Health Care Medicare Review

I have been paying for  Social Security and Medicare for a long time.  I looked forward to the time I could get off my high-cost private insurance and onto Social Security and Medicare.

Medicare coverage offers a bit less than that of the private insurance, but the private insurance was cost-prohibitive.  Mostly I used the insurance and now Medicare for medication purchases through drug plans.

Now, here is the first problem with Medicare--the drug plans and health plans (plural) from which you have to make your selection.  Congress set this up in such a way that too many insurance companies are competing for the business.  Across the country there are many, many insurance companies, each with their plan for providing medications and insurance coverage to "the elderly".

If there is any one group that needs more consideration, help, care, attention, clearer information, it is "the elderly".  These drug plans and health plans are not clear; indeed, they are very confusing.  What else could they be when they've been developed and written by lawyers, doctors, congress-people, who are intent on making it all appear to provide more than it ever will.

In my rural county in central Florida, I printed from the Medicare website the fourteen insurance companies I was afforded to make my selection.  After going through the fourteen, five were picked as the only ones I would consider.  I went through the coverage each one of the five provided and finally settled on one.  I have that one now; and, on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a 8--that's after two months of use.

As I mentioned in an earlier paragraph, one of the problems is too many insurance companies to compare and choose from.  In my judgment, Congress was in a much better position to deal with insurance companies than an "elderly" person in applying coverage needs to coverage supplied.

Let Congress pick the best five or ten, whatever they decided, and have the five, or whatever, get together and formulate plans to give "the elderly" what they need at a price they can afford, and still have enough money to live within the bounds of social security--not Social Security with capital letters, but the thing that gave Social Security its name; that being security within the social bounds of the community in which you live.

When I say social security, I mean enough income to live comfortably:  food, heat & AC, housing, clothes, medical supplies and equipment, medicine, doctor care, dental care, eye care, hearing care, hospital care, and, of course, the abhorrent, absolutely-necessary-when-the-time-comes nursing home care and needs therein.

I know people who are in their 80s and 90s now who started their Social Security back in days when $600-$700 a month was enough to provide close-to-social security.  Now, of course, they are still getting the same amount with only the infinitesimal 3% increase per year. 

I am not able to imagine how they can handle daily needs, much less have any social security.  It's a pitiful situation with no apparent help in sight.  Actually, there are less services provided now than in the past under Medicare.  If anything, the only attention given to the neglected needs of "the elderly" could be likened to trying to remove a thorn in the side.

Some of these folks can't see because they weren't given a new pair of glasses as they needed them; they may have been given a portion of the cost of one pair, and then only after cataract surgery.  They can't eat whole food because they can't chew, no teeth.  The only dental coverage besides a yearly cleaning is pulling teeth, no providing of dentures. 

Who in our society is entitled to more help?--only the children.  And, thank God, the children are mostly taken care of.  At least they make a big show about taking care of the children.  But "the elderly" are too as children, with needs right up until death.  Congress should be giving more help, care, advice, money, protection.  If not out of compassion and love, then out of the greediness of their souls for the almighty vote.

It seems these days that there is no political entity seeking "the elderly" vote even though there are probably more votes in that population segment than any other.  If they wanted our vote, wouldn't they be trying to buy it with services and gifts of money, for instance, as they are with the illegal immigrants.

What do you think--is the United Stated Congress being fair and honest in its running of the Medicare program or is this needed program being treated as many other things under the control of Congress--as a place to decrease the spending (and thus the services provided)  and use that money for special interests in home states?