Monday May 5, 2008, 5:22 pm
IF THIS THE CASE I HAVEN'T A WING OR PRAYER

Monday May 5, 2008, 5:27 pm
THIS CASE SHOULD BE ALL OVER THECAMPAIGN AND MEDIA IT IS AN OBSCENITY PUT IT ON LOU DOBBS

Monday May 5, 2008, 5:38 pm
Just give me some good drugs and let me move on. I'll be darned if I'm going to take everything my family has, and then they probably can't save you:( It's too important to me that my family isn't burdened financially, they'd have enough to deal with. It's all about greed.

Monday May 5, 2008, 5:55 pm
Welcome to the real world people for if you think when you retire or you get hurt and Medicare is going to help you, Suprise!! they are not I have been on Disabilty for 8 years my husband for 3 as soon as I applied for Medicare I got pentelised 6 months because I didn't sign up on time then I have to pay 10% of my check for the rest of my life to them this is another penatly, not enough, last December I got a letter from Humana my insurance through Medicare that I would have to pay 1.07 a month another one ha!! not done yet, We do not get no help from them at all for we are pentalised for being married yeap thats right, your only allow $2,500.00 a year for precrictions I'm half way through so now I'm already getting help through a ppo so I can afford the rest of them for they are gernic. If you are rick you will be ok. and if your already poor or never worked you too will be ok for you have a medical card already. But me and my husband busted our butt all our lives for what? this?!!!!. Yeap we are called middle class the ones who are caught in spider wed. Thanks Gregory noted

Monday May 5, 2008, 5:56 pm
They also voted to have these benefits for a life time. Also covered are their spouses and children AND EX SPOUSES. This is why the rich are rich.

http://www.rense.com/general80/lifess.htm

Politicians have the best of medical coverage ( we pay 72% of costs - free prescriptions ) the best of pension plans, yearly cost of living raises, gas reimbursements, travel expenses, and exotic vacations (called fact finding missions). None of those involved in the election buffoonery taking place can relate to the common man in crisis. They voted for these trade agreements (shipping jobs overseas), they voted for the bankruptcy law ( screwing those in financial crisis), they voted for the prescription bill ( check who their major contributors are)

Monday May 5, 2008, 6:00 pm
I agree with Sophia. Greg put this on Lou Dobbs..get this out so every person sees this travesty in our country. The leaders should be ashamed. We spend billion and trillions to murder but not to save lives. Shame ..Noted

Monday May 5, 2008, 6:19 pm
It is true that the Health Care System in America is in a sorry state of affairs. It is in a sorry state fueled by greedy corporate HMO's and insurance companies.

TY, Gregory.

Monday May 5, 2008, 6:26 pm
Great notes all!! TY You cannot currently send a star to Gregory because you have done so within the last week.

Monday May 5, 2008, 6:59 pm
This is a disgusting example of the kind of behavior from insurance companies and legislators that we should be fed up with.

We should demand a complete 180 turnaround from our elected officials. Or we'll elect someone else.

We need to be picketing every single insurance company's offices until they change their act.

Monday May 5, 2008, 8:35 pm
The Green Party and socialist parties have policies that will give free quality health care to all people - another reason to support and join the Green Party and socialit parties. ; )

Monday May 5, 2008, 9:31 pm

We have semi decent health insurance now, but we've already gone through a bankruptcy (20 years ago) due to a major illness in one of our daughters. I am with Kathy on this, I'll never have my family in that kind of a situation again if the health problem is mine.

Thanks Gregory, I've spent years writing and calling for change and for all the talk, nothing ever happens.

Monday May 5, 2008, 10:00 pm
no wonder many Americans come to Canada to see a doctor.

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 2:14 am
We have national insurance which means everyone gets treated BUT the treatments on offer are all allopathic drugs based. If you want other forms of treatment you have to go private and pay. Still not perfect but HELL better than the American system!!

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 5:06 am
Well, the same is here in Bosnia, people make donation actions to help each others! If are lucky and have access to media! And almost all medicaments to be paid! health insurance cover just an ordinary exam.We must make our own policy and pay. What protection we can get depend on money we have!
And yes, Simon, in previous system (former Yugoslavia), whatever some name it now bad, everybody had equal health protection-for free!! And free education too!

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 6:15 am
Health care in America is HORRIBLE!!!! I am going to MEXICO for my meds,and health....NOTED,and thank you

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 6:20 am
Ty Glezela 4 the forward.

I will have to agree with the Free Medical for everyone deal, besides Free Education, everyone has the right to learn on Earth and the right to be healthy!
How can someone be denied because of their coverage? Because that's the way the US has it. What a shame, that someone can actually die because they don't have "the right coverage".
This is an issue that I have been writing to our Senators, Reps, and Congresspeople on. It pisses me off to no end that other countries have the opportunity & the dignity to give free medical to all people. That is the way it should be. TY Simon, & Cebelica my two good friends, your both highly intelligent enough to know that!

I would like to thank my friend Gregory for an excellent article, duly noted.
We need some changes here people, let's come together as a nation and do something. I will sign any petition there is out there, or write anyone I can, or do anything I can to help change our current situation with the health crisis.
Blessings to us all in the Universe...
FreeSpirit...

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 6:23 am
I also wanted to acknowledge & agree with what my friend Sophia has to say, smart lady, thanks sweetie!
FreeSpirit...

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 6:41 am
Noted, thanks. I've not ever heard of this before now. Hospitals are supposed to treat people no matter if they have medical insurance or not. This should be a violation of state and federal law. Maybe she should have used the ER like the illigal immigrants do and she may have been helped?

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 7:39 am
Sadly noted. This is typically our healthcare system. Even at the reception to the ER of a private hospital, one needs to spend 20-30 min to provide proof of adequate insurance coverage before admitting to the triage.

Thanks Greg for the posting!

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 7:47 am
My dear friends in USA, you still have ways to make changes, to demend reforms in health care system. And to get it. Here it is not so possible, for democracy exist on papers only.I have some close friends in USA, who told me that being working brings more obligations than benefits. It includes also health care. My friend Tom is thanking God for being in good health.

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 10:35 am
'Universal health care' will not necessarily cure this problem.

Universal health care is a two-edged sword. Once you are in they have taken total control over your life.

Just like micro chipping the population, Universal Health Care would dictate your daily behaviors.

How did the AMA get such power and wealth? It started with advertisers in their medical journal from Big Pharma (tobacco companies being big contributers). Oh, and let us not forget the contributions from the Rockefeller clan.

Locked into the struggle to be Top Dog, the AMA called all other forms of health care (Chiropractic, Osteopathic, Naturalpathy , Acupuncture, Massage therapy, Natural herb supplements, etc.) quackery.

Who better to report your behavior back to Homeland Security because you refuse their immunization shot, than your Doctor.

Ever wondered why most Americans are given only a 30 day supply of medication.

Look on the brighter side of things by developing and nurturing a circle of like-minded friends. This is probably your best protection against ABSOLUTE intrusion of government from birth to the grave.

I will e-mail this to Lou Dobbs. Perhaps he will do a story that will force some politicians to reconsider their motives and make things right.

Thanks to everyone for your comments. You are all a valuable asset to the planet.

There are a larger number of good Doctors practicing medicine in spite of the controversy. This is always a touchy subject to speak about since there are strong feelings both good and bad.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Medical_Association#History

Political Position of the AMA:

For much of the twentieth century, the AMA opposed publicly-funded health care.[citation needed]
In the 1930s, the AMA attempted to prohibit its members from working for the primitive health maintenance organizations that sprung up during the Great Depression. The AMA's subsequent conviction for violating the Sherman Antitrust Act was affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court. American Medical Ass'n. v. United States, 317 U.S. 519 (1943).
The AMA's vehement campaign against Medicare in the 1950s and 1960s included the Operation Coffee Cup supported by Ronald Reagan. Since the enactment of Medicare, the AMA stated that it "continues to oppose attempts to cut Medicare funding or shift increased costs to beneficiaries at the expense of the quality or accessibility of care" and "strongly supports subsidization of prescription drugs for Medicare patients based on means testing". The AMA also campaigns to raise Medicare payments to physicians, arguing that increases will protect seniors' access to health care. In the 1990s, it was part of the coalition that defeated the health care reform proposed by President Bill Clinton.
The AMA has given high priority to supporting changes in medical malpractice law to limit damage awards, which, it contends, makes it difficult for patients to find appropriate medical care. In many states, high risk specialists have moved to other states with such limits

Criticisms:

Milton Friedman said, "The AMA has engaged in extensive litigation charging chiropractors and osteopaths with the unlicensed practice of medicine, in an attempt to restrict them to as narrow an area as possible."[11][12]. Critics who call the AMA a guild assert that these supply limiting actions not only have inflated the cost of healthcare in the United States but also have caused a decline in the quality of healthcare.[12]

Profession and monopoly, a book published in 1975 is critical of the AMA for limiting the supply of physicians and inflating the cost of medical care in the United States.

The AMA is also criticized because it derives a significant portion of its income by selling physician prescribing data to pharmaceutical companies.[14] It continues to do this despite physician outcry, claiming approximately $33 million in revenue in 2005 from this practice. However, the AMA does allow physicians to "opt-out" of having their information shared through the Physician Data Restriction Program (PDRP).

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 10:51 am
LOU DOBBS has received the info. Let's see if he takes on the issue. Keep your fingers crossed.

RE: Lou Dobbs Tonight CNN.Prog.Replies@cnn.com

Thank you for the e-mail you sent to Lou Dobbs Tonight.


This auto reply is your notification that we have received your email. While we are unable to personally reply to every e-mail, your comments are important to us, and we do read each and every one. Comments become part of the viewer response report that is prepared and made available each day to our producers and senior management.



If you have mistakenly submitted a question or story idea through this comments section, please allow time for it to be tagged as such and routed to the appropriate persons for handling.



Again, thank you for contacting us, and please visit the attached links for more information on our anchors, programs and schedules:



Would you like additional information on our anchors?

Please visit our anchor bio section at http://www.cnn.com/CNN/anchors_reporters/



Would you like to review transcripts of CNN programming?

Please visit our transcript at http://www.cnn.com/transcripts



Do you need information on the show schedules?

Please visit us at http://www.cnn.com/programs



Thanks again for your interest and keep your browser pointed to http://www.cnn.com/.

Regards,
Viewer Communications Management



"CNN, The Most Trusted Name In News"

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 10:55 am
Thank you Gregory for this information, but before here we had system like this:
From everybody's salary was cut of some percentage for medical care services, I think it was about 3 %. it was all in one central fund, from which were covered all expenses for everybody-from exams, medicaments, treatments, surgery, etc. Even more, sometimes patients needed to ask for a help abroad, and could get it, particularly children.Well , in these cases, i must admit, sometimes "connections" were needed.

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 11:52 am
I agree with you Gregory that Universal Healthcare isn't going to be a fix all solution but it will be better than what's in place now.

Millions upon millions of americans are uninsured and cannot afford the treatment and healthcare they need. This number includes millions of children.

We need equal access to reasonable healthcare services. Anything less is unacceptable.

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 7:50 pm

This didn't start in '05 as MD Anderson claims. I was there in early 04 and had to pay up front for many test I had already done and brought with me.
I felt like it was one huge money laundering machine and the hell with health care.

The same test at another hospital cost less than 1/4 what MD Anderson Charges. After getting little info. from Dr's and more from Nurse Practitioners while there, I got fed up and went else where.
Then waited 2 and 1/2 months for the return of my unused money they DEMANDED I pay before entering their hallowed halls.

It was the most impersonal and horrible experience and hosp. I have ever been too. Only the volunteers, and Nurse Practitioners had any decency or intelligence.

Kathy C. is right about the cougars in Wash.... They get it all for free, for life, for family, and on and on. No HMO, or pre-qualifying.
And these are suppose to be the men and woman serving us.

Why would anyone spend millions running for an office that pays 175,000 a year or President paying $400,000 a year. ?

Think about it.

Then consider this; As a fact-check in The Washington Post put it: “The Clinton health care plan” — which is very similar to the Edwards and Obama plans — “has more in common with the Massachusetts plan signed into law by Gov. Mitt Romney than the British National Health system.”

Hillary spent 90 days in Germany with Bills first year in office. She took with her 60 friends and secretaries at tax payer expense, and came back with deception that would have made Met Life and Aetna a fortune for her stock holdings.

I demand what Congress has. Or better yet, what all American Families had in the 60's and early 70's when Insurance covered everything and was affordable.

Tuesday May 6, 2008, 8:00 pm
This is an email I sent a friend after being to MD Anderson,

MD Anderson is institutionalized.
I read that from 94 to 96 they contracted with 30 HMOs and this is what initiated the growth to the largeness they are today.

It is structured for mass production with protocols that are insensitive,
often unnecessary, and inefficient to the inbound individual.

There is no patient doctor relationship, or even ability to establish one.

The doctors have good intention within the structures they have to work.
No phone conversations are allowed with the doctor even if surgery presents concerns.

Prior to my arrival, previous medical records were never looked over.
My diagnosis was unknown.

Days later when I did see the doctor, my films could not be found, my appointment was uneventful.

Once my films were located a Nurse Practitioner called me to tell me I would need a mastectomy. Only at my request was I able to go back to talk with the doctor regarding the new facts that should have been presented in my initial appointment.

The doctor offered to schedule my surgery for late afternoon as this would afford me the ability to stay in the hospital overnight.

Weeks later when I received the schedule my surgery was set for early in the morning. I called MD Anderson to tell them what my doctor had planned for my schedule, and they replied, the doctor does not make her schedule. She follows an order provided by the hospital and does not have the ability to alter this schedule. (Wow?)

I expected to meet first , with my doctor. I expected diagnostic test that pertained to my individual cancer. Not a battery of protocols. I did not appreciate any discussion with a nurse practitioner. This was completely unacceptable and confusing.

I have never been an easy patient, I ask questions and expect informed answers.

I have the greatest admiration and respect for surgeons, and their skills. But not the feeling of institutionalized practice.

I wish I wasnt so skeptical. I wish I could be like so many others that accept everything given to them without question.

I have been to pain clinics, therapy, and doctors for 18 years. I understand life-long consequences of overdoing any procedure. I was a victim of Hosp recklessness once, and know how quickly and easily it is dismissed. Thus, I'm a tougher one to please.

I want to be as involved with my care as the disease is that involves my being there.
MD Anderson does not have the doctor-patient communication I need to feel comfortable or am use too. There are too many go-betweens opening too many margins for error.

I thought it was calculating, impersonal, unreachable, and disappointing.

Since Aug. 21st I have been waiting for my refund. Since Sept 22nd I have been trying to correct their error of applying someone elses EKG to my file. I did not have an EKG.

It is sad; to have the best studies, the best doctors, the best experience, and yet not be able to pull it all together.

For me it is too far from home. It is not a trial anyone should go through without a friend.

It was crazy, and 80% of their patients are Texans with family, and near their homes.

The other 20% are there for treatments not found in other cancer centers..

Friday May 9, 2008, 6:01 am
As the wife of a small town doctor I have seen some ugly practices. He has now dropped off call at 3 hospitals...why???
For 30 years he took call, in the last 5 paying patients were given to the ER doctors buddies and all the poor were given to my Husband.
He has been loyal and taken care of so many poor people in his practice and just let them in and took care of them. He can no longer afford to do so.
The Really Great Doctors are leaving Medicine due to the impersonal approach he sees and where Coporations that only care about the Bottom Line, run our Healthcare systems.
Due to lack of Nurses they are pushing the young through Nursing programs and making it less hard so they can get manpower. Then they throw em to the wolves, burn em out and they quit.
This Machine is Broken Horribly, that is why I am out of working in Hospitals as an RN.
Its Bad and going to get worse I am sorry to say.

Friday May 9, 2008, 6:28 am

Thank you Trisha S.
Very insightful comment

Wednesday May 14, 2008, 4:14 am
Noted with disgust.The corporations are running the medical profession. I wonder if those hospitals that are advertised known as Cancer Treatment Centers of America really do anything outstanding as the patients claim. I also wonder about the costs. This administration has cut medicare payments and some are having to close part of their practices.Trisha, you are right about the really great doctors leaving the medical profession. I know several doctors and nurses that are making choices that they thought they would never make. They don't seem to care how much time and money is devoted to being a doctor. It absolutely infuriates me.

Wednesday May 14, 2008, 10:05 pm
KATHY C I just now saw the link you offered.
Thanks, this is a great article.

Elle you are so right about corporations. I was reading a few months back that in the early 60's Corporation (not insurance comp's) demanded and took control of health care coverages. This was done purely for Corporate control, not well being of employee's or as they put it, "the masses".