Hi - I think probably the benefits to the employer your referring to were as an employer, bringing in a "temp" - the employer was not responsibile for any liabilitites associated with the temp employee's benefits (Social Security, ins, etc) - instead it was written off directly as an expense paid to the temp agency and much less expensive overall for the employer... as far as writing off all your employee expenses as employer liability was an epense you could write off, but the employee paying their share of cost for insurance or items like that - back then I dont think it was legal for them to pay pre-tax! (I was "Catbert' the "evil HR director" - remember Dilbert?)

post! The world we live in, and what we thought we were entitled to change daily, and how we can best take advantage of what fewer 'entitlements' we have are definitely getting more complicated.
I do know that I, and others here have and are encountering increasingly more difficut experiences in actually getting information out of our insurance companies, personnel offices and so on...Just simple answers and not squirrelly ones would do, thank you very much. I am afraid that the system might collapse on itself at some time.
Then I look at Katrina and all that's happened to that. The insurance companies weaseled out, the states, cities, counties and parishes did the best they could...but they lost probably what? 3/4ths of their tax base in the process? The governments are still around, doing les, the insurance companies have refined their 'policies' and well, more is excluded for/at a higher cost. As we all age, less is going to be include in SS benefits and any medical coverages. I guess I'm grateful I've a little bit of 'equity'....mite last me about 3-5 years IF I'm conservative. Scares me beyond the beyond! - j

I'd like to know what is going to become of those over the age of 65 who have no family, no one to care for them?? What happens when they fall ill, and can't take care of themselves??

Do people just come in and put them someplace??

I'm serious. I really don't have any answers.

I'm 60 now and I can take care of me and I can take good care of Alan. But we're 60. What the heck is going to happen if god forbid we are 75 and we can't move our legs or arms because of arthritis and god knows what else we have. And we are living in the same apartment (thankfully we'll not be moving anywhere), so let's just use us as an example.

What happens when we are 75 or 80 and fall completely ill that we no longer can do any shopping, etc. Or fend for ourselves.

Where do people go??? And who comes in and puts us wherever they will put us?? It's not a stupid question. No one thinks of these things way ahead.

I guess I'm just curious.

I once asked my Aunt Lucy (when she was about 70 (and survived breast cancer and a stroke) She lived with my other Aunt, (her sister). I was visiting and I said 'Aunt Lucy, what happens to you when you're 80 and if you don't have any relatives left. She had 5 sisters 5 brothers, and they all died except for the sister she was living with.

Her answer:???' 'I don't want to think of those things". I said 'what do you mean, you don't want to think of those things, you HAVE to think of those things". She just passed me a cup of coffee and said 'No, I can't think about that'. End of discussion.

I won't be that naive. It's not my nature.

I just want to know what can happen to us.

Melody

I can tell you what happens - and to those of us who arent 65 but are disabled and have no other help too - if you have any assets you must get rid of them - you are expected to pay for your own in home care as needed until they are gone, etc... when those are gone they will stick you in a state nursing home - and those are awful places..... sad, but thats what happens.... (if you have your health and are able to work - many elderly are now doing just that so that you can try to continue to stay at home or go into assisted living - which is much different then a state home)

large loud vociferous physical communities [back to the 60'-70's Communes?], we could control costs as in co-ops and well, disperse our funds[assets] into the non-profit co-op before all assets are lost? Or something?

Silly thought, I know, but IMAGINE....all of us going on a BUS to go vote...walkers, canes, wheelchairs...voting for X or Y? Imagine the press and the FEAR that it could strike in the hearts of syncophants! How delicious! I might giggle all nite at that mere idea...

Right now you have to be bereft to qualify for many SS benefits, yet others who are not bereft can get same and could do just fine without?
I do qualify, but I don't need it now...Should I file? I mean...now I don't need it? I do not want to be a person to simply collects benefits unless entitled...ya know? Sigh...I am getting more confused. I better stop and learn more about it all-thus get even more confused? Hugs to all - j

IN NYC many older people who for example break their hip or need other long term rehabilitation wind up in BirdColer/Goldwater hospital /nursing home on Roosevelt Island(nice view of manhattan). There is another nursing home in Rockaway(nice view of the ocean) run by the NYC Health and Hospitals Corp. Im not sure what other locations there are. It doesnt take long to go through whatever savings or real estate you may own with the cost of a nursing home. If you sign over assets to your children, there is a formula of so much per month that is deducted from your total worth that they can keep and was at a 5 year maximum, im not sure what it is now. In other words after 5 years of signing it over your children could keep it all. It might be up to 7 or more now, i dont know.

Great detective work....I just asked hubby about our premium....our is deducted properly.

As far as health care goes....how can it be a 'free market' if your insurer is also your provider, and your insurer/provider has an exhorbitantly paid CEO? Duh.

If your physician is employed by your insurer (or payor)....is it wise for him to bite the hand that feeds him? Many, many plans now are providers...there are actually fewer and fewer third party payors. I am also wondering how these endeavors get classified 'Not for Profit'. It was not for profit back when churches and or nuns ran hospitals as charitable endeavors...it isn't the case anymore. When I see big bucks for player piano's for hosptial lobbies, I shake my head and wonder who is running the show.

We have the option of HMO or PPO, and we go PPO, with a very large choice of providers, that is paid by a third party...however they are under a contract. At least they are not employed by them.

I spent 11 years in a large HMO, not affilliated with a research facility, and it was the worst experience of my life...Three years after leaving it, I was diagnosed with substantial PN...go figure. If you only have an EMG machine and MRI scanner, and a neurologist who looks like he should be on the set of Frankenstein....you may get monstrous care.

Isn't your insurer going to save money by providing less...and there really is no one to guard the henhouse.

I feel the docs should be independent of the insurer. Period. Universal health care should be available to all. My daughter spent a year in Germany....they all have universal health care available to any one living legally in their country...she got it as an employed legal alien...AND, you can also get private insurance from your employer as a benefit. Now isn't that novel? They seem to make it work just fine.

She also lived in DC and could not find a provider under her private plan...that was a useful benefit.

Despite all the hullabaloo about lawsuits, it is very, very hard to prevail in malpractice or negligence against any HMO or doc affiliated with them.

I know quite a few docs who gave up practicing or switched to different types of practice after the HMOs and yes, PPOs burned them out (not lawsuits)

A famous politician once said"Too many good doctors are getting out of the business. Too many OB/GYNs aren't able to practice their love with women all across the country" Now I understand why I did not go to med school. rolleyes:


I am still trying to get an answer to why I pay the $35 brand co pay on my generic zolpidem...which doesn't seem to work as well as ambien. Generics are supposed to be $4

Yes, I am aware of the Walmart deal....haven't made the switch....pretty soon we will have our docs at Walmart too....

I am having problems with the logic of healthcare....I need Dr. Spock...oh wait...that is MR. Spock....sorry.

Hi Hey Joe:

Thanks so much for that information. You never know when it might be needed.

Our country, well it's a crying shame what it's doing to certain people.

Around my neck of the woods, there are many people coming in from other countries and they are immediately given benefit cards. They go into the supermarkets and pay for their food with these cards. Used to be food stamps. Now it's all on a card. They just swipe the card.

Alan and I don't qualify because we make $100 over the limit (or something like that). But I bet if I came from another country and went to the food stamp place, BINGO, I'd get the benefit card in two seconds flat.

What the heck happened to our country? Why don't they care about our welfare any more??

It's very sad.

Melody

Its our reps on DC. They are in the pockets of the big bucks insurance lobby and pharmaceutical firms, to make an Rx plan for SSI 65'ers+ that cannot be understood by a clear thinking 35 y.o.,and has a 'donut hole'
of lotsa $$ out of pocket.
Mrs. Clinton tried to get a national health pan thru when her hubby was playing games in the White House- didn't happen !. She tried.
Now she's campaining to do the same. Think it'll happen?
Until Congress and the Senate have to exist with the same heath care and Soc. Sec. the rest of us do, no one in DC who could make it happen, will give a damn about it.

When I visited the UK a while back, I needed some medical attention because my sciatica decided to put me horizontal for a while. I went to hospital there, and never paid a cent for my emergency treatment, or my medication Rx'd at the time. As a legal visitor, I was entitled to the health care system.

With the US dollar worth less than the Canadian dollar (I never thought that would happen) and Canada's health paln covering every occupant of that country, it might be wise to move over the border, and collect our Soc. Sec. retirement benefits there. Have it deposited to a US bank, and use a debit card with the money exchange....... if'n we gotta.

The US doesn't make sense anymore.
Washington is catering to big business and letting the citizens suffer.
Its time for a change. A big change.
But we may be fooling ourselves thinking that any significant change
will happen, no matter who we vote for.

Well, Nide I have to agree with you that the country went to hell in a handbasket.

As for who we vote for...I think it IS important that we vote, and for some one who is focusing on health care and the economy.

My daughter told me during the Bush administration that thousands of laws were changed to bring benefit to large corporations and basically dismantle our democracy....these were little bills, little line item things thrown in. Stuff many did not notice We had one party control here for quite a while....right now it takes a 60% majority to override a presidential veto.

Democrats do not have a 60% majority...plus Dems have one hawk in robin feathers, if you know who I mean.

Maybe the Dems should have control of the senate, house and presidency like the repubs did until 2 years ago.

What about this move to redistrict California to manipulate the electoral college...any one up on that move?

I say we get rid of that electoral college...and make sure people in this country are educated enough to read and make wise choices.

We are in really deep doo in this country and it has been a good long time in the making....this is what happens when people get i-pods and cell phones stuck to their heads, and the travails Brittney Spears becomes news, and single issues sway voters.

I listen to the 24 hour news channels and they drone on and on...about nothing. You get almost NO international news.

I knew I should have moved to Canada five years ago, it isn't that far away for me...I remember looking at real estate and thinking 150,000 Canadian dollars bought me a cute log home up north on a lake. Man we could have retired.

And on the self employment thing...I was employed by employers most of my life....then for 2 years I was self employed and took no salary, therefore made no SS contribution...guess what that does....if you do not contribute to social sec. for 10 consecutive quarters...you can not collect SSI.

I still qualified a few years ago, applied, but..had the docs start to back off...NOW they mention to me, by the way, you are pretty disabled. Uh...now what!

I am lucky my spouse tolerates me, I am supported and have health insurance. If he finds a new chick, well, put me to the curb on Tuesday morning.

25 years of work in the health care profession, no less, up the wazoo...until I turn 62...if I live that long...or I can try to go back to work and pay in again, but right now, that isn't happening. Personally I would love to be back at work, I am bored to death at home sitting on my tuffet....only thing is, who is gonna let me come in when I can, take off for incessant doctor visits and time off for invasive procedures, and all that muck....not to mention....the dreaded drug screen...even if they are legal, who wants that showing up on some employment physical! By the time you explain why you need these meds, do you think they want you on their payroll???

Ugh, the world we live in.