'Sicko' the movie by Mike Moore...
The other night I watched ‘Sicko’ the latest documentary by Michael Moore. As expected it was well researched and did not do the pharmaceutical or health insurance industries any favors.
It of course focused on the negative aspects of those two industries as you would expect. No doubt there are some positive stories out there in favor of the health insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies, but I would imagine that they are pretty ‘thin on the ground’.
What is interesting to note, not only from this film but from general financial statistics is just how profitable the health care insurance companies are becoming. Unfortunately these increasing profits are at the expense of the policy holders either by way of higher than needed premiums or denial of claims.
The general principle of insurance originally was to pool the resources of many policy holders to cover the cost of those people who were unfortunate enough to need to make a claim. The company would then make a fair profit on the surplus. I feel that the earlier insurance companies although profit motivated did have some principles and believed that they were providing a needed service to their clients at reasonable cost.
However these principles seem to have gone. Now, the principle is ‘bottom line profit’ no matter who suffers in the process. Make as much money for the shareholders as possible and extract as much as you can from the policy holders.
Personally I am not a believer in ‘health insurance’ although accident insurance is a good idea. For those people (and this would be most) who consider it prudent to have ‘sickness’ insurance I would suggest a very high deductible so it would be only called upon for a serious problem such as an organ transplant etc. The monthly savings on premiums could then be invested in your own ‘wellness’ insurance which would involve ensuring that you ate quality food and had a quality supplement program.
Of course this suggestion would only apply to those people whose basic health foundation is excellent and they know how to keep it that way. Nonetheless, the principle of a higher deductible is not a bad one if you apply the monthly savings to a wellness program and avoid the need to make ‘little’ claims.
I am only 60 years of age and I have never had the need to use a pharmaceutical drug, and I never will, even if I make it to a 100+. If I can’t fix any issues with my body through food and natural supplementation then I will let nature take its course.
I appreciate that is a bit of an odd statement to many people and perhaps one that is considered extreme, but I believe it is achievable. I have yet to see a situation in which someone’s life is enhanced by the long term use of pharmaceuticals.
Unfortunately, many Doctors are to fast to do a quick diagnosis based on what the patient tells them and give a pharmaceutical drug for each symptom. As an example, I had an occasion recently where someone went to the Doctor complaining of various symptoms and walked out with 7 prescriptions. This person was basically healthy and had never been on a prescription drug before. I had a look at the drugs and the side effects of some of the drugs were exactly that which the other drugs were trying to alleviate. Amazing!
As a result that person got sick and if they had been continued they would have become very ill indeed.
Anyway, I would urge you to go and see ‘Sicko’, it is well worth the effort. If nothing else it will get you thinking and maybe with enough thought and discussion the situation may possibly improve? Now, that is the optimist coming out in me!!!
Reader Comments (7)
Hello,
I watched Sicko about a month ago and being from Slovenia I was amazed at how low Michael Moore can go to prove his point. I normally love his work, but he went too far here.
At about 38 minute, he is trying to show the incompetency of USA`s health care by comparing countries on the world`s health care top list. He then says in a very serious tone, that USA is at number 38 and that is just 1 place higher than Slovenia - then it shows a clip from a Slovenian comedy series called "Our Little Clinic", showing an actor cutting somebody`s leg with a chain. - commenting, that it`s no wonder USA is so low on the list, considering how Slovenia treats their patients.
It looked funny, but at the same time it puts big shadow on the author and his credibility. That was supposed to be a real life documentary, but he has set up the scenes just to prove his point. In fact health system in Slovenia is one of the best in Europe and he used data from 1999 to do this comparison. I am confident that in reality we should be much higher than #39 at this point.
His false claims have made quite a buzz here in Slovenia.
Anyways, just wanted everyone to know that you should take some of Michael Moore`s claims with a grain of salt. :)
August 31, 2007 | T-Kai
warren,
I wholeheartedly agree with you in that everyone should take charge of their own health and eliminate the need for the insurance and pharmaceutical companies.
steve laughnan
August 31, 2007 | steve laughnan
Warren,
I totally agree with you on the comments about the movie Sicko. Prescription drugs and those that prescribe them are totally out of hand. My brother recently passed away due to precription drugs. I wish there were more affluent people that would stand up and speak out as Michael Moore has done. He has our President and our health industry pegged.
Thank you so much for standing up,
Jane Trammell
August 31, 2007 | Jane Trammell
Michael Moore also totally ignored the one US health care program that already is provided by the federal govt.: Medicare. If he really believes in a national health care system for all, this is the model he should be focusing on, and figuring out how to expand it to cover those who are not "senior citizens" and/or permanently disabled. Of course, there are coverage problems for many of the people currently enrolled in it....
August 31, 2007 | Kaytee
I agree with most of what you say in this blog, to me Micheal Moore is the ultimate hypocrite, lier, I hope there are better ways out there to prove these points about these important issues. Just not from Moore.
August 31, 2007 | Ken Shapero
Hi Warren,
This time, I think your suggestions are dangerous and irresponsible. Some of your readers will think tuberculosis, athlete's foot (fungus), etc. are all just problems associated with a poor diet. This couldn't be further from the truth. Bacterial pathogens like this will affect you regardless of health and diet; the best cure is using a strong antibacterial agent and an antifungal agent.
Anyway, here's my quick review of Sicko:
"Capitalism works well for many things, but when it comes to blowing out fires, education and healthcare, profit should NOT be the primary concern. This becomes evident as Moore directs the audience through several depressing stories of people with no health insurance and most of all, middle-class people with health insurance who are denied for life-saving operations. The insurance companies view treatment as a monetary loss and they have countless people that look for the slightest exception to rule you out. Doctors part of HMOs actually get bonuses based on how many people they deny. Healing people conflicts with pleasing shareholders. It's definitely a sad day for the U.S. when we apparently don't even make the top 25 in healthcare. Even Cuba's life expectancy is higher.
Moore is not bashing America. He is shedding light on a broken system that reveals its true nature when needed most. He hopes America will come together and show that it can do better for its people. It is a call for reform, and it is the most American message I've heard in a long time. I hope everyone sees this film for what it really is."
September 3, 2007 | Mike Blunt
Hi Mike,
I don't agree that my suggestions are irresponsible and dangerous. What could be more sensible than opting for a high deductible and paying for any minor treatments yourselves and then applying the savings in the insurance premiums to a wellness program?
I don't see how that is either dangerous or irresponsible. I am not suggesting that people do not have any 'sickness insurance' but rather select a deductible which fits within their financial capability and using the savings wisely.
Let's be realistic...a high proportion of the Doctors waiting rooms are for minor ailments what could either be avoided by diet, lifestyle changes and/or education as to the causes. I agree that my suggestions would not work for everyone and I am not suggesting that they be applied universally...but they could be very practical for those thinking people out there who are seriously interested in their good health, and that constitutes the majority of the readers of this blog.
We do agree on one thing…and that is everyone possible should see the movie. :)
September 3, 2007 | Warren Matthews
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