Sicko by Michael Moore

[davemo]

Well, part of the problem goes back to FDR. Because of the communist salary cap that was passed under him, companies started offering "incentives", like health care, to attract employees because they weren't allowed to pay more (I think the cap was something like $20,000 at the time). The problem with the current system is no one really seems to know what anything costs. Ask your doctor exactly what a procedure they recommend will cost and I'd bet dollars to donuts they don't have a very good idea. Can you say the same about car insurance? You wreck your car and you can get an estimate on costs because they know exactly what the parts and time will cost them. Also, as others mentioned, many people who have coverage go in for care when they don't really need it. I had a really bad poison ivy rash (covered from the waist up), on top of a really bad sunburn, when I was 13. I went to my general practitioner and got a steroid shot that cleared things up pretty quickly; it was no emergency room visit. We also have a cap imposed on the number of doctors available in the U.S., artificially limiting the number available. These are only some of the problems that could be solved with out socialized medicine.

The government got involved in the first place, screwing things up, and now we're being told that the only solution is more government involvement. I don't buy it.

Anyhow, for some good info. regarding health care, from the other side of the fence, check out:

Texas Public Policy Foundation Health Care Info.

and

The Heritage Foundation Health Care Info.

Numerous publications on private health insurance vs. government coverage, etc. Lots of great information. I've had the opportunity to listen to speakers from both the Texas Public Policy Foundation and The Heritage Foundation talk about health care, and they were fantastic. Managed to make a rather dry subject interesting. Plus you won't find all the and theatrics you get with a Michael Moore production.

[Isombitch]

I agree that more government involvement is just more band-aids and avoids working on the tough problems. It seems like the humane thing but, in the long run, is actually more hurtful.

This is why I, and many more people every day, are jumping on the Ron Paul band wagon. Ultimately, he wants to cut government all the way back to the Constitution and eliminate Corporate collusion, the Fed, wars of aggression, and ALL welfare, corporate and private AND national, so prices and wages and jobs all come in line eliminating income taxes and the need for the welfare state. I have come to believe there is a Communist plot and it is pervasive in our government and culture. Almost all of our politicians for the past 100 years have been subservient to it, sometimes without their knowledge!

[Corona Gigante]

Originally Posted by davemo

The problem with the current system is no one really seems to know what anything costs.

I guess it depends on what you mean by "really costs." If your doctor sends you to a for profit hospital and your visit is paid for (you hope) by a for profit insurance company, there is a lot of mark-up involved.

I'm going to see the movie tomorrow night. I'm looking forward to it.

Has anyone else actually watched the movie, I wonder?

[Corona Gigante]

I saw the movie yesterday and I guess it was pretty much what you might expect. I think you would have to have a heart of stone not to be moved by the stories of people who lost loved ones because of the iniquities of the private insurance companies and I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house during the ceremony in the Havana fire station as the Cuban firemen saluted the 9/11 first responders. These scenes were only a dozen or so anecdotes selected from the 25,000 emails MM received in the first week he began researching the story.

The film is pretty light on hard data although some factoids tend to stick in the mind, such as the fact that a child born in El Salvador has a better chance of survival than one born in Detroit. It’s a little difficult for me to blow that one off although I’ve seen people try. The film features a very short interview with / lecture from Dr Aleida Guevara, Che’s daughter, who asks, quite simply, if Cuba, a small Caribbean nation, can afford to provide healthcare for all its citizens, how is it that the biggest economy in the world can not?

Also pretty light on the ground are serious policy proposals to provide a solution to the current mess. Moore points out that the last person to seriously try to overhaul the health care system in this country, Hilary Clinton, is now the second biggest recipient in the senate of funds from the industry (first was the former Senator from Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum). To what extent these political contributions will influence Clinton's policy initiatives remains to be seen, but I guess the implication is that one can not expect a top down solution from Washington. It’s a shame that Moore’s movie came out too late to examine some of the bottom up initiatives taking shape in the city of San Francisco and the state of Massachusetts.

This movie is unlikely to change anyone’s mind, largely because of the polarizing a figure that Michael Moore has become. Moore’s role as agent provocateur has almost transcended his role as film maker and people will make up their minds whether or not to see the movie based on their opinion of him rather than on interest in the subject matter. Perhaps not as film-goers but as citizens I think we should be grateful to him for once again stirring up an important debate that has until now been largely swept under the carpet.

[hyper_dermic]

Great movie.. even if your not a fan of MM highly reccomend it.
Personally i think MM is a fantastic filmmaker. The issues he raises in this film are very real and effect Americans every day. Most people wont know the problems of our healthcare system until its too late. Theres nothing quite like getting your life/health written off by some beancounter.

-hyp

[clampdown]

Originally Posted by Schecter30

Michael Moore can choke on a hot dog and die for all I care. **** his movies.

I wonder if choking on a hot dog is covered by his insurance?

[Txdawg]

I think that what is most sad is that a topic as important and controversial is HMOs and Health Care was brought to our attention by someone like Moore. Because he is who he is, you can't take it too seriously or at least with a grain of salt because of the one-sidedness of the movie.

On the other hand, it is a growing problem that will only become bigger as more and more baby boomers hit there 60s.

[KASR]

Just watched this while Jamie was taking a nap.
Having 4 kids and dealt without PPO's, HMO's, and Soonercare on numerous occassions this movie reminded me why our health care system sucks.
Ok, so it may be skewed, so it may be biased, so it may be slanted - but are those reasons to ignore the very valid points made in an industry that is purely driven by profits and not actual "healthcare"? Bleh.

[boonedoggle]

Finally got around to watching it. It seems that the Medical Insurance industry is very lucrative in the U.S. and making some people very rich. It does not surprise me, given the author of the movie and facts most probably being biased, that independent company's, no matter what the industry, are driven by greed and profit.

[cquon]

He's an asshat, and I wouldn't watch it if you held a gun to my head!

[houdini]

Originally Posted by tnip23

This review stops a little short of the truth. m. moore is not a documentary film maker, he is a propaganda film maker,in the mold of Leni Riefenstahl,(hitler's gal director). He mixes fact with innuendo, opinion, convenient omission, and sometimes outright lies in order to espouse his views. When it comes to healthcare he believes in a socialist solution. IMO, the reason healthcare is so screwed up is the govt. got involved in the first place. When medicare/medicaid started, the health industry saw they could get away with charging higher prices outside the free market and it snowballed from there. Once it got to the point where the average joe couldn't pay for his doctor visits out of pocket (and it wasn't all that long ago) insurance companies got involved, then HMO's etc. If the market would dictate these costs, they would be much lower. Moore believes the exact opposite, that all people are "entitled" to gov't paid for health care, as well as education, job security, etc. and that market forces should not be involved in areas such as these. That is socialism, not what our founding fathers espoused when this country was formed. It's alright to have these opinions, just don't pretend they are anything but socialist in nature.

[boonedoggle]

If someone is sick, or injured he or she should be able to get care without fear of going into debt because of it. Regardless of what the motives are behind the documentary, care for our fellow man should be first and foremost.

[IHT]

Originally Posted by cquon

He's an asshat, and I wouldn't watch it if you held a gun to my head!

really? what about a nerf football with dog slobber?

[cquon]

Originally Posted by IHT

really? what about a nerf football with dog slobber?

That's a horse of a different color, entirely. Don't like dog slobber, no sir-ree!