tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9263167.post4278578896500859355..comments2024-03-28T15:17:43.056-04:00Comments on Stayin' Alive: One person's waste, fraud and abuse . . .Cervanteshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11302076828795198187noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9263167.post-62424057885235411262009-09-19T19:07:00.246-04:002009-09-19T19:07:00.246-04:00the real objection is losing the profits that thes...the real objection is losing the profits that these companies make. we know that workers are expendable, so long as the profits keep coming.<br /><br />but it would be helpful to know how many workers in health insurance industries would lose their jobs, and what their jobs are. <br /><br />people in skilled occupations such as doctors and nurses could, naturally, go back to patient care. others might be re-trained to meet the needs of an expanded health CARE industry. <br /><br />some of the clucking about expanding coverage is that there would be a shortage of providers. [this is not a great argument in support of "we're doing fine, don't change a thing," btw.] but more patients means a greater need for care all along the continuum, from specialists and GP's to nurses to LVN's to clerical and custodial staff. coming up with better treatment standards also means researchers and their support staffs.<br /><br />what we really should be talking about is simply shifting resources away from supporting the profit of a few and toward supporting broad basic health care. if there are job losses in the insurance sector [and they won't be total losses, insurance companies continue to provide supplemental coverage in canada, for example], there also will be many new job opportunities in direct patient care and support of delivering that care.<br /><br />industries and professions have retraining all the time, to deal with new developments affecting the work. something positive about shifting from health insurance to provision of health care is that most of the work cannot really be shifted overseas: these are jobs that will stay here, unlike jobs that have already been outsourced, like medical transcription.kathy a.https://www.blogger.com/profile/14479337952651746193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9263167.post-85267333602237019082009-09-19T13:43:06.672-04:002009-09-19T13:43:06.672-04:002.3 million people contributing to an industry tha...2.3 million people contributing to an industry that generates $2.3 trillion. (I'm no economist, I just took 1/6 of the US GDP). I don't know, is this one of those industries considered too big to fail? (Maybe not fail, maybe disassemble?)<br /><br />What you wrote in this post is the kind of conversation I'd like to read out there. This issue is so hot, it stirs so much emotion, that sometimes you can't get beyond name calling.<br /><br />What I learned from this is that it's really important to support a public option. If single-payer just isn't workable in the short-term, then single-payer advocates could be such! a powerful force for the public option, a proposal that I noticed the Senate Finance Committee didn't put forth..Bixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06263963508785739508noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9263167.post-72663524462221033582009-09-19T04:14:19.803-04:002009-09-19T04:14:19.803-04:00The BLS gives 2.3 million people working in insura...The BLS gives 2.3 million people working in insurance (don't know how they count that.) Much less than I expected. Only a part, of course, would be in health insurance.<br /><br />AnaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com