Just finished seeing Michael Moore's SiCKO

by Jourles 82 Replies latest social entertainment

• 

  Jourles

  jourles, how did you score a private viewing?

  I bought a ticket in advance. The only thing is, it cost me $40 and the proceeds went to the Antrim County Democrats. But I think it was worth it anyways.

  I just read this on the Christian Science Monitor:

  If a Republican president is elected in 2008, reform will be "relatively timorous," says Aaron, possibly involving deductions for health insurance premiums on income and payroll taxes. Changes will probably most benefit the well-to-do, he says, and not much will be done to cover the 47 million Americans without health insurance.

  If a Democrat is elected president, reform could be more ambitious. The "implicit taboo" on a large-scale health plan that followed Hillary Clinton's failed effort in 1993 is gone, says Aaron. But no Democratic candidate is advocating a national health insurance plan, a move that would substantially redistribute national income and impact strong health-industry interest groups.

  ...

  So far, such Democratic presidential candidates as John Edwards and Barack Obama are advocating plans that keep the private health insurance industry intact.

  So who is sponsoring a national health care plan?? Anyone? Bueller?
• 

  Merry Magdalene

  Not sure...something like this?

  Kucinich Leads Presidential Hopefuls on Health Care for All

  Only Kucinich and former US Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) have offered comprehensive plans, whereas Clinton and Obama haven’t offered more than vague ideas so far, Atlanta Progressive News has learned. APN focuses on Clinton, Edwards, Kucinich, and Obama in this article.

  Edwards offers a complete, but complex universal health care proposal, which advocates say doesn’t do enough to cut insurance industry profits out of the equation.

  In the 2004 race, by contrast, there were three candidates–Kucinich, Carol Moseley Braun, and Al Sharpton–endorsing single payer plans.

  KUCINICH: SINGLE-PAYER UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE PLAN

  "When people tell me that national health insurance is the right answer but is not politically feasible, I tell them that the opposite is true," Kucinich wrote in a statement on healthcare-now.org. "Passage is inevitable - it is only a matter of time."

  Kucinich is also for the second year now a co-sponsor of HR 676 in Congress, a bill sponsored by US Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), to enact single-payer universal health care nationwide. The bill number is the same in the 110th Session as it was in the 109th.

  The bill had 79 total cosponsors but failed to get out of Committee in the 109th Session, with new cosponsors joining on each month. Georgia’s US Reps. Sanford Bishop (D-GA) [a centrist], John Lewis (D-GA), and Cynthia McKinney (D-GA) were all co-sponsors.

  Here’s how HR 676 works: The bill would expand the existing Medicare program so that every person living in the United States and U.S. territories could receive publicly financed, privately delivered health care. Each person would receive a United States National Health Insurance Card with ID number.

  Services include inpatient and outpatient care, emergency care, prescription drugs, durable medical equipment, long-term care, mental health services, dentistry, eye care, chiropractic, and substance abuse treatment.

  Under this act, there will be no co-pays or deductibles. Everyone has their choice of physicians, providers, hospitals, clinics, and practices.

  To fund the system, the act would repeal the Bush tax cuts for the highest income earners and establish a 5 percent health tax on the top 5 percent of income earners, a 10 percent tax on the top 1 percent of income earners, and a one-third of 1 percent transaction tax.

  There would also be an employer and employee payroll tax of 4.75. Federal and state funding rates for existing health programs would remain unchanged.

  http://www.atlantaprogressivenews.com/news/0134.html
• 

  Jourles

  So has anyone else seen the film yet? What did you think of it?
• 

  Elsewhere

  So has anyone else seen the film yet? What did you think of it?

  As history has shown, MM has a history and terrible habit of twisting the truth. For this reason I will not provide any monetary support to him by way of buying, renting or watching his movies at the theater. If someone shows me a way to watch the movie without having a single penny go to MM, I'll watch it. Regarding accuracy of "Sicko", so far all of the reviews I have read online and seen on television are saying that, once again, MM has twisted the truth, and in some places, out-right lied. As far as I'm concerned, MM is doing a great disservice to any subject he addresses by providing his minions with faulty information which is easily discredited and proven false in open debate.
• 

  Purza

  I just saw the movie tonight with my teenage daughter. Parts of it made me cry. I enjoy MM films and I realize they don't give you the whole picture. I would have liked to have learned more about what other countries (i.e. Canada, UK, France) pay in taxes to cover the cost of the universal healthcare. Or what the Americans that lived in France -- what their income is. I would have also like to see more statistics about poverty and homeless individuals in those countries -- just to put it into perspective for me.

  There were people outside the theater asking individuals to sign a petition for universal healthcare in California. And even though I would welcome it here in California, I never sign any political petitions until I do my research.

  Purza
• 

  Tatiana

  purza said.....

  I would have liked to have learned more about what other countries (i.e. Canada, UK, France) pay in taxes to cover the cost of the universal healthcare.

  How can it possibly be more than what we pay in premiums in the US? Anyone here living in Canada that can tell us how much you are taxed? This is big...no not big...HUGE business here. And when you are paying through the nose for your insurance and then your doctor tells you your HMO says he can't even touch your damned foot..and even he is pissed...well..that is bullshit.

  http://www.nchc.org/facts/cost.shtml

  Facts on the Cost of Health Care in the US

  Introduction

  By several measures, health care spending continues to rise at the fastest rate in our history.

  In 2005 (the latest year data are available), total national health expenditures rose 6.9 percent -- two times the rate of inflation (1). Total spending was $2 TRILLION in 2005, or $6,700 per person (1). Total health care spending represented 16 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).

  U.S. health care spending is expected to increase at similar levels for the next decade reaching $4 TRILLION in 2015, or 20 percent of GDP (2).

  In 2006, employer health insurance premiums increased by 7.7 percent – two times the rate of inflation. The annual premium for an employer health plan covering a family of four averaged nearly $11,500. The annual premium for single coverage averaged over $4,200 (3).

  Experts agree that our health care system is riddled with inefficiencies, excessive administrative expenses, inflated prices, poor management, and inappropriate care, waste and fraud. These problems significantly increase the cost of medical care and health insurance for employers and workers and affect the security of families.

  National Health Care Spending

  • In 2005, health care spending in the United States reached $2 trillion, and was projected to reach $2.9 trillion in 2009 (2). Health care spending is projected to reach $4 trillion by 2015 (2).
  • Health care spending is 4.3 times the amount spent on national defense (4).
  • In 2005, the United States spent 16 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on health care. It is projected that the percentage will reach 20 percent in the next decade (2).
  • Although nearly 47 million Americans are uninsured, the United States spends more on health care than other industrialized nations, and those countries provide health insurance to all their citizens (4).
  • Health care spending accounted for 10.9 percent of the GDP in Switzerland, 10.7 percent in Germany, 9.7 percent in Canada and 9.5 percent in France, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (5).

  Employer and Employee Health Insurance Costs

  • Premiums for employer-based health insurance rose by 7.7 percent in 2006. Small employers saw their premiums, on average, increase 8.8 percent. Firms with less than 24 workers, experienced an increase of 10.5 percent (3)
  • The annual premium that a health insurer charges an employer for a health plan covering a family of four averaged $11,500 in 2006. Workers contributed nearly $3,000, or 10 percent more than they did in 2005 (3).The annual premiums for family coverage significantly eclipsed the gross earnings for a full-time, minimum-wage worker ($10,712).
  • Workers are now paying $1,094 more in premiums annually for family coverage than they did in 2000 (3).
  • Since 2000, employment-based health insurance premiums have increased 87 percent, compared to cumulative inflation of 18 percent and cumulative wage growth of 20 percent during the same period (3).
  • Health insurance expenses are the fastest growing cost component for employers. Unless something changes dramatically, health insurance costs will overtake profits by 2008 (6).
  • According to the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust, premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance in the United States have been rising four times faster on average than workers' earnings since 2000 (3).
  • The average employee contribution to company-provided health insurance has increased more than 143 percent since 2000. Average out-of-pocket costs for deductibles, co-payments for medications, and co-insurance for physician and hospital visits rose 115 percent during the same period(7).
  • The percentage of Americans under age 65 whose family-level, out-of-pocket spending for health care, including health insurance, that exceeds $2,000 a year, rose from 37.3 percent in 1996 to 43.1 percent in 2003 – a 16 percent increase (8).

  The Impact of Rising Health Care Costs

  • National surveys show that the primary reason people are uninsured is the high cost of health insurance coverage (9).
  • Economists have found that rising health care costs correlate to drops in health insurance coverage (10).
  • Nearly one-quarter (23 percent) of the uninsured reported changing their way of life significantly in order to pay medical bills (10).
  • Almost 50 percent of the American public say they are very worried about having to pay more for their health care or health insurance, while 42 percent report they are very worried about not being able to afford health care services (11).
  • In a poll conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, 43 percent of respondents named high costs as one of the two most important health care issues for government to address (12).
  • In a USA Today/ABC News survey, 80 percent of Americans said that they were dissatisfied (60 percent were very dissatisfied) with high national health care spending (13).
  • One in four Americans say their family has had a problem paying for medical care during the past year, up 7 percentage points over the past nine years. Nearly 30 percent say someone in their family has delayed medical care in the past year, a new high based on recent polling. Most say the medical condition was at least somewhat serious (13).
  • A recent study by Harvard University researchers found that the average out-of-pocket medical debt for those who filed for bankruptcy was $12,000. The study noted that 68 percent of those who filed for bankruptcy had health insurance. In addition, the study found that 50 percent of all bankruptcy filings were partly the result of medical expenses (14). Every 30 seconds in the United States someone files for bankruptcy in the aftermath of a serious health problem.
  • One half of workers in the lowest-compensation jobs and one-half of workers in mid-range-compensation jobs either had problems with medical bills in a 12-month period or were paying off accrued debt. One-quarter of workers in higher-compensated positions also reported problems with medical bills or were paying off accrued debt (15).
  • If one member of a family is uninsured and has an accident, a hospital stay, or a costly medical treatment, the resulting medical bills can affect the economic stability of the whole family (16).
  • A new survey shows that more than 25 percent said that housing problems resulted from medical debt, including the inability to make rent or mortgage payments and the development of bad credit ratings (17).
  • A survey of Iowa consumers found that in order to cope with rising health insurance costs, 86 percent said they had cut back on how much they could save, and 44 percent said that they have cut back on food and heating expenses (18).
  • Retiring elderly couples will need $200,000 in savings just to pay for the most basic medical coverage (19). Many experts believe that this figure is conservative and that $300,000 may be a more realistic number.
• 

  MegaDude

  If someone shows me a way to watch the movie without having a single penny go to MM, I'll watch it.

  I'm sure it's available as a download somewhere on the Net. Or wait for it to come out on DVD and check it out from your local library.
• 

  GetBusyLiving

  If someone shows me a way to watch the movie without having a single penny go to MM, I'll watch it.

  www.thepiratebay.org

  GBL
• 

  Mary

  I would have liked to have learned more about what other countries (i.e. Canada, UK, France) pay in taxes to cover the cost of the universal healthcare.

  We are very highly taxed in Canada. Our income tax is higher than the States and we pay 15% tax (PST + GST) on virtually everything from a package of gum to funeral expenses. I saw an interview that Michael Moore did regarding the health care system in Canada. And no, it certainly did not give the real picture. He said that the longest it appeared you had to wait in an Emergency Room is 45 minutes. This just isn't so. Depending on where you live, the waiting time can be anywhere from 2 - 9 hours. Unless you're having a stroke, heart attack or a baby. Then they look after you right away. Our health care system isn't perfect and the main problem is: It's grossly underfunded. For all the frigging taxes we pay, it should cover A LOT more. Plus, there's still a shortage of doctors. That's in large part, due to some moron in the government who, several years ago, decided to let only 10% of those that applied to Medical School, actually get in. For some bizarre reason, they thought that we'd need fewer doctors not more. That, combined with the problem about 10 years ago of alot of our doctors heading to the USA, really put a strain on our health care system and it's just starting to get better now. Plus, our system doesn't cover everything: It no longer covers chiropractor treatment, or physiotherapy (unless performed in a hospital), nor does it cover any dental, which sucks.

  With that said, I still prefer our health care system to the States'. I don't know of anyone who's gone bankrupt or lost their home because of medical bills up here. Having gone through a life-threatening illness myself, I can't imagine the added stress of thinking 'how am I going to pay for this?' while at the same time wondering if you're going to die. One really good thing about our system, is that once you turn 65, your meds are all paid for, after you've paid the $100/yr deductable.
• 

  sammielee24

  Can you say CONSIPIRACY???? I checked online to see where the movie was playing on Friday when it opened and found only one theatre that was almost 2 hours away. I made arrangements to go and see it, got to the theatre on time but when I walked up to buy my ticket, I saw that it wasn't on the board. When I asked the ticket person if it was showing and then gave her the print out with times on it etc, she handed it back and told me it was a typo. Well, that was disappointing so once I got back home, I checked all the theatres again online....found another one for this past Tuesday - again - almost 2 hours away. Well, you got it! After doing some chores and stuff, I thought I should call ahead just to make sure that the show really was going to play - and was told that although they had been told they would have it to show - it had been cancelled just that morning. Might be another week or so.

  I laugh at the figures that the media keep saying - how it had a modest showing. Had all the theatres been able to play the film, it would have topped the charts as it was doing Friday when it opened.

  I am a Canadian and have used both systems. The Canadian system is far more equitable and far less frustrating as well as less stressful. I hear the Norweigan system is amazing! The problem with the USA is that they fuel a raging fear in their citizens with words like communism and socialism. They tell the citizens that NO other country has socialized health care that works so we MUST remain a capitalist health care society. I'm not sure why it's 'the greatest nation on god's green earth' when a woman can lie dying on a hospital floor (where no rich, insured person would go) while a janitor mops up the mess around her.

  Just this week, I believe it is Blue Cross, that is now charging it's patients a $2.00 fee for sending them their bills. That should reap a few million more for the CEO's.....sammieswife.