mainedpc t1_iycuaxh wrote
Reply to comment by arms_room_rat in Maine is out of pediatric hospital beds. “As of Nov. 24, about 30,000 of the country's 40,000 pediatric hospital beds were available. Five states are at 90% capacity or higher. Currently the most overwhelmed state is Maine, at 109% capacity” by membaberry18
Much, if not most, of the money in pediatric healthcare is from the government, Medicaid (Mainecare). The hospitals and clinics are very responsive to whatever their source of money wants.
The problems in healthcare are a lot more complicated than your post would suggest.
arms_room_rat t1_iycuk8t wrote
Obviously if reimbursement were higher for kids then hospitals would be incentivized to have more pediatric beds - nothing in my post suggests otherwise.
mainedpc t1_iyd4kjo wrote
Then if we need more beds, the government could pay for keeping beds available. Of course, "beds" need nurses and CNAs which are in short supply and expensive to maintain compared to a wing of empty beds.
Why do you expect hospitals to do this without getting paid?
arms_room_rat t1_iydv81o wrote
I don't, I literally just said reimbursement is too low and in my previous post as well. Wow, there really seems to be a reading comprehension issue going on in here today.
Standsaboxer t1_iycwiym wrote
Write your representative. Cigna isn’t the problem here for pediatric beds.
arms_room_rat t1_iycwsgu wrote
Cigna is an insurance company, if they (and other payors) paid more for reimbursement then there would be more pediatric beds. But we also probably shouldn't have a system where whether or not children die without access is based on profit.
Standsaboxer t1_iycx7xt wrote
As OP said, most of the money comes for pediatric care comes from the government, which has abysmal reimbursement rates.
Also I’ve worked in healthcare in this state for 16 years. I have never seen a child die due to profit margins.
arms_room_rat t1_iycxiqf wrote
...which is why I said and other payors...mainecare is a payor. And I'm talking about lack of access, not lack of profit margins. You are really dense.
Eta: lol now you are going to send me dm's telling me to go fuck myself? Wow what a mature individual. I really hope you don't actually work anywhere near patients.
jazzcanary t1_iydb0vp wrote
Your original comment accused insurance companies were at fault for lack of pedriatric beds. You were corrected repeatedly that the government is the problem as a payor, not profits. Now you're adding on to what you said, and calling people dense. You are wrong, and it's frustrating to others.
arms_room_rat t1_iydjjrm wrote
All I said is that "Healthcare" companies are reducing the number of beds for kids because the reimbursement is poor, reimbursement comes from insurance (which, yes, includes medicaid/medicare). So please point out what I'm "wrong" about. In my opinion we should be allocating resources (money and services) based on community need not on profit, that involves an entire overhaul of our extremely broken "Healthcare" system.
jazzcanary t1_iydvkou wrote
That is not what you said. No reasonable person hears "healthcare companies" and thinks "Mainecare", and "Mainecare" isn't associated with an entity answerable to stockholders and profit. In terms of making beds available, the current design and the needs of the community are not always aligning, and so how do you make that design more flexible.
In the real world of problem-solving, you can't just say shit and whine; you have to work with people.
arms_room_rat t1_iydx3rs wrote
Oh my God. Go back and read my post again, and maybe again. Healthcare companies rely on third party payors, which are private and government insurers, to get paid. Healthcare companies also determine what services they offer. Reimbursement is LOWER than adults for pediatric beds because PAYORS (like MAINECARE but also other entities) do not pay as much. Mainecare is NOT a healthcare company. Healthcare companies have reduced the number of pediatric beds because they are putting profit motive above community need.
An obvious and short term fix is to increase reimbursement rates through the government funded payors, however unless you eliminate the profit motive from Healthcare it is only temporary as the cycle of rising costs will repeat.
jazzcanary t1_iye0i80 wrote
Healthcare facilities, which you are calling healthcare companies, make no money on empty beds or staffing for them. Paying higher reimbursements doesn't create more child patients. Maine has problems like this everywhere due to small populations. Taxpayers won't fund it. It's not Cigna et. al.
Electrical-Bed8577 t1_iyeesjm wrote
"Empty beds", have been used in the past by Healthcare companies/corporations (more than one "facility") as a ploy for government funding or favors, from local as well federal entities. The whole thing needs an overhaul. From the companies laying off permanent nurses then hiring traveling nurses to defray the cost of ever diminishing reimbursement ("insurance", gov), to healthcare institutions being traded on Wall Street like kids game cards. The more they are able to pit us against each other, the more time they have to keep getting away with it.
arms_room_rat t1_iye1axt wrote
Omg the beds aren't empty they are overflowing, which is the ENTIRE point of the post! What are you even saying right now? Healthcare facilities are owned by healthcare companies...what is the point even saying that lol? Lol this whole exchange has been kafka-esque - up is down apparently?
arms_room_rat t1_iydjoe0 wrote
Also, my comments are "frustrating" so it's ok to DM someone to tell them to go fuck themselves? Wow, what a special snowflake.
jazzcanary t1_iydt4xz wrote
I did not say it was okay, and I didn't DM you. On the other hand, you're expecting a lot of complete strangers. Why do you insult people? It makes no sense.
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