Doonesbury Say What?

[thewayne]

"You know, before we all started having health care, in the olden days our grandparents, they would bring a chicken to the doctor, they would say I'll paint your house. I mean, that's the old days of what people would do to get health care with your doctors. Doctors are very sympathetic people. I'm not backing down from that system."
-- Sue Lowden, U.S. Senate candidate in Nevada

The meds for my condition, if I didn't have insurance through my wife, would run $10,000 a month.

That's a lot of chickens and painting.


Reality check, table 4?

Comments

[beeyochkitty.livejournal.com]

Seriously. I had three surgeries in three years. Can you imagine showing up to the Mayo Clinic with chickens?

[deborak]

There are plenty of medical clinics that do take barter in my neck of the woods. From a local news article:

"At the Barter Clinic in Floyd, Virginia ten per cent of the clinic's patients pay for their services using "alternative means," said a doctor there. Whether firewood, cabbage or baby-sitting is on offer, the office calculates its value in dollars. Other clinics have established a special bonus point system for bartered transactions."

[beeyochkitty.livejournal.com]

I would love that. Still, it doesn't happen in Phoenix. Ever.

I don't think I have anything worth the $150,000 just one of my surgeries cost, anyway. Without the pre- and post- doc visits.

[thewayne.livejournal.com]

Very cool. I have no problem with barter, I think it's a good thing. But I see a problem with scaling in extreme cases like mine.

[silveradept]

That's nice, for those that have things to barter. That said, aren't we supposed to not have a system where people have to give away prized possessions and/or bankrupt themselves just so they can stay alive and healthy?

[donkey-hokey.livejournal.com]

In the "olden days", doctors didn't have to pay thousands of dollars in malpractice insurance.