Funny little moment in the GOP debate last night.

[ddbaj]

In case you missed it, at one point a man in the audience asked a question about healthcare. In a nutshell, he told the story of someone who while on vacation in Spain had to buy his prescription drugs and upon doing so saved $600. The man joked that you'd save money flying to Spain to buy your medicine at that cost.

He then asked WHY this is so (The much lower costs in places like Spain) and WHAT will you do about it. Rudy went on about how he'd push personal accounts, personal responsibility, etc and went on an attack against the plans the dems are proposing branding them "Socialized medicine".

What I found funny is that had Rudy answered the "WHAT" part, but had he answered the "WHY" part of the question he would have had to say "Because Spain and other nations have healthcare systems similar to what the Dems are proposing"

I know it's a lot more complex than that, but clearly first world nations who have moved to the left on healthcare are doing better. So there, I had some time and wanted to share one of the most interesting moments from the debate.

[aquart]

1. Personal accounts can be wiped out in one medical emergency.

They are a disastrous pretense at a solution.

[AllegroRondo]

2. and are no help to people with little money to begin with

great, I can open a tax free personal account for medical expenses.

Now what money am I supposed to put in it?

[jean]

4. he said it's like paying for your car's oil change - wants us to pay for 'minor' healthcare

[MH1]

6. Also, it is one more bit of financial administrivia that a person has to manage,

on top of a growing pile of such administrivia.

Which probably doesn't matter much if you have a housekeeper and a financial planner. But if you have a couple or more kids and 3-4 jobs between both parents, and not enough money and/or time to keep a computer running with up-to-date financial software....

[Arkansas Granny]

16. You also have to have High Deductible Health Plan

coverage in place before you qualify to invest in the Health Savings Accounts.

Here are a couple of the FAQ's at the government website.

Who is eligible for a Health Savings Account?
To be eligible for a Health Savings Account, an individual must be covered by a HSA-qualified High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) and must not be covered by other health insurance that is not an HDHP. Certain types of insurance are not considered “health insurance” (see below) and will not jeopardize your eligibility for an HSA.

<snip>

I don’t have health insurance, can I get an HSA?
You cannot establish and contribute to an HSA unless you have coverage under a HDHP.

http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/public-affairs/hsa/faq_eligibility.shtml#hsa2

[Vilis Veritas]

3. This article does a pretty good job of explaining about Canada...

And gives some insight to other countries.

My dad buys all his meds from Canada...saves THOUSANDS.

http://www.aarp.org/bulletin/prescription/a2003-08-12-whydrugs.html

Peace.

[ProgressiveFool]

5. That was definitely one of the more interesting questions

One of the other candidates (Thompson? not sure) answered it by saying basically drugs cost more here because 80% of them are developed here, i.e. we're subsidizing pharmaceuticals for the rest of the world. But he said it like it was a good thing.

I thought it an interesting example of Repubs not being able to flat-out say what is true because of how it would be perceived if they didn't spin it. Another example was them saying the Gays in the Military issue should be handled by just letting the UCMJ take care of it, because it covers disruptive behavior. So what they were saying in other words was, gays should be allowed to serve openly, so long as their conduct isn't disruptive.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

7. personal accounts are like a bandage being used

on a bleeding hemerrhoid, except more useless.

They are a nice big fat target for your initial deductable and copay provisions. after that you are forked without the "r".

[TahitiNut]

8. Rudy, in effect, told us that U.S. consumers are subsidizing ALL drug research.

According to Rudy, nobody else in the world is paying enough for drugs to pay for the R&D for new drugs. Bizarre.

[ComerPerro]

9. Here's my question: Why is anyone watching the Republican debates?

[Gidney N Cloyd]

10. Know thy enemy?

[ComerPerro]

12. I already know them.

Lie, lie, Ronald Reagan, lie, lie, blame liberals, lie, lie, 9/11, lie, lie, Clinton, empty promise, empty promise, lie, blame, lie, lie, Jesus, lie, God, lie, faith, lie, 9/11, lie, lie, Reagan.

[NashVegas]

11. Because They're Pandering to Someone Else

That's not me. When I watch Dem debates, I feel like I'm being condescended to.

I wouldn't be surprised if many Repubs felt the same way.

[ddbaj]

13. One of these men, sadly, could be our next president.

So I am quite interested in what they have to say.

[ComerPerro]

14. its just the same crap. The only "debate" going on among republicans

is how much can be blamed on liberals, and how much should be blamed on 9/11.

Of course, there is also some debate as to how great Reagan was, whether or not he had super powers, etc...

[pingzing58]

15. I for one don't care to hear their duplicity. I'll wait and read later. n/t