Cross policy that we used to pay $1,400 a month for. I even have coverage for nursing home expenses and/or full time home nursing services if the day ever comes that I need them. The VA assigned a primary care physician in a VA clinic that is about 5 miles from my house. I've had three appointments so far, including full blood work, colon-rectal cancer tests and other tests to establish a baseline. The doc spent over an hour with me at the first appointment getting background data, etc. BTW ... related to a recent thread here ... one of the questions was if I had guns in the house and, if so, are they secure. Anyway, the only thing wrong with me is slightly elevated blood pressure. Doc said it's not "horrible" but prescribed some meds to get it a bit lower. I don't like taking meds and I know that once I get more physically active once the cold and snow stops my BP will drop but in the meantime I'll take the meds. My only out of pocket cost is an $8 co-payment for a 90 day supply of the pills. If I need to be hospitalized for some reason there is a $97 per day co-payment for the first 21 days. After that, there is no payments by me. No co-payments for doc visits, checkups, tests, etc. The VA is totally independent from Medicare and the VA does not charge Medicare for services. I am seriously thinking about dropping Part B and it's cost and dropping the gap insurance policy I have for Part B through Tufts. I don't need them if I use the VA for health care which will save me about $350 a month. Bottom line is: The VA isn't a health insurance program. It's a health care program. The Boston area VA (which governs the facilities I use) is the highest rated VA health car are in the nation. So far, I have been very impressed. So, shifting the burden is ok for a Republican, even a wealthy one. Figures. Using benefits that the government says I earned is "shifting the burden" in your eyes? I figured this would **** you off. No, it just illustrates something else that is wrong with our health care system. If you suffered a serious battle injury or debilitating injury while in the service, I see nothing wrong with providing you with good healthcare at no cost for the recovery, even a lifelong recovery, for that problem or problems. Why should the VA pay for treatment of your HBP, especially since any sort of means test would indicate you can afford to buy private health insurance or pay for a private doctor without any difficulty. Truthfully, I always thought you had to have a major service related disability or be a retired "lifer" in order to qualify for VA health care. Apparently for many years that was true. However the policy changed when the VA/TriCare system was reorganized many years ago. The VA now encourages vets to apply. There *is* a means test however I still qualify for certain health care services, more so than I expected. I had a minor, service related injury however I don't think it factored into what category I was placed because it is not a disability in any way. I had two reasons to post about this. One was to let other vets know who may not realize that they are eligible. The second reason was because I knew it would **** you off. |
Early bedtime?
|
Early bedtime?
On 3/24/17 10:35 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 3/24/2017 10:15 AM, Keyser Soze wrote: On 3/24/17 10:03 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote: On 3/24/2017 9:44 AM, Keyser Soze wrote: On 3/24/17 7:51 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote: On 3/23/2017 2:23 PM, wrote: On Thu, 23 Mar 2017 10:42:59 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote: 11:39 AMKeyser Soze - show quoted text - I'm sure Fretwell will be delighted to serve as your medical advisor, and at no co$t either, except perhaps your life. .... Can't be much worse than the people who get payed well to perform unnecessary procedures. In just about any other context, Harry would be complaining about the "pay for service" model of American health care. It is amazing how he can work both sides of the table so well but I guess it is natural for a person who pimps government unions. A few months ago (at the recommendation of a couple of veteran friends) I applied for health care services through the VA. I haven't had a primary care physician for a while (he unfortunately died at a young age of leukemia) so I was basically starting from scratch. Turns out *all* vets are eligible for health care through the VA as long as they served at least 24 months and have an honorable discharge. There is a means test of sorts but some forms of income are not considered, nor are your bank accounts and your income only contributes to the determination of what priority classification you are eligible for. There are 8 classifications, 1 being the highest, 8 the lowest. You could be a multi billionaire but if you are an honorably discharged vet, you will still qualify, although probably in the lowest (8) priority classification. So, the VA sent me a letter welcoming me and sent a booklet that is personalized for what types of services, hospitalization, checkups, tests, etc. that I am eligible for. In total, I have better coverage by far than I had under the Blue Cross policy that we used to pay $1,400 a month for. I even have coverage for nursing home expenses and/or full time home nursing services if the day ever comes that I need them. The VA assigned a primary care physician in a VA clinic that is about 5 miles from my house. I've had three appointments so far, including full blood work, colon-rectal cancer tests and other tests to establish a baseline. The doc spent over an hour with me at the first appointment getting background data, etc. BTW ... related to a recent thread here ... one of the questions was if I had guns in the house and, if so, are they secure. Anyway, the only thing wrong with me is slightly elevated blood pressure. Doc said it's not "horrible" but prescribed some meds to get it a bit lower. I don't like taking meds and I know that once I get more physically active once the cold and snow stops my BP will drop but in the meantime I'll take the meds. My only out of pocket cost is an $8 co-payment for a 90 day supply of the pills. If I need to be hospitalized for some reason there is a $97 per day co-payment for the first 21 days. After that, there is no payments by me. No co-payments for doc visits, checkups, tests, etc. The VA is totally independent from Medicare and the VA does not charge Medicare for services. I am seriously thinking about dropping Part B and it's cost and dropping the gap insurance policy I have for Part B through Tufts. I don't need them if I use the VA for health care which will save me about $350 a month. Bottom line is: The VA isn't a health insurance program. It's a health care program. The Boston area VA (which governs the facilities I use) is the highest rated VA health car are in the nation. So far, I have been very impressed. So, shifting the burden is ok for a Republican, even a wealthy one. Figures. Using benefits that the government says I earned is "shifting the burden" in your eyes? I figured this would **** you off. No, it just illustrates something else that is wrong with our health care system. If you suffered a serious battle injury or debilitating injury while in the service, I see nothing wrong with providing you with good healthcare at no cost for the recovery, even a lifelong recovery, for that problem or problems. Why should the VA pay for treatment of your HBP, especially since any sort of means test would indicate you can afford to buy private health insurance or pay for a private doctor without any difficulty. Truthfully, I always thought you had to have a major service related disability or be a retired "lifer" in order to qualify for VA health care. Apparently for many years that was true. However the policy changed when the VA/TriCare system was reorganized many years ago. The VA now encourages vets to apply. There *is* a means test however I still qualify for certain health care services, more so than I expected. I had a minor, service related injury however I don't think it factored into what category I was placed because it is not a disability in any way. I had two reasons to post about this. One was to let other vets know who may not realize that they are eligible. The second reason was because I knew it would **** you off. It doesn't "**** me off." It just points out yet another inequity in our health care system. |
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