Rep. Carroll calls the legislation a starting point to hold unvaccinated responsible.
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Willfully unvaccinated should pay 100% of COVID hospital bills, lawmaker says
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This should have happened months ago when it became blindingly obvious that asking nicely wasn't going to work.
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SpiritOfFen
Wise, Aged Ars Veteran
I don't see it passing or sticking, but just like when I buy a power ball ticket on that rare occasion, I can temporarily put myself into a happy world of fantasy that it does.
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Asking nicely, begging, awarding cash prizes, etc. Never try to meet these people half way, they will only take a step back.
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Statistical
Ars Legatus Legionis
Better would be to raise premiums instead of not covering. Most of the anti-vaxxer idiots believe it is a hoax, overblown, will never need hospital, just guzzle horsey paste, etc.
By the time they are in the hospital they have already done damage. They have infected other people and they are using up hospital capacity. Then they will die and not pay the bills, declaring bankruptcy and not pay the bills, or simply let it go to collections and eventually disappear and not pay the bills. My guess is the average antivaxxer is not the financial elite.
If their monthly premiums are $200 more that is an immediate and direct cost not a future hypothetical. I mean antivaxxers aren't making logical longterm plans.
By the time they are in the hospital they have already done damage. They have infected other people and they are using up hospital capacity. Then they will die and not pay the bills, declaring bankruptcy and not pay the bills, or simply let it go to collections and eventually disappear and not pay the bills. My guess is the average antivaxxer is not the financial elite.
If their monthly premiums are $200 more that is an immediate and direct cost not a future hypothetical. I mean antivaxxers aren't making logical longterm plans.
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When libertarian theoretical concepts face harsh reality, like a deer in the headlights.
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I wouldn't wish hospital debt on someone for being an idiot. I would however be very satisfied if we mandated jabs for everyone except actual medical exemptions. That's what actually makes a difference in vaccination rates, not throwing idiots to business vultures. That just might make someone feel smug at best.
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Can someone help my understand why, by this logic, we should also similarly make people pay if they are injured in a car wreck with no seatbelt on?
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Disease propagation has a really big social cost, and so society has an interest in minimizing the damage caused by disease spread. A choice to not wear a seatbelt or to smoke has greater personal costs than societal costs.
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I'm not sure how I could support this measure and also support health care policies that prevent people from being bankrupted by medical bills. As furious as the unvaccinated make me, if I need to pick one, I'll pick the latter.
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ABOUT EFFING TIME. Should have been this way 4 months ago. And here in Canada, with our socialized medicine, it should have been a no-brainer slam dunk. Make 'em pay upfront, full cost, no insurance.
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Of the employers who offer their employees health insurance, many pay a fixed portion of the premiums. They may offer to pay a larger portion as an incentive for employees with good health habits. The idea is that if their employees are healthier the premiums will not rise as fast and they will save money long term.
They are not insurers so aren't governed by regulations on insurers, and they are not discriminating because everyone pays the same regardless of health status. The incentive is for the health EFFORTS.
They are not insurers so aren't governed by regulations on insurers, and they are not discriminating because everyone pays the same regardless of health status. The incentive is for the health EFFORTS.
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When your are using the same line of argument as MTG, you really need to revisit your thinking
Let Stephen Colbert explain it for you:
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This only is good if the incentive makes people get vaccinated. Humans aren't always good at choices.
If it doesn't work then you just have a bunch if more pissy, bankrupt folks and you just passed the costs on to the medical institution.
And if this doesn't work all you did was just protect insurance companies....
If this doesn't make people get vaccinated there's a lot of unintended consequences.
As much as this provides a nice satisfying 'fuck'm', this could be a terrible / stupid policy.
If it doesn't work then you just have a bunch if more pissy, bankrupt folks and you just passed the costs on to the medical institution.
And if this doesn't work all you did was just protect insurance companies....
If this doesn't make people get vaccinated there's a lot of unintended consequences.
As much as this provides a nice satisfying 'fuck'm', this could be a terrible / stupid policy.
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The portions of it that are contrary to ACA will be vacated (because federal law is supreme). It might not be the whole thing. ACA defines minimum standards for health insurance.
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I'd say yes but that is a whataboutism comment that does not compare to infectious disease that kills other people and causes major societal impact.
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Vaccinated people are less likely to do so and, in general, engage in more responsible social behaviors that mitigate the spread when infected.
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Love the idea, unfortunately a similar law would never work in my country (with our evil socialized medicine). Provincial governments have been pretty good about making tests a) mandatory and b) not free, which is a nice kick in the teeth for anti-vaxxers.
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Huh.... If most of the unvaxxed are concentrated in red states / counties that voted for Trump, I wonder if they'd see the irony that if they were to be held financially accountable for their actions, driven into medical debt worth tens (if not hundreds) of thousands of dollars, and end up needing to rely on the left-wing socialist programs to take care of their family.
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I'm of two minds on this. On the one hand, in this specific instance, it's a good thing. These assholes are endangering the lives of others needlessly and likely costing insurance companies a lot of money. It seems only fair that they be wholly responsible for the bill since they took zero preventative measures.
OTOH, if you start chipping away at protections against preexisting conditions we just go right back to the mess we were in pre-Obamacare. Just wait until some death culters are in power and they decide to use the precedent to remove further protections from Obamacare.
In this case it seems like we have to choose between being kicked in the teeth and being kicked in the teeth with a steel toed boot by an NFL place kicker.
OTOH, if you start chipping away at protections against preexisting conditions we just go right back to the mess we were in pre-Obamacare. Just wait until some death culters are in power and they decide to use the precedent to remove further protections from Obamacare.
In this case it seems like we have to choose between being kicked in the teeth and being kicked in the teeth with a steel toed boot by an NFL place kicker.
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the problem is this leaves hospital's completely holding the bag on these bills, because these people won't pay. Rates will still go up when hospitals start re-negotiating even higher rates with insurance companies to make up for all the defaulted bills from these morons.
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Vaccinated people generally do not end up in the hospital. That's what we're talking about here: Should the vaccinated subsidize the cost of the unvaccinated for COVID their hospitalization.
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