How can anyone afford it??? I'm talking about Medicare Part D

You know, the United States is the ONLY civilized country without a national health care plan. I just cannot understand why it's been fought against so vehemently! I remember having to get private insurance for myself and my kids when they were younger and I was self-employed. I paid over $500 a month just for the insurance, then there was the deductible and co-pays for everything. If I had only had one child, it would have cost me only $180 a month but with two children, of course they had to add an additional $320 to what I had to pay. Just doesn't make sense. Regular insurance is bad enough in this country but Medicare, geez! They must employ only the mentally challenged at Social Security. Either that or they're given bonuses for every penny they save the government by denying benefits or tacking on all these additional expenses to those who obviously cannot afford it. I love this country but I despise our government. Maybe I should think about moving to another country.

oh mentalward and fellow mylotters try United Health care, evercare as they are really helping me. I know its stupid for people to fight against a universal health care plan here, we kneed it most cannot afford the bloated prices of health insurances. other countries have them but not us. we keep get this bull about socialism whenever a plan for universal health care is brought forth.

Ah, ladies, but have you looked into the details of what this Obamacare plan will do to your Medicare plans? Besides the fact that it will raise the cost of living because of it will require of businesses, it will also decrease our Medicare benefits. If the "Affordable Health Care Plan" is so wonderful, why has all of Congress opted out of it and many states are wanting wavers to exempt themselves? Never take the name of a law at face value with this bunch. They usually mean the opposite of what their names indicate.

I think people are dreaming if they think the current "Affordable Health Care Act" will have only a small premium or be free. It just isn't so. You might find your costs going up. Medicare will go up, and what really bugs me about it is that it appears you might not be able to buy treatment the plan won't cover. So if I break a hip and they decide I'm too old to get a new one through the plan, I couldn't just get it replaced myself if I could afford it. Many people are flying to Costa Rica now for surgeries because they cost less there. I think we will find that if the government controls all our health care options, they will also be deciding who gets the health care and who doesn't. That's what happened in my husband's family in Yugoslavia. Another thing many people don't consider is that doctors will be leaving the profession when this new health care plan kicks in. My doctor will be quitting, as will many others. Why should doctors have to take a big pay cut to make my health care cheaper when the hospitals are raking it in? If the best qualified people think becoming a doctor is no longer worth it, people less qualified will be the ones in medical school. Or, the government will start only giving student loans to those who will go into the professions the government needs people to fill. We have a shortage of doctors in my community now -- especially those who will accept Medicare patients. If it becomes illegal for doctors to charge patients the difference between their fees and what Medicare will cover, more doctors will quit. Then we won't have the specialists we need when we need them.

Yes, but you need to make sure that he can not stop it like a year later or anything. I know if you remarry you won't get anything from him but he is suppose to keep you in the manner you are use to being with him. I wish you lots of luck dear. But I do know this is why most people don't live separate and stay in the same home. They may not be together as a couple but live int he same home.

I remember awhile back when I had a neighbor whose husband was very sick and on oxygen. She was also on Social Security. My mother was a social worker at the time (we lived together) and this poor woman would grab my mother whenever she got the chance to cry about not being able to afford the medications for herself and her husband, hoping my mother would know about some kind of help for her. She (my mother) was able to help her in small ways, like getting her signed up for Meals on Wheels and hospice care for her husband (who was also bedridden) but she still didn't have enough money to make ends meet. I felt so bad for her but it didn't really sink in for me until I was going through that hell Social Security put me through. It's so hard to get qualified for SSI, then they make it even harder to find the right supplemental insurance for your needs. If our government paid it's workers a salary comparable to the private sector, I think there would be enough money to REALLY help those who need it. But that'll never happen. I guess I'll keep on looking but I'll probably end up just making sure my husband keeps me on his insurance as part of the divorce settlement.

I don't think she meant any offence. In fact she may have just indicated and criticized that America, being as powerful as it is cannot provide healthcare to its citizens. You took it too literally I believe and I understand what you mean. However, You don't need to attack her for her expression or Americans. Plus the word civilized can be considered as modernized as you mentioned, " a modern society with its conveniences."

It wasn't meant to be taken that way, SwordsPlay . I took it to mean that the US doesn't have something in place for pennies on the dollar, paid for by tax money that EVERYBODY contributes to that benefits everybody in the form of health care without forcing people to also pay out of pocket. Our ins companies are a joke - they used to be decent. I had a wonderful plan at one time that was relatively inexpensive for me, I think it worked out to about 80 bucks a month - but if I went to the doctor, I paid 5 dollars. If I went to the ER, it was $50. If I was admitted, I didn't have to pay the $50 but it was $100 a day up to 10 days and if I were still hospitalized, the ins covered it ALL. My prescriptions were $5 OR the cost, so whatever was lower. Some medications are less than a dollar actually lol. Fortunately I was and am a healthy individual, so I might visit the doctor 3 or fewer times a year. I might have 2 or 3 prescriptions over a year's time. I have only been in an ER twice, once after an accident in a car and once after a work related accident at work. The only time I was ever admitted into a hospital was when my daughter was born. Anyway, insurance plans NOW seem to charge you a lot more with a lot fewer benefits. There are now too many deductibles, meaning you have to pay a certain amount which is rather large before the ins pays ANYTHING. Because I am healthy, this sucks. It means I will NEVER see a benefit from the ins because I never get sick or hurt to the point that I would ever spend that much money out of my own pocket, which means for any small thing I need, I have to pay for all of it 100% and having ins doesn't do any good. We still pay premiums for it though which I find extremely irritating.