I have heard a certain faux-statement of reality related to the bizarre resistance against eliminating co-pays for preventive medicine one time too many.
Meds without a co-payment are not “free”.
If the word “co-pay” enters a discussion...then y’all are talking about insurance coverage.
If y’all are talking about insurance coverage...then folks are paying for insurance.
If folks are paying for insurance...THEN YOU ARE PAYING FOR MEDS & SERVICES!!
All the elimination of a co-payment does is allow Americans seeking preventive services and meds to do so without paying more money on top of monthly fees.
Because prevention is a good thing, people…it actually saves all of us all money and keeps those health insurance fees down.
If it makes people feel better they can always take their pay stub to the doctor and then look at the amount paid for health insurance really hard after the appointment is over.
Pause…sip coffee…continue.
This obsession with acting like not paying a co-payment is getting something for free reminds me of the fools who celebrate getting a tax refund as if their ass isn’t getting their own fucking money back.
Blink.
4 comments:
Nicely put - let me add another layer.
As a Catholic who attended 16 years of Catholic Schooling AND works in the health industry, I feel I can comment intelligently on some of the flaming discussions revolving around the Obama Administration's stance on mandating coverage for contraceptives v. choice for religious entities.
With all due respect, I am not sure if people understand how insurance coverage works. Here's a simple example:
Assuming the Archdiocese of St. Louis has self-insured Rx coverage, the Archdiocese only pays for the drugs its employees and their families get. It is not part of a larger fully-insured "pool" whereby it pays a set fee; I believe the Archdiocese went away from fully insured over a decade ago specifically to control its costs AND its coverage.
To be crystal clear: the only time money would go to birth control is if its employees buy it.
Assuming a female employee buys a pack of, say, Estrostep FE under her coverage (there is a "conscience clause" the Jesuits repeatedly and carefully explained to us kids that essentially dictates we are - ultimately - responsible for our actions since God gave us free will) she pays a copayment, which the Archdiocese (or its PBM) controls.
Birth control coverage can be set into a non-preferred tier with a high copay, if the Archdiocese wants; say 50%.
This means for every female employee who chooses to purchase standard birth control pills the Archdiocese pays - eh, let's call it $40 per month.
Some folks say $40 per month is $40 per month too much since the Archdiocese doesn't have a choice. But the Church is not an individual - it DOESN'T have choice. Entities do not have free will as God defines it. Only people do.
Covering condoms (which I am not positive but believe are FSA-approved items and MUST be covered if the Archdiocese offers an FSA of any type) and other, non-Rx family planning procedures are outside my area of expertise and I won't weigh in, except to say that this is ultimately the family's decision. It is between the husband and wife and (if I may quote the Catholic Church's wedding vows) therefore within one body, one spirit, of the marriage. "What God has joined let no man sunder." If a husband and wife make a decision of conscience, the Archdiocese (which is made up of men) has no right to interfere.
That said, I doubt this changes anyone's mind.
THANK YOU! I have been yelling this exact same point at my TV for what feels like years now.
Help me find some hope in today's (2/10) developments! Signing the DAA, the drone attacks, and executing citizens without trial have me thinking of staying home on 11/6.
I appreciate everyone's intelligent comments!
To the author of this blog:
Your great sense of humor makes me feel a little less exasperated by the news and my remarkably close minded WASP baby boomer dad.
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