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My husband has a good question, and maybe someone here knows

Posted: Aug 17, 2012

His question was if, under the Romney/Ryan plan, they want to send people vouchers for their healthcare....would they have a way of knowing that's what it was spent on? How would they guarantee that people didn't just keep the money and go without any insurance coverage--still ending up in the ER like they do now, where they can't be denied treatment, and we all end up continuing to shoulder their unpaid medical bills.

Would it be an actual paper check or voucher of some sort that is sent to your home each month? I can't imagine that, in this electronic-banking age. Would they issue a credit usable only for an insurance company?...but then, what kind of mess would it be if and when people change companies from time to time?

I just wonder how the logistics of this would work, if anybody here has a general idea. TIA!

;

Good question...sm - JTBB

[ In Reply To ..]
I think it could be controlled to some extent in that you could use it for just paticular items...doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, etc. The biggest problem I have with vouchers is that the vouchers they would send out would be a set amount...as in not guaranteed to cover expenses as it is now. What this does is put anything above and beyond that set voucher right back on the patient. Meanwhile, forcing seniors to deal with the private sector just puts more money in the pocket of private insurance companies.

The amount I heard calculated that Sr. citizens would lose per year was $6,000 - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
I was watching people discuss the voucher system. They calculated that it would mean that a loss of $6,000/year for Medicare recipients. If medical costs go up, the amount the patient would be responsible for paying out of pocket would go up. The voucher system would not be adjusted if costs rise.

that's a huge amount - nm

[ In Reply To ..]

AARP's quote is $6400 nm - bootstraps

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x

Vouchers - indigocarmine

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Not sure, but my impression is that you provide proof to an insurance company that you're over 65, the insurance company gives you the reduced premium, and the insurance company then claims the value of the voucher from the govt.

Healthcare vouchers - greyhound mom

[ In Reply To ..]
I would think the logical thing would be that people would get a card similar to a Link card instead of paper vouchers. The food stamps would get all crumpled up or lost. Also, they need to have a picture on the card showing who is eligible. If there is a number on the card, then it probably would be computerized (just like our credit cards). Also they need some honest people to run the program as taking care of applications and things like that. Upon application, the applicants would have to show proof of insurance, etc. Just hope it doesn't turn out like Medicaid did, where everything is a mess and so much dishonesty.

"Vouchers" make it feel a little like food stamps - My opinion

[ In Reply To ..]
Just the idea of "vouchers" makes it seem like anyone on Medicare is a second-class citizen. It isn't a charity program, but the voucher system makes it seem that way.

Well, maybe found a bit of an answer.... - s/m

[ In Reply To ..]
Found this after some searching: "The voucher payments would go directly from the government to the private insurance companies that people selected."

It sounds like people opting for the voucher would choose from a list of insurance providers. I didn't read this, but I'm guessing that you would be able to change to a different provider...possibly limited to being locked in with a particular provider for 1 year, like we are with our employer-sponsored health plans. I also would guess you'd need to be sure to elect changes and let the gov't know each year by a certain deadline. I could see this as possibly being confusing when people become really elderly, if they don't have a younger relative nearby to help them with it.

Seems like the insurance providers would need to have some sort of control over premium prices, too, so they couldn't jack up the premium to run way more than the voucher would cover. I don't suppose the ins. companies would like governmental involvement, though....businesses want to be "left alone."

Hmmmm.....lots to think about.

Oh, and then I also wonder what happens - if you don't opt for the voucher.

[ In Reply To ..]
It's being described that seniors would have a choice between a voucher or a traditional Medicare plan. Maybe they will be REQUIRED to choose one or the other; but if a senior doesn't submit ANY choice, I suppose they would default to the traditional Medicare plan(??).

I'm still not convinced that keeping everyone under the same Medicare plan isn't simpler and has more security that seniors won't have to cough up a big, unexpected out-of-pocket expense.

I would definitely opt for the traditional Medicare plan - nm

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

You get a voucher payable to insurance co's and you try to find one to accept your voucher - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
For me, it puts me right back into the position of trying to find a private insurance company that doesn't price me out.

The voucher system means that you get a voucher worth a certain amount of money. You then go out and find a private company that will accept your voucher, considering your medical history, age, and their judgement of your ability to pay the part that the voucher doesn't pay.

It puts me in a bad position. I don't think very highly of the voucher system.

So, another question I thought of... - (see message)

[ In Reply To ..]
....is: Let's say you get a voucher for "X" amount per year to go towards your health insurance premium. I read one thought that $8,000 per year is what they predict could be the amount for the year 2023 (I think). Then, let's say you put that toward the premiums at the ins. co. of your own choosing. Well, if the ins. coverage only pays for a certain amount (or has a deductible), you would still be having to come up with your out-of-pocket expenses....right?

My 84-year-old mother-in-law gets cancer treatments, paid in full by Medicare, at $4,000 per treatment!!!! She used to go weekly, then cut back to monthly, and now every 3 months.....but her treatment has been going on for several years now!!! (I know it sounds crazy...or at least it does to me...but that's how it is.) Now, if she were given a voucher to pay for the insurance premiums, she would apparently have to just go ahead and die from the cancer because there's NO WAY she could afford even $2,500 annual out-of-pocket expenses.

I realize that an 84-year-old wouldn't be affected by the proposed Ryan Medicare plan, but that's just an example of the situation someone under 55 could be in in 30 or so years.

Speaking of Death Panels, Ryan's plan will essentially be one - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
I've read several books about the new healthcare program and Ryan's plan. Frankly, I'm not sure how important it is to me that 26-year-olds can stay on their parents' plan in the new Obama system. On the other hand, it is vitally important to me that people can't be kicked out because of pre-existing conditions, because that has happened to me. Most people are just one catastrophic illness away from bankruptcy. The new program helps with that. The Ryan voucher plan puts us right back in jeopardy of bankruptcy again. When weighing the two, the Ryan plan scares me personally, in my own situation, because it puts the cards back in the hands of private insurance companies. Private insurance companies have not been good for me. I don't trust them to do what is right if the voucher system goes into effect. Sure, there would be regulation, but just like the very wealthy have high-powered lawyers and accountants to find loopholes, so will the giant private insurance companies.

I think it works similar to coupon clipping for groceries - Not in favor of vouchers

[ In Reply To ..]
If you like clipping coupons and taking them to the grocery store, you're probably going to love the voucher system. It's just not my cup of tea.

I'm angry that Congress has been taking money from the account that was meant for Medicare. Remember those silly Saturday Night Live commercials with Gore talking about if he were elected, he would put Medicare in a "LOCK BOX!" I didn't have any idea what the joke was all about. Now I do. The politicians have been stealing from that fund for years. Nobody ever did put it in a "lock box" and now senior citizens will face the consequences. By the way, we will all be senior citizens if we live long enough. It's going to affect all of us.

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