My Rant about health care

Recently if you read my blog you will know that I had the opportunity to experience our health care system in action. I went to the hospital thinking I was having a heart attack. The doctors decided to "ADMIT" me overnight for observation. I have highlighted the word admit because it is wrong. They commit you. Once they do this you can not leave on your own free will. They threaten you with your insurance company telling you that they will not cover your bill if you leave without getting "released" from the doctor. With that in mind, that is how the system starts to treat you. You are no longer a person with rights. Any rights for that matter. They will poke and prod you all night and order whatever tests that they can. Now take the same person with out health care. Chances are they would take a blood test to evaluate the levels of whatever it is they look for I think enzymes and release them once they see the blood levels aren't jumping with bad enzymes. Why I am writing about this months after this experience? This big fight regarding health care is insane! No one is saying what really needs to be said!! The price of health care has gotten out of control in this country. My one night stay in the hospital billed out to a little over $10,000.00. That is insane!! The hospital that billed this is "non profit" I have never seen a more profitable non profit in all my life! Then I went for a follow up stress test. Between the observation (I saw the guy once when he let me out) Echocardiograph and stress test that bill came to over $1500.00 of which I had to pay $230.22. My total patient cost was around $2000.00. I have insurance!!! This is the problem. I am afraid to make appointments to go to the doctor for "well" visits.I think of insurance kind of like a car insurance if I get too many tickets or have and accident or two then my rate goes up. I can barely afford my rate now. Let alone the deductible payments. To top that off can anyone understand the billings that they send you? I went to see my regular doctor who I see maybe once every two or three years. Thought I should follow up. The bill that came in the mail said she charged $330.00 for that visit! The insurance company paid $169.69 of it. I paid $25.00 when I got to the appointment. Somehow $133.22 is not charged because I went to the right provider! Once she sent me for a test and I went to where she asked me to go and it was the wrong provider! I had to pay out of my pocket $800.00. Not only is it too expensive but it is too confusing!! If I had my health care paid for me and my deductible was nothing I wouldn't understand what all the fuss is about either. I am a middle class hard working self employed citizen that at any minute could be put into bankruptcy if I get a catastrophic illness! Why don't we hear that costs are out of control and Americans have the right to basic health care. Who are these people that are against trying to fix a system that has gotten so far out of whack? I've talked with Canadians and they don't complain about their health care. We do!