Actx,

It's not just about 'choice'.

If you've ever worked in a business where the lowest bidder got the contract, you would know what a total disaster this will turn out to be. That's what we're dealing with now on "The Big Dig" (a road construction project in Massachusetts) -- early failure, death, injury, and unbelievable cost overruns.

There are some people, no, a lot of people who cannot take a straight-off-the-shelf wheelchair. I have a friend that has to be reclined at 45 degrees or he will pass out.

I've seen a teenager that has to be kept horizontal at all times.

Stephen Hawking, the scientist, does not use Medicaid or Medicare because he lives in another country. But, he's another example of someone who uses a highly specialized wheelchair due to his disability.

Do you honestly think that the lowest bidder is going to have the capability, or even the resources, to custom-design mobility equipment for people with similar situations.

It's extremely difficult for some people, specifically those with ALS, to use the computer at all, let alone, to surf around looking for a specific message that concerns them. That's why I posted this message in many different forums because the message can specifically apply to the participants in those forums.

For future reference, Medicare is not just a 'welfare' program for the elderly. The disabled also use that program.

Our society has gotten together and decided that Medicaid and Medicare should be provided to those people that qualify for it.

Yes, I total agree, there is fraud in both the Medicaid and the Medicare programs. That's because our society has not demanded that there be competent oversight. I have a mobility scooter and tried to notify both government agencies of an example of fraud committed by the vendor that supplied me with the scooter. Neither agency wanted to hear about it. I've stopped using that vendor and now use one that does not overbill.

I've just recently come out of the business world so I was aware of what was legal and what was not legal and how to handle it. I wonder how many times has this same vendor pulled the same trick on an elderly person who was not aware of what was being done to them.

I have a friend who has a disabled child. The boy will never walk or talk or feed himself or clean himself. Medicaid did not want to pay for the nutritional drink that contains fiber to keep him regular because it costs 16 cents a can too much. They'd rather give him a prescription, which will cost many times more than the equivalent of 16 cents per can, to keep him regular.

I did some research and found that Colorado is purchasing the nutritional drink at a much greater cost savings than 16 cents per can. If the states got together and did bulk purchasing, they'd save a lot of money.

You see, Actx, it's not about 'entitlement'. It's about 'quality' and 'efficiency' and 'costs savings'. If you hire a plumber to install kitchen cabinets in your house: (1) you'll be wasting the plumber's skills, (2) you won't get quality workmanship; and (3) in the long run, it'll cost more, because of the mistakes that have to be fixed.

I've worked in companies that use the bidding process. Low bidders are not always telling the truth about their skills and qualifications. Often, another company has to be brought in to 'fix' the problems, which increases the final costs.

Actx, I appreciate your wanting to discuss this. You could have done it in a less confrontational way. You don't know any of us. You don't live in our world. You don't 'walk in our shoes'; you don't have the right to judge us.

Thank you for giving me a chance to express my opinions.

Barb

PS: I agree that we, as a society, have stepped back and let "big government" handle things without keeping an eye on what they're doing. That's up to us, as a society, to solve that problem. It doesn't mean that you solve it by hurting the people that are less fortunate than you are.