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Richard Lynch, an awesome PHP community guy and former colleague needs our help

richardlynch.blogspot.com

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Re: Richard Lynch, an awesome PHP community guy and former colleague needs our help

#131

Post by yscale »

colechristensen wrote: post #116
amix wrote: post #104

I donated $50, but I really wish US (and other countries) would reconsider their broken healthcare systems. My dad died of cancer a few years ago and I am really glad we lived in Denmark when he got it - - with a great public healthcare system. He lived 2 years with his cancer, which is a lot when you are counting days. Not many normal people can afford these things (as each of my dads treatments cost about 20.000USD…

I don't particularly see this as being a strong problem with American healthcare. You can buy health insurance to pay for any and all medical expenses. The healthcare system is broken if you do an honest day's work and can't afford insurance, but that's not what we're talking about here. There is a reason that most of the best hospitals in the world are American, and the way we fund our healthcare is that reason. Yes…

It saddens me that some people look at travesties like this and think "fuck him, the system is great, three cheers for the status quo."

This despite the fact that any honest reading of our medical outcomes shows that America gets very average medical care, and that we pay about twice per capita what the best care in the world costs.

I mean, I know there's a lot of propaganda out there, and I know there are a lot of sociopaths who are eager to believe it... but I'd think you'd keep your dishonest pro-status-quo, anti-efficiency nonsense out of a thread like this one. Especially since your post implies an utterly nonsensical (and clearly grossly uninformed) dichotomy that the only options are pure state control or the status quo, when any informed survey of developed nations would show many other models, some of which would work well in the US.

Sadly, progress is stalled and we all suffer because there are obstructionist assholes like you, willing to ignorantly pretend that the status quo is the best in the world.

Re: Richard Lynch, an awesome PHP community guy and former colleague needs our help

#135

Post by hawkharris »

colechristensen wrote: post #116
amix wrote: post #104

I donated $50, but I really wish US (and other countries) would reconsider their broken healthcare systems. My dad died of cancer a few years ago and I am really glad we lived in Denmark when he got it - - with a great public healthcare system. He lived 2 years with his cancer, which is a lot when you are counting days. Not many normal people can afford these things (as each of my dads treatments cost about 20.000USD…

I don't particularly see this as being a strong problem with American healthcare. You can buy health insurance to pay for any and all medical expenses. The healthcare system is broken if you do an honest day's work and can't afford insurance, but that's not what we're talking about here. There is a reason that most of the best hospitals in the world are American, and the way we fund our healthcare is that reason. Yes…

The healthcare system is broken if you do an honest day's work and can't afford insurance...

A large segment of the United States falls in this category. In 2012, over 47 million non-elderly Americans were underinsured for health care: http://kff.org/uninsured/fact-sheet/key-facts-about-the-unin...

Also in the report: "The majority of the uninsured are in low-income working families. Reflecting the more limited availability of public coverage, adults are more likely to be uninsured than children. People of color are at higher risk of being uninsured than non-Hispanic Whites."

Re: Richard Lynch, an awesome PHP community guy and former colleague needs our help

#136

Post by emhart »

miles_matthias wrote: post #54
sliverstorm wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Side note - is that really what people are paying for lattes now?

No, $3-$5 last time I got one.

I tend to go soy + an extra shot, dings me for $6-ish

Re: Richard Lynch, an awesome PHP community guy and former colleague needs our help

#137

Post by emhart »

radicalbyte wrote: post #19

Just read his series of post over his ordeal. He really has had a rough time. Guys (and gals) of HN, let see if our little community can get to together to help Richard enjoy his last days (and maybe provide a bit for his family if we do really well). Most of us can miss $20, and Richard and his family need it more than must of us do..

I was feeling for him & those that knew him, but purely observing, as I was well outside his circle of influence. Then I read your comment and snapped back to humanity, remembered that this was a person and I was a person and I'm doing OK enough to extend some cash, regardless of the separation of our worlds. Thanks for posting your comment.

Re: Richard Lynch, an awesome PHP community guy and former colleague needs our help

#138

Post by secstate »

colechristensen wrote: post #124
doktrin wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The healthcare system is broken if you do an honest day's work and can't afford insurance, but that's not what we're talking about here. Isn't it, though? If you replace "insurance" with "appropriate medical care" that does in fact sound like what we're talking about. This individual was a programmer, who based on his blog only quit his job once he was physically unable to perform the duties required - and yet, is…

You can buy insurance which covers home health care and doesn't cost a cent after a deductible of a few thousand dollars. You can buy insurance which provides income if you can't work because of an illness... there are also several government programs that help the disabled. You can also save money for emergencies and not live in debt beyond your means your whole life as too many Americans do. Sometimes bad luck stri…

The problem with your Rand-esque proposal that if we all saved and lived below our means would be rolling in it, is that we don't all have the privilege of living in state or region that provides reasonable healthcare.

Any guesses what a family policy with a $10,000 (?!) deductible goes for in Maine? $1,400. Say what? That's if you don't get insurance through your employer, which is becoming more rare everyday as insurance negotiations for employers gets stupid expensive everyday too. That's approaching 30% of my annual salary, and we'd have to pay up to $10,000 before anything kicks in.

Oh, and routine medical visits aren't covered either, so that just encourages you to not see a doctor unless you really need to. Who honestly wants to drop $200 annually to have someone with 5 years of med school tell you you're fine, but could lose a little weight.

The system is broken. If you're covered by insurance you have no right to speak to any of this. If you live in a state where individual policy pools are cost effective, you have no right to speak to any of this.

The state of the matter is that the rest of the world has figured this out. And while there will always be challenges figuring out when $84,000 for open heart surgery on a 90 year old man is warranted, we can do better than right now.

TLDR; Health care that's twice as expensive and general health that's not even in the top 25 in the world anymore. And no, people go to Thailand for really expensive experimental surgeries (done by American doctors, granted), these days.

Re: Richard Lynch, an awesome PHP community guy and former colleague needs our help

#139

Post by shadowwolf007 »

coherentpony wrote: post #96
gamblor956 wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You need to contact a lawyer. If you're clearing out your savings to pay for her treatment (but not for the in-home PCA), there's a good chance her insurer is committing a number of violations regarding her coverage. For many insurers, having a lawyer breathing down their necks about coverage decisions also tends to be a good way to get them to approve treatment without giving you the runaround.

So they would have spent that money on a lawyer instead. It doesn't matter what you do, you can't escape the astronomical cost of healthcare in the US.

As someone who has been in this situation, I can attest the only difference between the two situations is that if you go to a lawyer your mom doesn't get all treatments in the meantime.

Fortunately for me, the people at Mayo Clinic are amazing and gave treatment they knew we couldn't even start to dream to pay for. Not everyone is so lucky.

Ended up dropping the whole thing though. And lawyer said it was slam dunk malpractice, but reality bites and it's amazing what hospitals can do.

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