[Newsbot]

Title: B.C. seniors seek to eliminate medical premiums
Category: Health
Posted By: Hyack
Date: 2011-08-23 22:11:41
Canadian

[Scape]

They should throw in drug coverage while they are at it.

[BartSimpson]

Scape Scape:

They should throw in drug coverage while they are at it.

And hookers, hockey tickets, and free beer.

[DanSC]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

And hookers, hockey tickets, and free beer.

Actually, forget the tickets and beer.

[Scape]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Scape Scape:

They should throw in drug coverage while they are at it.

And hookers, hockey tickets, and free beer.

Alberta already does

[Freakinoldguy]

It'll never happen here. This province is a mecca for seniors to retire to, so if they had no premiums or prescription costs our taxes would be doubled within the hour.

The only reason Ontario and Alberta can do it is because most of their seniors now live in BC.

Plus can you imagine if every boomer stopped paying premiums and prescription costs? The only way you could make up the shortfall would be to have the entitled generations make it up and I don't think that'd go over to well.

My guess is that the next cull the government would be talking about wouldn't be deer.

[Caelon]

The problem in the background is the seniors are becoming the population bulge that will elect politicians. You will see more and more parties generating policies aimed at winning the senior vote. The catch 22 is there are not enough younger people to cover the cost of the programs. We may see the right hand giving more benefits to seniors in order to get elected and the left hand raising the age to receive the benefits. We are seeing the first baby steps with CPP. Next you will need to be 67 or more to start your senior hand outs.

[herbie]

BC is one of the last provinces to charge the premiums. Pain in the ass for employers, absurd because they can't deny coverage if you don't pay them, people in lower income levels aren't charged them...
could've been a selling point in the HST debate. Offer to get rid of them and keep the 12% HST.

[andyt]

herbie herbie:

could've been a selling point in the HST debate. Offer to get rid of them and keep the 12% HST.

Now that's a good idea. Except the HST was sold as revenue neutral.

[Scape]

herbie herbie:

BC is one of the last provinces to charge the premiums. Pain in the ass for employers, absurd because they can't deny coverage if you don't pay them, people in lower income levels aren't charged them...
could've been a selling point in the HST debate. Offer to get rid of them and keep the 12% HST.

Misnomer. BC is one of the last to charge in the form of premiums. EVERY province still charges for services via general revenue in the income tax and it comes out in the provincial transfer payments, you just don't get a bill in the mail.

[andyt]

I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here. Of course health care isn't free - it has to be paid out of general revenue. But user fees are just a regressive tax on top of that. Just hurts the low to middle income earner so the high income people can pay a bit less tax. People have called it a poll tax, because it is legally mandated that you pay it and isn't based on income.

[Scape]

Incorrect. MSP premiums are collected instead of general revenue. IE it is the province of BC, not the feds, that bill you.

[herbie]

Not that it matters a damn what pocket they take it from.
The opportunity was missed to get rid of the premiums without hiking income tax. They fucked up.
Not a goodam member or employee of any level of gov't will ever say that, so I will say it for them.
They fucked up.

[Freakinoldguy]

Fuckem we seniors should get everything "free, free, free I say" or at least till the system implodes.

There should be some accomodation made for seniors but I don't think we'll ever see it, since there's a whole generation comming to that age at once.

The only thing I'd ask of the Government is to cover the cost for low income seniors so they don't have to decide whether to eat or get their required medicines.

If we can afford to give needles to junkies and build social housing for them where it's not wanted, we sure as fuck should be able to take care of our low income seniors and the fact that we don't, speaks volumes about the touchy fucking feel good crowd in this province.

[Scape]

In effect they do cover the cost for low income seniors already. The subsidy that is applied to both MSP and Phamacare is income based. Make under 15k and Phamacare picks up the tab anyway and under 22k and MSP doesn't bill you either.