Formerly DT: COVID-19 - Featuring Lots of Politics, now CR because political talk not going away

[Guest Lobo]

You forgot to mention how much you pay in tuition.  Do even humblebrag, bro?  

[Anastasis 23471]

4 minutes ago, Johnny Sack said:

My kids have been in person since August.  School of 900 and approximately 200 faculty and staff.  There has been no cases of any Covid transmission that occurred at school.

Teachers and students need to get their fucking asses in school now.  We are losing a generation and it is the most vulnerable who are suffering the most.

Our kids have been back since sitting out the initial 9 week period. In school transmission just doesn’t seem to be a thing as long as the basics are adhered to, social distancing, mask wearing, and quarantining of cases and close contacts. That has worked. ESP at elementary level and also at middle school level. But we pay a bit closer attention at me level and bring our daughter home for a few days if we see signals we don’t like. Our kids, esp the younger two are doing so much better with in school learning than they were doing with virtual.  

[Johnny Sack 8397]

5 minutes ago, Lobo said:

You forgot to mention how much you pay in tuition.  Do even humblebrag, bro?  

The humblebrag is our teachers actually care about our children and aren't mind controlled by or beholden to idiotic fucking anti-science teacher associations or unions that don't give a single solitary fuck about the well being of students.  And if they were so inclined, we would fire their asses and have a line of people waiting to replace them.

[dcar00 14438]

11 minutes ago, Johnny Sack said:

The humblebrag is our teachers actually care about our children and aren't mind controlled by or beholden to idiotic fucking anti-science teacher associations or unions that don't give a single solitary fuck about the well being of students.  And if they were so inclined, we would fire their asses and have a line of people waiting to replace them.

public unions...unbelievable.

[Telegraph_it 3360]

For the schools that have been closed to in person learning can property owners get some of their taxes back? I would be inquiring.  
 

Funding has to be even more f’ed up for some of these districts since funding is usually done by bodies in seats?

[BrazilHorn 6639]

 

It is not just the teachers fueling the anti-science hysteria. When AISD sent the "keep your kids home" note post Thanksgiving (or maybe Xmas) We debated holding our 5th grader back, we were going to send him but my wife got parent pressured by some mom who wrote a big Facebook diatribe about how her kid was crying at night because he couldn't be in school and how we had to sacrifice for the teachers and so on.

This is the same kid that went to Camp Longhorn over the summer, is out playing in neighborhood every day, playing on a hoops team at WAYA this Winter and has had a couple of sleepovers with kids and is hanging out at people's houses all the time (all fucking maskless)

There have been statistically speaking mice nuts worth of spread at campus cases among students/staff pandemic to date. It is the ultimate in goal post moving. First teacher's said "we don't have data/trust the science" and now it is "well the science doesn't match how we feel"

All along I have asked teachers I know "what does safe even mean to you" and it all boils down to the old "I may not know much about art but I know what I like" or the "definition of porn" thinking. Basically they will know it when they see it type deal.

This is all just so fucking stupid. There is for all intents and purposes with the screening, cleaning, hand washing and distancing that happens in class rooms no safer place for teachers to be than in school.

[Homercles 10206]

2 hours ago, Surly Bevo said:

Again Virginia I believe is a right to work state.  Somebody should step in and fire these 2,300 selfish fucks who now want what they consider best of all things.  

If they don't want to do that start monitoring social media and begin terminating teachers who post things that would indicate they are not bunkered down at home 24x7.   That's not the reason you call out when you let them go more like once you round some candidates up  "we're sorry we had to conduct a consolidation and reduction in force due to the ongoing pandemic effects related to future lower tax bases BLAH BLAH BLAH and the 200 of you in this room will not longer be with our district"

It amazes me that they just sit there and seem to have no clue how to deal with this.  

Rant:
 

I’m married to an elementary educator (counselor) so I tend to err on the side of teachers, but I also hear a lot of bitching about the difficulty of the job...which I begrudgingly agree with, I certainly wouldn’t want to do it...but this whole pandemic in regards to having a 1st grader, who has been in person in RR since schools opened again, has me surly.  
 

Yes dealing with students has got to be rough, I certainly get worn out when my 4/7yo kiddos are home all the time...can’t imagine having a classroom full.  
 

Yes having to grade papers or do some prep after school is out at 230 sucks (HS, college is another matter)...but I often have to work nights/weekends for my job in the private sector.  But between summer, 2.5 weeks for Christmas, spring break, 2 days for Presidents’ Day, staff work days and now these 4 BS ‘asynchronous days’ to ‘plan’...they sure as shit get way more time off than I do.  My next work holiday is in May, yet I can count on one hand the number of ‘normal’ 5-day school weeks between now and June.  
 

Their health insurance sucks and even with all the time off I feel they are underpaid.  I’m not saying it’s an easy or great job by any stretch.  
 

In relation to this rant regarding the pandemic, refusing to come to work despite vaccination really does feel like a slew of them got a taste of WFH without dealing directly with kids and are finding ways to stay in that good life...not even considering those who refuse to get a vaccine.  Here in RRISD, that was my suspicion for forcing 4 asynchronous days on those of us with full time jobs and young kids...it’s mostly bullshit ‘read or do math on this app or write a short story’ assignments, after which we have to keep them entertained.  Just feels like the pandemic is an excuse to squeeze more time away from in-person education and all that entails.  
 

Sorry for the rant, I’m obviously bitter that almost every week from here on out is short and puts more burden on me.  If my kids were older and self sufficient, it’d be a much simpler matter.  It just (rightly or wrongly) feels like a larger phenomenon wherein teachers use the pandemic as an excuse to milk as much non-classroom time as possible, which seems to be the prevailing mood in this thread anyways.  
 

/rant, be best

[Telegraph_it 3360]

I’m just thankful my oldest is a two year old right now. By the time he is in a school this should be figured out until the next pandemic. 

[Message Board User 12396]

17 minutes ago, Telegraph_it said:

For the schools that have been closed to in person learning can property owners get some of their taxes back? I would be inquiring.

[Telegraph_it 3360]

Just now, Message Board User said:

wait your saying...
 

[Message Board User 12396]

1 hour ago, Johnny Sack said:

My kids have been in person since August.  School of 900 and approximately 200 faculty and staff.  There has been no cases of any Covid transmission that occurred at school.

Teachers and students need to get their fucking asses in school now.  We are losing a generation and it is the most vulnerable who are suffering the most.

Both my kids were back in the classroom as soon as they could be - the Tuesday after Labor Day.  There have been a couple isolated cases at the school - the kids/staff who were positive stayed home and there has been no wide spread.

Best decision I ever made as a parent was yanking my kids from public school and putting them in charter.

[Message Board User 12396]

Iowa lifting all restrictions.

 

[Parliament 14357]

So what's that leave for restrictions?  Anything?

[dcar00 14438]

9 minutes ago, Parliament said:

So what's that leave for restrictions?  Anything?

Fed Govt buildings.  private businesses can do what they want

not sure about state funded public transit.

gonna be a huge spike in Iowa.

[mchookem 16437]

that seems...premature and rather risky 🤨

we're so close to the end of this thing, not sure i get the logic in just saying 'fuck it' about everything now. godspeed to Iowa i guess...maybe it will be fine. 

 

[dcar00 14438]

8 minutes ago, mchookem said:

that seems...premature and rather risky 🤨

we're so close to the end of this thing, not sure i get the logic in just saying 'fuck it' about everything now. godspeed to Iowa i guess...maybe it will be fine. 

 

no chance.  I don't see how based on the science/data.  It has to spike back up.

[BradInATX 9208]

no chance.  I don't see how based on the science/data.  It has to spike back up.

Depends what we're talking about. Cases might spike at some point. But I'd bet a substantial amount of money that we won't see another spike in hospitalizations or deaths that's anywhere close to the two previous spikes. We're going to see a pretty near perfect downward trend in those for the long haul.

For me, cases without deaths are "who cares".

[Guest Lobo]

2 hours ago, dcar00 said:

Fed Govt buildings.  private businesses can do what they want

not sure about state funded public transit.

gonna be a huge spike in Iowa.

Are you telling me the Des Moines Subway is still gonna be offline?  THIS IS BULLSHIT!  MUH FREEDOM! 

[Anastasis 23471]

2 hours ago, mchookem said:

that seems...premature and rather risky 🤨

Keep the basic measures, mask wearing, social distancing in place, start loosening up things slowly as we hit vax goals. I think/hope that we are on the tail end of this. We can all throw big July 4th blow outs if we can keep out shit tight for a few more weeks while we are getting shots in arms. 

[GRHorn 105]

Good for the people of California

 

 

[Kyle 207]

It's amazing schools would even consider opening with the tens of thousands of kids and teachers dying from covid every day.

[Message Board User 12396]

 

[Message Board User 12396]

Anybody saying that these Covid tests are "free" will be in for a rude awakening as insurance companies adjust their premiums this year.

Weeks after that, Barguiarena was looking at his insurer’s website. He was curious about the cost of the test and expecting it to be about $200 or $300.

“The reality was quite stark,” he said. “It ended up being closer to almost $2,000 that was ultimately charged.”

In a statement, an Austin Emergency Center spokesperson said it doesn’t directly charge insured patients for COVID-19 tests.

“Importantly for the patient, most major insurance companies will fully cover emergency room visits for COVID-19 related issues,” the spokesperson said. “Moreover, if an insurance company were to bill a patient for an out of network visit to our emergency room (i.e., if the bill were to go to patient responsibility), our billing company will go to bat for the patient and will appeal on their behalf.”

...

Even though these costs aren’t coming directly out of consumers’ pockets, Hutson said, they eventually will.

“The problem with outrageous costs like this is that when insurance companies pay them, all that cost gets wrapped back into our premiums,” he said. “All of us, every single one of us eats those costs in our insurance premiums when our insurance companies are forced to pay huge amounts for very simple procedures like a COVID-19 test.”

Dudensing said this also contributes to the rising cost of health care overall, which is particularly egregious during a national health crisis.

“We shouldn’t be wasting valuable dollars that we all need in health care on $5,000 COVID tests,” she said.

 

Anissa Mathiasz, who got a COVID-19 test at an Austin Emergency Center a month and a half ago, said she panicked when she saw her insurance was getting charged over $1,000.

“I was like, ‘Whoa, that’s really high even just for a COVID test,’” she said. “And I know that it is still pending; they are still processing the insurance. But just the fact the test is out of that much I will have to be paying seems really crazy.”

Mathiasz said she was worried she might have to pay some of it because it was so expensive. Despite knowing now she probably won’t, she said she still thinks this is the kind of thing that makes people upset about the U.S. health care system.

“This is just a perfect example of like, ‘Wow, this was so unnecessary and could just appear to be a money grab depending how it turned out,’” she said.

[workswithseed 2123]

It's like healthcare isn't free.

[JimmyJames 12271]

1 hour ago, workswithseed said:

It's like healthcare isn't free.

Says the guy who just posted his opinion for free on a free website.

[workswithseed 2123]

15 minutes ago, JimmyJames said:

Says the guy who just posted his opinion for free on a free website.

What? I'm paying with money, or paying with ads. It's not free. Hell, the Bob's we're paying out of pocket 

Edited February 7, 2021 by workswithseed

[Newdoc 3457]

3 hours ago, workswithseed said:

It's like healthcare isn't free.

There’s taking opportunity to stay busy and make a decent profit while helping the public during Covid and then there’s price gouging and taking advantage of legalese payment rules for ED’s. The article shows an opportunistic cash grab by playing the gme within the law but hurting the system overall. It’s legal greed so make your moralistic opinion wherever your conscience lies.

I don’t agree with it because it’s not price transparent. I’ve provided the same service for the last 10 months at a tenth the price with the same or better quality.  I’m not bitter because almost any doctor can ignore ethical gray lines and make a quick buck. I have passd up several opportunities because they aren’t good medicine. I and a majority of doctors choose to make a decent reimbursement and try to save the patients healthcare funds when reasonable (i.e., most value for work-up, equivalent generic therapies, etc.).

It’s not entirely the freestanding ED’s faults. The system was set up for this “opportunity”. They take advantage of the current laws that nobody wants to do anything about despite patients not realizing their insurance is getting charged $1800 for little Susie’s strep throat.

[Anastasis 23471]

24 minutes ago, Newdoc said:

It’s not entirely the freestanding ED’s faults.

Come on dude. They are billing 2k for a test that should cost no more than $150 because they can abuse the system. 

[Newdoc 3457]

1 minute ago, Anastasis said:

Come on dude. They are billing 2k for a test that should cost no more than $150 because they can abuse the system. 

No, they’re certainly culpable. It’s just that with the legal responsibility of insurance companies to pay usual and customary fees for emergency room visits at a clip of 70%, including out of network, the environment is ripe for abuse. 

[JimmyJames 12271]

9 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

Come on dude. They are billing 2k for a test that should cost no more than $150 because they can abuse the system. 

Exactly. The whole system is out of whack.

Had a client with a minor outpatient one hour surgery where the hospital sent a bill for 450k where the bill should have been at best 80k. With a Physician assistant billed 20k for something that at best should have cost. 2k.

They both balked when called on it. Like they were doing some sort of favor reducing it. It is ridiculous

[Anastasis 23471]

7 minutes ago, Newdoc said:

No, they’re certainly culpable. It’s just that with the legal responsibility of insurance companies to pay usual and customary fees for emergency room visits at a clip of 70%, including out of network, the environment is ripe for abuse. 

Those facilities and providers are running a racket. Shit like this is why insurers have to use UM and other abrasive cost containment measures to contain trend. 
 

 

 

[Anastasis 23471]

7 minutes ago, JimmyJames said:

Exactly. The whole system is out of whack.

Had a client with a minor outpatient one hour surgery where the hospital sent a bill for 450k where the bill should have been at best 80k. With a Physician assistant billed 20k for something that at best should have cost. 2k.

They both balked when called on it. Like they were doing some sort of favor reducing it. It is ridiculous

Got a $3k bill from my son’s cardiologist. We talked them down to $500. We still overpaid. We paid all the other bills for professional services, but we were getting butt fucked with a device bill. 

[Okie State 3848]

My favorite medical billing story is from when I broke my foot. Surgeon billed my insurance for around $8K I think (seems really low, but that's the number I remember) and it was covered less my deductible. A month later I received a separate bill from some third party 'OR assistant' for another $8K saying I was on the hook since Aetna denied the claim. I called them up and some guy who sounded like he lived in his Mom's basement answered and said 'Oh yeah, just ignore it. We bill insurance and sometimes they pay and sometimes they don't'.' Never heard anything else about it.

WTF is that shit and how often does it happen?

[Incredulity 11684]

All. The. Time.

and it’s exactly why they are billing $2000 for a vaccine.  

[workswithseed 2123]

1 hour ago, Anastasis said:

Got a $3k bill from my son’s cardiologist. We talked them down to $500. We still overpaid. We paid all the other bills for professional services, but we were getting butt fucked with a device bill. 

What the fuck? Tell me your ways.

[XYZ 2154]

1 hour ago, Okie State said:

My favorite medical billing story is from when I broke my foot. Surgeon billed my insurance for around $8K I think (seems really low, but that's the number I remember) and it was covered less my deductible. A month later I received a separate bill from some third party 'OR assistant' for another $8K saying I was on the hook since Aetna denied the claim. I called them up and some guy who sounded like he lived in his Mom's basement answered and said 'Oh yeah, just ignore it. We bill insurance and sometimes they pay and sometimes they don't'.' Never heard anything else about it.

WTF is that shit and how often does it happen?

And nobody gets prosecuted for that shit.

[MNLonghornFUKM 8835]

Wow.

[Anastasis 23471]

4 minutes ago, workswithseed said:

What the fuck? Tell me your ways.

You just tell them what you are willing to pay to close the account. "We are not paying you any more than $500 for a 30 day device rental fee where we didn't even transmit an event that required professional interpretation."

We have been burned by the ER physician network scam a few times and my wife is finally on board with calling their bullshit out. 

[workswithseed 2123]

2 hours ago, Newdoc said:

There’s taking opportunity to stay busy and make a decent profit while helping the public during Covid and then there’s price gouging and taking advantage of legalese payment rules for ED’s. The article shows an opportunistic cash grab by playing the gme within the law but hurting the system overall. It’s legal greed so make your moralistic opinion wherever your conscience lies.

I don’t agree with it because it’s not price transparent. I’ve provided the same service for the last 10 months at a tenth the price with the same or better quality.  I’m not bitter because almost any doctor can ignore ethical gray lines and make a quick buck. I have passd up several opportunities because they aren’t good medicine. I and a majority of doctors choose to make a decent reimbursement and try to save the patients healthcare funds when reasonable (i.e., most value for work-up, equivalent generic therapies, etc.).

It’s not entirely the freestanding ED’s faults. The system was set up for this “opportunity”. They take advantage of the current laws that nobody wants to do anything about despite patients not realizing their insurance is getting charged $1800 for little Susie’s strep throat.

I was thinking about premiums going up to cover costs, but you're right that there is definitely a racket in the system. 

[washparkhorn 9939]

On 2/6/2021 at 4:09 AM, Doug E. Fresh said:

Sums things up well here in the UK.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYmSAMcwXA8

brilliant

Spoiler

I hear Boris Johnson has become well-liked in his new character: a New Dealer in the mold of FDR.  He has versatility - needed in Covid.  

Spoiler

This pandemic has been a bitch.

 

Edited February 8, 2021 by washparkhorn

[fattyflattie 4639]

15 minutes ago, workswithseed said:

I was thinking about premiums going up to cover costs, but you're right that there is definitely a racket in the system. 

Boss got covid pretty bad earlier this year.  Fought as long as he could but eventually had to hit the ER.  They gave him something that eventually fixed him up and sent him back home same day.  Said his bill was 68k for the day.   I don’t know the right answer to universal healthcare, and don’t pretend to, but something is broken. 

[washparkhorn 9939]

On 2/6/2021 at 7:53 AM, Message Board User said:

Even more mind-bottling is that teachers there have been given priority for vaccination...but are still gonna teach from home while the classroom monitors presumably are unvaccinated.  

I am not sure teachers have the time, energy and money to set up a classroom at this point with what is left of a school year.

But first and foremost, we are all worried about our kids and their the need for natural human interaction in a school-like setting. 

For the schools that have been online, there must be a realistic transition period back to school - and vaccines for those without them who will be working in schools.  There was a Herculean effort to get online set up and executed. It will take a significant amount of energy and resources to transition back to something that was similar to pre-Covid.  I am not sure we understand the scope of the endeavor. Quick fixes can make it worse. 

If the Professional and Managerial White Collar world has figured out the issues involved, the data is there to make it work. Use it. The data will speak volumes.

Teachers and School Districts need to work together using sound methods of implementation.

Teachers and staff are on the ground and front-line workers. They are educating the next generation of Americans. That is a mission vital to the nation's well-being - today, tomorrow and yesterday

Spoiler

Perhaps we all need to put on our listening ears and listen to what are attempting to tell us before making up our minds?

 

 

Edited February 8, 2021 by washparkhorn

[workswithseed 2123]

1 hour ago, fattyflattie said:

Boss got covid pretty bad earlier this year.  Fought as long as he could but eventually had to hit the ER.  They gave him something that eventually fixed him up and sent him back home same day.  Said his bill was 68k for the day.   I don’t know the right answer to universal healthcare, and don’t pretend to, but something is broken. 

Yeah, that's fucked. Usually what happens in universal healthcare is more people die waiting to get their procedures. So either die poor, or die cause you cause you waited so long on a list.

[Zepol87 9198]

1 minute ago, workswithseed said:

Yeah, that's fucked. Usually what happens in universal healthcare is more people die waiting to get their procedures. So either die poor, or die cause you cause you waited so long on a list.

So you know this personally? Because I have many friends that live in countries with universal healthcare and they have never mentioned this. I only hear this from a few people who have never been to those countries.

[workswithseed 2123]

9 minutes ago, Zepol87 said:

So you know this personally? Because I have many friends that live in countries with universal healthcare and they have never mentioned this. I only hear this from a few people who have never been to those countries.

Do I need to know it personally to know about people waiting to die?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jun/01/perfect-storm-austerity-behind-130000-deaths-uk-ippr-report

[Bevo in VA 342]

22 minutes ago, workswithseed said:

Yeah, that's fucked. Usually what happens in universal healthcare is more people die waiting to get their procedures. So either die poor, or die cause you cause you waited so long on a list.

 

7 minutes ago, workswithseed said:

Do I need to know it personally to know about people waiting to die?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jun/01/perfect-storm-austerity-behind-130000-deaths-uk-ippr-report

That article doesn't say anything about people dying while waiting to get a procedure.  It's talking about funding being cut from early education that teaches people how to live healthier lives which would in turn prevent things like heart disease.  

Edited February 8, 2021 by Bevo in VA
formatting

[workswithseed 2123]

1 minute ago, Bevo in VA said:

 

That article doesn't say anything about people dying while waiting to get a procedure.  It's talking about funding being cut from early education that teaches people how to live healthier lives which would in turn prevent things like heart disease.  

What, her cancer can just be avoided by living healthier? She's hygienist if that's what you're talking about?

[Bevo in VA 342]

3 minutes ago, workswithseed said:

What, her cancer can just be avoided by living healthier? She's hygienist if that's what you're talking about?

I have no idea what you're talking about.  You made a statement that "Usually what happens in universal healthcare is more people die waiting to get their procedures."  Zepol called you out on it and you cited an article to presumably back up your initial statement that people are dying while waiting to get a procedure.  The article you posted has absolutely nothing to do with that.

[workswithseed 2123]

5 minutes ago, Bevo in VA said:

I have no idea what you're talking about.  You made a statement that "Usually what happens in universal healthcare is more people die waiting to get their procedures."  Zepol called you out on it and you cited an article to presumably back up your initial statement that people are dying while waiting to get a procedure.  The article you posted has absolutely nothing to do with that.

I'm sorry, I grabbed the wrong one. This is the one I meant to bring up.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jul/16/extra-cancer-deaths-this-year-covid19-nhs-health

The austerity deaths is linked in the one I was talking about.

Edited February 8, 2021 by workswithseed

[gmr548 16617]

Yeah, that's fucked. Usually what happens in universal healthcare is more people die waiting to get their procedures. So either die poor, or die cause you cause you waited so long on a list.

lol