Holy crud--today's September 11th--I didn't even realize it. It's amazing how little we're hearing from the media on this year's 'anniversary.' No made for TV movies or four-hour documentaries. I guess it's easy for things to sneak up on you without the press exploiting it.

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Man, I hate insurance (just 'cause I stopped complaining doesn't mean it's not true). Car insurance, health insurance, life insurance--it's all a scam. You pay and pay and pay...and you never get back what you put into it. And why would you? Companies aren't in business to lose money and the only way they turn a profit is if they take in more money than they give out. And the worst part about this is I feel like I'm an island--no one will agree with me or even consider what I'm trying to say.

The doctor prescribed a medication for my asthma--unfortunately, my insurance won't cover it. See, I'm on some sorta jewsurance that doesn't seem to cover much of anything--the biggest problem being medication. My insurance will gladly buy me generic drugs (the cheap shit) but when it comes to brand name drugs, I gotta pay for it out of my pocket (the expensive shit). And of course, every single prescription I've had hasn't been available in generic form. The new medicine I was prescribed costs $100 for a 30-day supply.

And this is what really, really irks me: I know my insurance company is making more than $100 a month off of me. My employer pays 90 per cent of my monthly insurance premium. Since I pay about $20 a month that means my insurance dues are around $200 a month. Imagine...$200 a month for a healthy, young male. It doesn't cost $200 a month to keep me healthy--I'd hate to see what the elderly or smokers hafta pay.

I would rather cancel my insurance and have my employer pay me that $200 a month. I could take that 200 and stick it in the bank--call it my medical fund. Anytime I gotta pay for anything health related, it could come out of there.

Sounds crazy? Not really.

If I go see a doctor now, I hafta pay a $20 co-pay; when I was sick and insuranceless, the same office charged me $50. The only way it ends up costing me 200 bucks a month there is if I see the doctor every other day.

Prescriptions: clearly not covered already. That's not worth $200 a month 'cause I'm already paying full price for them.

And then there's the big one: what happens if I hafta go to the hospital? While I know I'm certainly injury prone, that danger certainly doesn't warrant a $200 a month bill. Think about it: over the past two years, it has cost more than $5000 to insure me--that's a lot of dough. I know $5000 won't cover any serious damage, but it's a start. If I could go another two or three years injury free, I'll have more than enough to cover an emergency visit or two.

The key is to never-ever spend the medical fund. It's there for a reason. See, insurance companies have the bankroll to support an unexpected medical expense: most people do not. That's why I'll sit on the medical fund--so I can afford any costly medical needs I may have. And if I go my whole life without using it, I can have a nice funeral.

Unfortunately, everyone thinks I'm crazy. They fail to see the logic behind it--that don't see the unnecessary expenses that is the insurance business. If I go to the doctor and pay him cash for my visit, the money goes to the doctor's office. But with insurance companies, there are countless administrators who hafta get paid. Paper pushers who have nothing to do with medical care. Then there's the bigwigs who run the company--they need their money. A much smaller percentage of your money actually goes to medical care. That's why I think you'll be able to provide yourself with much better and cheaper care if you ditch the bureaucrats and pay for only what you get.

The Girlfriend doesn't buy it. My family doesn't buy it. Even my employer (who won't let me do it) doesn't buy it. They all think I'm crazy for not wanting medical insurance.

The thing is, people used to survive without insurance. Back in the 50s if you were sick, the doctor came to you for an examination. There were no co-pays or pre-approvals needed: you simply handed him cash out of your pocket. And things actually worked. Sure, doctors smoked in delivery rooms and regularly prescribed enemas, but can you really argue that today's health care coverage is better?

There's no such thing as a free lunch: the cash has to go somewhere. And the simple truth is insurance companies wouldn't be in business if you didn't pay them more than the service cost of the services they provided you.

© 2007 siknerd.com