A Ron paul 2008 campaign manager died from an easily treatable disease because the good doctor didn't see fit to provide insurance. How goddamn fucking compassionate.
A Ron paul 2008 campaign manager died from an easily treatable disease because the good doctor didn't see fit to provide insurance. How goddamn fucking compassionate.
That is a gross mischaracterization of the facts.
1) Kent Snyder elected not to purchase health insurance. As most campaigns are inconsistently funded and are seasonal, all staff generally are paid on a contractor basis.
2) Snyder received ample treatment. The hospital billed his family $400,000 for the care.
3) Insurance in this case would not have affected the outcome of Snyder's survival, only the debt burden on his family.
4) The hospital and the doctors did not elect to waive the bill to Snyder's family. The above video references that Paul waived the bill for a couple of a stillborn baby.
1) Kent Snyder elected not to purchase health insurance. As most campaigns are inconsistently funded and are seasonal, all staff generally are paid on a contractor basis.
This is anecdotal, but the person I originally heard this story from, worked for the Tom Daschle (Former rep of South Dakota, former minority leader) campaign staff and was covered until he left for Academia.
2) Snyder received ample treatment. The hospital billed his family $400,000 for the care.
Yes, and if he were uninsured, his family wouldn't be shouldering his debt. While I have seen no evidence either way in Snyder's case, many uninsured people don't get treatment for potentially curable and dangerous diseases right away in lieu of hoping that the disease goes away. This could have happened here (400k for Pneumonia for a non-senior? Either it was a horrid case or he waited too long to go to the hospital)
3) Insurance in this case would not have affected the outcome of Snyder's survival, only the debt burden on his family.
See above. Insurance usually means earlier treatment, and may have affected his case. I'm not a psychic and haven't actually seen a medical professionals opinion on this case, so I can't make a solid statement that he would or would not have lived longer with earlier treatment.
4) The hospital and the doctors did not elect to waive the bill to Snyder's family. The above video references that Paul waived the bill for a couple of a stillborn baby.
Over a third of a million dollars is harder for a hospital to waive than a few hours of a doctor's own time. I'm not saying that it wasn't great of Doctor Paul to do so, but to bill him as some magnanimous, selfless man is pretty out of touch considering, even if he didn't have a role in Snyder's death from the lack of insurance, he's more than happy to champion the policies that lead to his death and his family's financial burden*
*Which, if unpaid back to the hospital, ends up raising the costs collectively for everyone to repay the debt, meaning that we can either pay for the uninsured to have insurance... or pay for the uninsured anyway.
Techgamer wrote: This is anecdotal, but the person I originally heard this story from, worked for the Tom Daschle (Former rep of South Dakota, former minority leader) campaign staff and was covered until he left for Academia.
Just to clarify, was this his campaign staff or his senatorial staff? Congressional and Senatorial staff _do_ generally receive health benefits, campaign staff is a different issue. If your friend was a campaign staffer and not on Sen. Daschle's regular staff and he/she received health insurance, that's great -- I'll remember this anecdote.
Yes, and if he were uninsured, his family wouldn't be shouldering his debt. While I have seen no evidence either way in Snyder's case, many uninsured people don't get treatment for potentially curable and dangerous diseases right away in lieu of hoping that the disease goes away. This could have happened here (400k for Pneumonia for a non-senior? Either it was a horrid case or he waited too long to go to the hospital)
To cut to the chase, Kent Snyder had AIDS. No preemptive care nor insurance could have saved his life. Unless you are Magic Johnson and can spend millions of dollars a year on a massive cocktail of HIV/AIDS drugs, it's an early death.
See above. Insurance usually means earlier treatment, and may have affected his case. I'm not a psychic and haven't actually seen a medical professionals opinion on this case, so I can't make a solid statement that he would or would not have lived longer with earlier treatment.
Perhaps, but this is a straw man at best.
Over a third of a million dollars is harder for a hospital to waive than a few hours of a doctor's own time. I'm not saying that it wasn't great of Doctor Paul to do so, but to bill him as some magnanimous, selfless man is pretty out of touch considering, even if he didn't have a role in Snyder's death from the lack of insurance, he's more than happy to champion the policies that lead to his death and his family's financial burden*
Again, you are grossly mischaracterizing the situation. He does not champion policies that lead to Kent Snyder's death. And his personal policy as a doctor did not lead to a family's financial burden.
*Which, if unpaid back to the hospital, ends up raising the costs collectively for everyone to repay the debt, meaning that we can either pay for the uninsured to have insurance... or pay for the uninsured anyway.
Precisely. But, I do want to account for a slight difference. Contract law effective creates a bond between Snyder's family and the hospital. The hospital can sell that bond for whatever they calculate as the real value of collection.
Something to consider, Techgamer... hospital care never assures a "cure". Oncologists and radiologists will refer to "survival rates" never "cure rates". You can have a near infinite well of money to throw at medicine and you cannot escape the inevitability of a mortal diagnosis.
