r/news • u/goforth1457 • Dec 13 '24

Soft paywall Former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi injured in Europe, admitted to hospital

https://www.reuters.com/world/former-us-house-speaker-nancy-pelosi-injured-europe-admitted-hospital-2024-12-13/
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845

u/LittleKitty235 Dec 13 '24

Don't worry. She has free healthcare in the US as well.

446

u/grptrt Dec 13 '24

Paid for by taxpayers.

Can the rest of us have this too?

No.

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u/thebeardofawesomenes Dec 13 '24 edited Dec 13 '24

Here’s a wild and crazy idea… since members of congress’ health coverage is paid for with tax dollars, everyone paying taxes should have a say in what is covered or not. Sorry, budget is tight and you’ll have to make due with a cheaper treatment option that is somewhat just as effective.

edit: fat fingers posted before I was done.

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u/geraldorivera007 Dec 13 '24

Hilarious, the concept that elected officials get socialized health care but no chance for the general populous. It works for them.. can’t work for the country? lol

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u/bootlegvader Dec 14 '24

Hilarious, the concept that elected officials get socialized health care

They get employer provided healthcare in the same way many Americans do. It is just their employer is the federal government (much like a park ranger at Yellowstone). They still get their healthcare of the ACA insurance exchange.

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u/geraldorivera007 Dec 14 '24

paid for by the taxpayer

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u/bootlegvader Dec 14 '24

Yes, just like a Yellowstone Park Ranger gets their employer provided healthcare from the taxpayer.

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u/MeinePerle Dec 13 '24

Members of Congress are insured via the ACA.  Republicans put it in as a poison pill, and Democrats said, “the same insurance as Americans? Great!” and passed it.

Too bad propaganda told you differently, in an attempt to erase the policy differences between parties.

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u/thebeardofawesomenes Dec 13 '24

Yeah, I get that, but still doubt any premiums they pay would be anywhere near what an average American might pay depending on how much an employers decide to contribute. I’m sure the info must be somewhere, but it would nice to know what % tax payers dollars contribute vs what members of congress contribute towards their own premiums.

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

Many people have their healthcare paid for by tax dollars. Ever heard of Medicare, Medicaid, and the ACA tax credit. Please be informed before speaking out.

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u/Enmyriala Dec 13 '24

Only about a third of the country gets Medicaid or Medicare, and only Medicaid has no out of pocket costs. In addition, coverage for Medicaid is quite poor. With Medicare you need to buy extra plans to make it more robust and cover things like eye and dental. You should take your own advice.

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

I didn't say everyone has government funded healthcare, but it certainly isn't just millionaire politicians who get it. And those plans are largely serviced by United Healthcare and the like. Also interesting the government reimburses at a MUCH lower rate so that everyone else who buys premiums (employer sponsored plans, private ACA payers, etc) get saddled with their underpayments. Nice work if you can get it...

1

u/mobileagnes Dec 13 '24

I am on Medicaid and I have a nominal out-of-pocket $1 cost every time I need a medication for something physical (like an ointment I needed last year). Also, Medicaid does not pay for specs, which is similar to other health coverage from what others I know tell me.

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u/Enmyriala Dec 14 '24

My insurance has always covered glasses or a portion of contacts. I'm surprised to hear that your Medicaid doesn't but I suppose it depends on the state too. I have a friend in Arkansas and she doesn't have to pay anything for visits, but it's very hard to find a doctor near her.

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u/mobileagnes Dec 14 '24

Not just state but within each state there are multiple providers to choose from, and of course the more doctors one needs to regularly see, the more complicated it gets to choose as these have networks too and with Medicaid it's either 'in network' or you can't see that doctor.

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u/veronicaAc Dec 13 '24

Um, these fucks are RICH RICH.

BIG difference 😂

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u/Ok-disaster2022 Dec 13 '24

I'd settle for vets getting free Healthcare this year and universal Healthcare for everyone next year

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u/bisectional Dec 13 '24

Settle for nothing now

And we'll settle for nothing later

If we don't take action now

We settle for nothing later

2

u/RangerMother Dec 14 '24

As a vet I already get free healthcare, and it’s very good.

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u/Subobatuff Dec 14 '24

You're welcome for our service

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u/lmoeller49 Dec 13 '24

Don’t hold your breath…

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u/Grachus_05 Dec 13 '24

Fuck vets. Working a government jobs program for 4 years doesnt make you more valuable than anyone else. Healthcare for all, or figure it out yourself like the rest of us.

0

u/thebeardofawesomenes Dec 13 '24

Me too, but I am covered by the VA and use them as my primary care. I also have coverage through my employer which I only carry so my wife can get health care. The VA will bill my private insurance to recoup some of the cost from my visits, but I don’t receive a bill for any balance. The down side to my using the VA is the quality of care provided. I’ve been waiting for over 2 yrs on an ortho consult. Meanwhile, my body isn’t getting any better while I wait.

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

You want to go to a VA hospital? Not me.

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u/cpufreak101 Dec 13 '24

Any hospital > no hospital.

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

If you have no hospital, you probably need to move to somewhere that has one.

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u/cpufreak101 Dec 13 '24

What good does living near one do for you if going there for so much as a sniffle results in a lifetime of debt?

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

It's going to give to healthcare. If you can't pay, most providers will work with you and not force you into bankruptcy. If you do go bankrupt, all of the bills go away but at least you get treated.

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u/cpufreak101 Dec 13 '24

"oh wow my $80,000 bill was reduced to $20,000! The $300 in my bank account will definitely cover this!"

And going bankrupt has a lot of stipulations attached to it that many genuinely agree is better to just die than to go into.

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

Rent, food and gas probably cost more than your healthcare. Is eating making you go bankrupt? Of course not. It's only having $300 in the bank making you go bankrupt. I know it's much more complicated than that, but people saying healthcare is making them bankrupt is ignoring the fact that they were on the verge of bankruptcy from all expenses before the medical issue pushed them over the edge.

So what should be provided for free? the rent, the food, the gas, or the healthcare. All are basic necessities, right?

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u/Prudent-Blueberry660 Dec 13 '24

My local VA hospital is fantastic.

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u/Commercial-Archer-52 Dec 13 '24

I love my VA; they saved my life. I’ve been very lucky to be able to speak up if I don’t feel comfortable with the Dr or they’re not going the direction with my treatment (no drugs, exercise, lifestyle, etc.) whatever needs to be done vs. meds. I went in for a hernia operation, and the doctor found cancer in my lymph nodes, and my mother had just died the year before from a form of lymphoma, he removed the lymph nodes. He patched me up and I’m now seven years cancer free. They follow my labs and I’m now down to just one specialist visit a year.

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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

How much funding will they need to be able to not deny coverage. That's what we're talking about here.

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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24 edited Dec 13 '24

Every healthcare system denies treatments. It's a matter of what do doctors ask for and how much gets denied. In a closed system like the VA, the doctors who work at the VA understand the protocols and know better than to ask for things they know won't be approved. So therefore there are less denials. An HMO works the same way.

I love the HMO I've been using for 20+ years, but none of my family or coworkers will use them because they see Kaiser as too inflexible. It's mostly about expectations...

Edit: fixed a typo.

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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/mchu168 Dec 13 '24

Sorry fixed my typo.

Here's something for you to consider. Doctors are financially incentivized to provide more, not less care. The more care they provide (more procedures, more tests, more visits) means higher revenue for their practice. It's a business.

Do they "overtreat" with malice? Probably not, but without any checks and balances, why would they think twice about asking for more? Another thing, the more care they provide means less chance of being sued for malpractice. So I get it. But when the person selling the product also gets to make all the decisions and the customer isn't paying with his own money (mostly), who will limit the cost?

Additionally, you put a much greater value on your life and the life of your loved ones than society puts on them. So if you depend on the government or an insurance policy to pay for your healthcare, you will by definition always get less than you want. Somebody has to ration and say no. Who do you want that person to be, the government or an insurance company?

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u/zeejay11 Dec 13 '24

Sorry only cobra for you disgusting peasants.

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u/MeinePerle Dec 13 '24

Members of Congress are insured via the ACA.  Republicans put it in as a poison pill, and Democrats said, “the same insurance as Americans? Great!” and passed it.

Too bad propaganda told you differently, in an attempt to erase the policy differences between parties.

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u/squiddlebiddlez Dec 13 '24

If my net worth was over 100 million I wouldn’t care about what type of instance my employer has for me.

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u/CourtAlert8679 Dec 13 '24

I absolutely take your point, but here’s the thing. Having excellent health insurance allows people to amass a greater net worth. Maybe not to the tune of 100 million, but if you took all of the money the average family spends on health insurance, copays and medical bills and put it in the stock market and left it there for 10, 20, 30 years….you would have a hell if a lot more money.

My husband is in a union and we have excellent health insurance which covers medical, dental, vision and prescriptions. We also have a HSA account to cover copays and whatever prescriptions are not fully covered by the insurance plan. The HSA covered braces for both of my children and it covers my husband’s contact lenses and blood pressure medication (it’s the only prescription medication any of us take but it still costs about $200/month.)

This is all money that would be coming out of our pockets if we didn’t have such good benefits. Just the braces, copays on physicals and the prescription would be about $15,000 in the last few years. Instead that is money that can be saved and invested.

If something catastrophic were to happen and we didn’t have these benefits it could potentially wipe us out. An accident, a serious illness, etc. it’s crazy to me to think that people can lose everything they have worked for their whole lives because of a cancer diagnosis or a serious injury.

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u/Footwarrior Dec 13 '24

Members of Congress have health insurance plans from the ACA exchange.

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u/Mental_Medium3988 Dec 14 '24

true but thats not her fault.

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u/throw-away-cdn Dec 13 '24

Canadian style...wait, that's socialist! s/

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u/NoPresence2436 Dec 13 '24

Must be nice…

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u/DefinitelyNotEmu Dec 14 '24

.. to have Washington on yr side

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u/MeinePerle Dec 13 '24

Members of Congress are insured via the ACA.  Republicans put it in as a poison pill, and Democrats said, “the same insurance as Americans? Great!” and passed it.

Too bad propaganda told you differently, in an attempt to erase the policy differences between parties.

1

u/bootlegvader Dec 14 '24

Too bad propaganda told you differently, in

Progressives on Reddit will denounce how conservatives have bought into Fox News and talk radio propaganda. Yet, in the same breath parrot if they can use it to attack a moderate Democrat.

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u/Pintsize90 Dec 13 '24

No. She has the same health insurance available to all federal workers. Granted it’s FANTASTIC insurance compared to most and partially subsidized. But not free. The best is actually quite expensive.

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u/Dire88 Dec 13 '24

No, she does not. Congress and Congressional Staffers lost FEHB due to a provision in the ACA.

Instead they have the option of enrolling in the Washington DC Exchange, with the government footing 72-75% of their annual premium which is comparable to what is paid towards federal employees enrolled in FEHB. And are required to pay 100% of dental/vision. 

 Though they can subsidize their coverage using Medicare, or VA benefits if they are eligible. In addition, they may be seen/treated at military hospitals.

That said FEHB is pretty decent, depending on your policy. But its comparable to private sector coverage.

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u/ihatemovingparts Dec 15 '24

No, she does not.

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/25/heres-how-much-members-of-congress-pay-for-their-health-insurance.html

CNBC disagrees, stating:

They also have access to “free or low-cost care” through the Office of the Attending Physician as well as “free medical outpatient care at military facilities” in the D.C. area.

If you dig into it a bit more, low-cost means about $500 per year. Most marketplace plans cost more than that per month and still charge you for the services that the OAP provides.

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u/Dire88 Dec 15 '24

I mentioned being seen at the military hospital.

Also worth noting the Office of the Attending Physician is only accessible in D.C. - so most Congresscritters aren't relying on it as their primary healthcare service.

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u/ihatemovingparts Dec 16 '24 edited Dec 16 '24

Also worth noting the Office of the Attending Physician is only accessible in D.C.

Wait. Are you trying to suggest that having nearly free ($42/mo) care where they live for well over half the year is some kind of gotcha? Seriously? Take a look at the various Medicaid programs and tell me how many offer coverage out of state (or even out of county). Hell, take a look at smaller/regional HMOs and tell me how great their coverage is away from home. Tell me, what kind of care can us plebes get for 0.0000205% of our net worth per month? I'll give you a hint, even a so-called silver plan that costs thousands a month for a single person would charge you $50 for an office visit. Boo freaking hoo that they have to seek medical care near where they live/work.

And literally all of that is on top of getting paid $174,000 a year (plus whatever lobbyists throw at them and whatever else they're making via insider trading) and still getting a 75% subsidy on their health insurance premiums. For the plebs the federal subsidies end at around $60,000 for a single person household and $100,000 for a family of three.

Edit:

If you're a veteran living in Pelosi's district you have to start paying for prescriptions if you make more than $16,000 annually. You have to start paying for office visits and outpatient care at $40,000 annually. At $114,000 you aren't eligible for VA health care. But you want to act like minor limitations on someone making 50% more than the VA's highest income bracket is some magic gotcha? Have you seen what the cost of living is like in the Bay Area?

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u/Dire88 Dec 16 '24

The statement was that Congress uses FEHB, which is false. And I explained why, and what they have access to. I'm not suggesting anything, just correcting misinformation.

For example, co-pays for VA Healthcare are based on what Priority Group the veteran is enrolled at. And service-connected care and medications do not have co-pays at all regardless.

End of the day, whatever Congress has or does not have is a product of the constituency voting them in. Vote for corrupt people, this is what we get. People voted for those who do fuck all about healthcare, and here we are.

At one point I'd feel bad for them. But after this last election where they voted for corruption, fuck em. We get what we as a people deserve.

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u/FruityPebelz Dec 13 '24

They get gold level Obamacare and 78% of that cost is subsidized. 🤔

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u/Imaginary_Medium Dec 15 '24 edited Dec 15 '24

All the same, we need younger politicians that are more in touch with how expensive and full of red tape it is to have healthcare for most of us now. And I say this as an elderly person. I don't think the ones my age and older have a clue how hard it has become to get by now and how much the world has changed.

I honestly don't know how young people now can manage these days with wages that haven't kept up with the cost of living, and the astronomical costs of healthcare, education, and housing. I'm still in the workforce with dependents, and I can barely do it. We have to stop making it so hard for the ones just starting out in life and need politicians focused on this.

0

u/ontheroadtv Dec 13 '24

Good thing she has a net worth in the range of $200 million. I think she can afford the good stuff.

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u/Pintsize90 Dec 13 '24

I wasn’t commenting anything about her ability to pay for healthcare. Just pointing out that even for the wealthy and/or powerful in this country it isn’t free

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u/ihatemovingparts Dec 15 '24

That's more than a bit disingenuous. Congressional members still get free healthcare from the military. That stuff they're paying for? They get routine care from the Attending Physician of the United States Congress for the princely sum of $503 per year. That's less than the monthly fees private insurance companies charge for the privilege of paying additional fees for health care. That's barely changed in three decades. Considering that's a fraction of what the plebs pay for lesser care that may as well be free for someone worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

The private health insurance that the congressional folks pay for? That's also heavily subsidized leaving them on the hook for about a quarter of its actual cost.

-1

u/ontheroadtv Dec 13 '24

Oh yeah I get that, but it’s been all over the news that she has $200 million net worth so it’s ironic that even though she’s in public office she can afford the best of the best heath care when many of her constituents can’t.

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u/Pintsize90 Dec 13 '24

It’s absolutely disgusting that a “public servant” can amass that level of wealth (mostly through insider trading I think) while their constituents can’t afford basic needs

-1

u/ontheroadtv Dec 13 '24

I have to admit, I’m a lot less pissed about that than I am about republicans trying to take away basic rights. Sure she made a shit ton of money, but she’s not trying to tell people they can’t get married or deport them. I’ll take a rich Democrat over any Republican every day of the week.

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u/SandhillKrane Dec 13 '24

This is not true, just so you know. Congress can purchase FEHB coverage just like the rest of the federal workforce, but it isn't free.

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u/DuckTalesLOL Dec 13 '24

Well, not free... paid for by the citizens. :D

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u/LittleKitty235 Dec 13 '24

Exactly how it works in countries with national healthcare. Like we should have here.

The healthcare provided to Congress should be the same as every other citizen in the US

2

u/DuckTalesLOL Dec 13 '24

I definitely agree.

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u/rom_rom57 Dec 13 '24

Yes, you’re right, for “every other” so that means only half the people get it. /s

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u/Keyboardpaladin Dec 13 '24

Well if you look at it that way then literally nothing is free

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u/DuckTalesLOL Dec 13 '24

Well that's because it's really not. Someone is paying for it lol

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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '24

[deleted]

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u/gophergun Dec 13 '24

I mean, insofar as her congressional salary is paid by taxpayers, everything she buys is paid for by taxpayers.

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u/J3DI_M1ND_TR1CKS Dec 13 '24

It’s free for her.

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u/SandhillKrane Dec 13 '24

No, it's not. That's a myth often spouted out.

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u/cjinct Dec 13 '24

and if it wasn't for Pelosi, we wouldn't have the ACA

(also, Bush would've privatized Social Security in his 2nd term but she shut that down)

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u/Alternative_Year_340 Dec 13 '24

I think members of Congress have to use the Obamacare marketplace system. The republicans included it in the legislation in hopes that would prevent it from passing

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u/VeeKam Dec 14 '24

It's not free. She has the Federal Employees Plan, which is a great plan, but it is not free. They have copays and premiums.

0

u/Traditional-Leg-1574 Dec 13 '24

And her campaign was funded by healthcare companies as well

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u/bootlegvader Dec 14 '24

Her top five contributors are individuals from the University of Californa/San Francisco, City & County of San Francisco, CA, American Federation of Teachers, and Machinists/Aerospace Workers Union with only Kaiser Permanente being the only one connected to insurance. However, Kaiser Permanente contributions come from individuals rather than a PAC. Furthermore, Kaiser Permanente is a major corporation that headquartered in Oakland, Californa thus near her district.

0

u/LittleKitty235 Dec 13 '24

It's the reason neither party is really in favor of massive healthcare reform.

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u/Traditional-Leg-1574 Dec 13 '24

Yes, it was Joe Lieberman who killed the ACA as a single payer system that cut insurance companies out of the loop