Comments on: Guest Editorial: Leading factors contributing to the increased cost of health care

By: Remembering Dr. Gary Helmbrecht : The Schilling Show Blog

Remembering Dr. Gary Helmbrecht : The Schilling Show Blog — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 11:04:40 +0000

[...] approximately 19 times beginning in 2009, sharing his passion for constitutional government and his concern for the future of his profession. On December 22, 2010 Gary made his final visit to The Schilling Show, this time representing [...]

By: Guest Editorial: Leading factors contributing to the increased cost of health care | Virginia 912 Project

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 13:48:20 +0000

[...] Guest Editorial: Leading factors contributing to the increased cost of health care [...]

By: Mama_Fluco

Mama_Fluco — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:08:23 +0000

Excellent, well done. I have printed this out and it will surely make it’s way to a lunch room within the UVa medical center. I encourage others who have similar inroads to health care facilities to do the same.

As a Breast Cancer survivor (almost 2 years), I beleive Health CARE is not broken. I know I received the best CARE in the world. I do however have a 2 inch thick file of papers that say “THIS IS NOT A BILL”. I was supposed to review these for accuracy and report if the information was incorrect. OK, like I know what “MAG RESONANCE IMA” is and if it makes sense that it costs $2,344.00. Or should I know why “RADIATION ONCOLOG” is billed three times on the same day at $500.00, $919.00 and $256.00. It’s an administrative nightmare.

By: skipd

skipd — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 15:22:56 +0000

Picture Senator Christopher Dodd not being able to schedule a doctor, or even find that he has prostate cancer, yet alone schedule a surgical procedure within a week of the diagnosis, something that just may not be possible with a reformed health care system……………..

I would like Sen. Dodd to tell me what is “broken” with our heath care system that allowed him to get the IMMEDIATE CARE that he so urgently needs.

Beyond the billing methodology, numbers of admin people and the outlandish executive “salaries” involved in the system, perhaps his survival can be attributed to a pretty damn good health care “system”.

Perhaps the same question has to asked of Senator Kennedy- as I recall, he was in surgery at Duke University Hospital within days of a tumor diagnosis .

By: Chiefcookandbottlewasher

Chiefcookandbottlewasher — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:11:13 +0000

NOT happy to see that my insurance company which charges me (as an individual doing the responsible thing) a pretty penny for basic coverage has the BY FAR highest paid CEO of any of the insurance companies (and pays quite a bit for executive salaries in general). That company is AETNA. Come on…… While I don’t wish to play the “villain” card about insurance companies it does sound like they might have some “‘splaining” to do!

By: terbltim

terbltim — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 13:33:07 +0000

Kudos to Dr.Helmbrecht!
This is, perhaps, the best summary of the high cost of health-care in this country
that I have seen to date.
As I see the situation, the following line (copied from the text) specifies both the primary cause AND the best solution to the whole mess.
‘Without effective tort reform, the only option available for limiting spending on technology is to ration its use.’
There is lots of kind restraint demonstrated in that line.
Tort reform would make a huge positive impact on the whole issue.
It is too bad the AMA won’t go to the trouble to buy some TV air-time and educate the public so they’ll know how to vote on the next “go-round”. You would think they’d be able to see the benefit [to the medical profession] of a better educated voting public.
I remember when candidate for Governor of Va, Mr. Deeds, was on The Schilling Show and a caller asked what could be done about educating voters better he [Mr. Deeds] answered with something on the order of ‘politicians only want voters educated enough to get them or keep them [the politicians ] in office.’ A stunningly honest and graphic answer which should raise the hair on the back of anyone’s neck.
It seems that the current situation in our country, (pick a topic,) was made the way it is and is being kept that way by a voting public that has no idea what they are voting for. The public doesn’t seem to know that they vote FOR wasting money in each election by re-electing the very guys that made it this way and are working hard to see that it continues unchanged, all while proclaiming “we need tort reform!”
The additional sad truth is that the bulk of the public would be lost when they tried to read [never mind understand] this great editorial. Even many teachers would not be able to grasp all the information at once. They [teachers] think they aren’t part of the problem as they continue to graduate kids that cannot explain a story on the front page of a newspaper.
Well folks, get ready for health-care rationing because…’Without effective tort reform, the only option available for limiting spending on technology is to ration its use.’…and you can bet the farm that the voting public will vote to keep things the way they are, (or make it worse,) while thinking they’re voting for “change”.
There is the crux of the matter.
Remember, Mr. Deeds, ( and all the other socialists,) is counting on an ignorant voting public to put him into the Governor’s office and is working to keep it that way.