Our rotten healthcare system.

Oddjob

Merry fucking Xmas to you assholes
PHI doesn't guarantee better anything. You still have to wait, you can't always see the person you want, it's helped chiropractors become recognised as doctors, and all those "I get free..." aren't going to make the gruel any tastier. It Creates the allusion of choice and control over unfortunate circumstances, profiting off the fear of pain and suffering we all have. It's a con and if it wasn't a con Howard and his fuedalistic dinosaurs wouldn't have needed to create a penalty system for those choosing not to take it out.

Gough had the right of it but our governments have spent the last ~47 years fucking it up rather than building on his vision.
Sure let's set policy based on our fatalistic feelings or grievance and ignore evidence. It's worked a treat for Trump and Brexit.

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Squidfayce

Eats Squid
Gough had the right of it but our governments have spent the last ~47 years fucking it up rather than building on his vision.
Peoples visions dont always translate to reality as the world changes.

It Creates the allusion of choice and control over unfortunate circumstances, profiting off the fear of pain and suffering we all have.
the choice is real. The profit comes not from the fear of pain and suffering anymore than the profit from Gyms comes from peoples fear of being fat. The profits come from peoples inherent laziness and apathy towards getting the best out of something they've paid for because it takes a little effort.

E.g. Many people don't have yearly or bi yearly dental checkups and cleans. Many of those people have shitty teeth. No pain, but shitty looking teeth. They get worse looking as you get older. If people get private health and still don't do anything about their shitty looking teeth, they are wasting their money. But that doesn't make it a scam, just makes that person lazy.
 

Flow-Rider

Burner
PHI is also just a giant fucking scam and we should all be paying our surcharge to subsidise and improve the public health system for everyone instead of giving the same amount of money or more to profit makers for some spurious “benefits” like multiple pairs of glasses annually.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.
It does my head in, a family member was diagnosed with lymphoma and had to get a swollen node removed from their neck, the surgeon asked for extra money at the consultations and then again after the surgery. This family member is just a pensioner and doesn't have wads of extra cash, the surgeon had a good look at them a few times and then made a claim after surgery that it so big they needed to get in another surgeon, like why do you ask for all this big money as a specialist in a profession, and then you can't accurately quote a job. If it's something you can't quote on due to the nature of changes, say it in the first place.
 

Squidfayce

Eats Squid
It does my head in, a family member was diagnosed with lymphoma and had to get a swollen node removed from their neck, the surgeon asked for extra money at the consultations and then again after the surgery. This family member is just a pensioner and doesn't have wads of extra cash, the surgeon had a good look at them a few times and then made a claim after surgery that it so big they needed to get in another surgeon, like why do you ask for all this big money as a specialist in a profession, and then you can't accurately quote a job. If it's something you can't quote on due to the nature of changes, say it in the first place.
I'm confused. is the pensioner a private health care holder? Otherwise i don't understand why they are being asked for anything, All cancer treatement under the public system is free through Medicare.
 

Flow-Rider

Burner
I'm confused. is the pensioner a private health care holder? Otherwise i don't understand why they are being asked for anything, All cancer treatement under the public system is free through Medicare.
Yes they went private, it was close to $400 a sitting with this surgeon in the initial stages (less than 30 mins), and PHI wouldn't pay for it all, only part of. These pricks are legal crooks, if we had known this in the first place they would have gone public. When you get stuff like this around your throat, you need to get it done quick as possible, as there are other implications.
 

Squidfayce

Eats Squid
Yes they went private, it was close to $400 a sitting with this surgeon in the initial stages (less than 30 mins), and PHI wouldn't pay for it all, only part of. These pricks are legal crooks, if we had known this in the first place they would have gone public. When you get stuff like this around your throat, you need to get it done quick as possible, as there are other implications.
if they can afford private as a pensioner, then I cant really see the issue.

I have some expereince with public and cancer. My family is prone to it.

Everyone on my mums side has had it and gone through public. Dare I say if i get it, i will also go public. My nan had it twice over 10 years. Thyroid and colon. Both were diagnosed and in surgery inside a week. Public doesn't make you wait if there is urgency. Its only elective stuff they make you wait for - things like hips, knees etc. Things that will kill you if they dont get sorted are dealt with as a priority.
 

Flow-Rider

Burner
if they can afford private as a pensioner, then I cant really see the issue.

I have some expereince with public and cancer. My family is prone to it.

Everyone on my mums side has had it and gone through public. Dare I say if i get it, i will also go public. My nan had it twice over 10 years. Thyroid and colon. Both were diagnosed and in surgery inside a week. Public doesn't make you wait if there is urgency. Its only elective stuff they make you wait for - things like hips, knees etc. Things that will kill you if they dont get sorted are dealt with as a priority.
It would be like paying a panel beater more money after they do a smash repair on an insurance claim? Same with health insurance, but they squeeze the extra amount out of your own pocket, pretty pointless having the PHI in the end.
 

Squidfayce

Eats Squid
It would be like paying a panel beater more money after they do a smash repair on an insurance claim? Same with health insurance, but they squeeze the extra amount out of your own pocket, pretty pointless having the PHI in the end.
I think you're missing the whole point of PHI, but to each their own.
 

Calvin27

Eats Squid
If people get private health and still don't do anything about their shitty looking teeth, they are wasting their money.
Kind of off topic, but when i turned 31 I reluctantly switched over to the private cover. The catch was that most of my physios and dentists et al suddenly actaulyl increased their price to match the subsidy level. Denstis previously charged $100 for annual check and clean, it went up to $180 when i told them i have PHI. Apparently this is super common. I still go to them because everyone else wants a lot more these days.
 

Squidfayce

Eats Squid
Kind of off topic, but when i turned 31 I reluctantly switched over to the private cover. The catch was that most of my physios and dentists et al suddenly actaulyl increased their price to match the subsidy level. Denstis previously charged $100 for annual check and clean, it went up to $180 when i told them i have PHI. Apparently this is super common. I still go to them because everyone else wants a lot more these days.
cant say i noticed. My cleans and checkups are 100% free. Always have been. My osteo/physio is 50% subsidised and has floated between 40-60% depending on policy ive been on. At one point i had an AHM policy when they first came out where they subsidies 100% cost of ANY treatement up to a yearly limit thaat was in excess of the premium. So if you wanted to spend it all on dental you could and claim nothing else for the rest of teh year. THAT was a great policy. First they made it more expensive (because it was probably losing them money) and then they changed it after they got enough customers and made it more traditional. I left after that. The only costs increases ive noted in my policies since are the regular increase in cost over time. Most businesses have their costs advertised clearly
 

mark22

Likes Dirt
I wouldn't class something that gives you time to make calls and make appointments with specialists as "urgent".
Mate you don't make appointments with specialists if you are really sick or seriously injured, chances are you are already in hospital.
 

ozzybmx

taking a shit with my boobs out
I have platinum extras for the whole family, this gets us dental, optical, physio etc for free and then 80% off further treatments.

When I came to Oz, 3 months before I was 30, my rebate was ticking down. At 40 when I realised it was going to save me money at Tax time, it was $5k for the family... I'll look it at next year. Its now nearly $8k for the 4 of us and I probably will never have it now.

I was diagnosed with stage 1, low grade prostate cancer in December... which I was expecting at some stage but maybe not 49-50 due to a family history.

PSA was 0.9 at 48yrs old, creeping up to 1.5 at 48.5(DRE), 2.1 at 49(DRE&MRI), 2.8 at 49.5(DRE and test PSA 3 months later) and 3.5 one month before my 50th(Prostate Biopsy). Which revealed low grade cancer in both sides of my prostate.

The treatment I have selected is called Robotic Nerve Sparing Radical Prostatectomy, which is not covered by private hospital. The free treatment available on public and private is the regular surgical procedure. Private hospital will cover the hospital stay but not the operation.

Regular prostatectomy where you are cut open takes a longer time to recover from, a longer hospital stay, more chance of infection, more bleeding and arguably the robotic is more precise, allowing a better chance of maintaining potency and continence.

Luckily the early stage detection of mine lets me have a nerve sparing procedure, which means in time, could be immediately, could be up to a year, I will be back to pre op potency and continence. In the mean time, they will supply me the blue tablets if needed ;)

The nerve sparing enables you to still get a random stiffy as usual but these nerves need to be cut off the prostate gland and can get a little bit annoyed getting disturbed and take time to recover... though as the the urologist says, this sample is from 50-69yr olds, being 50 I might have no issues.

So rather than an argument about the system, this is more a post to tell you burners to get a PSA blood test and get your fucking prostate checked !

This cancer is 100% survivable if got at an early stage. I have an appointment with the robotic surgeon tomorrow... 'walnut' removal imminent.
 
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ozzybmx

taking a shit with my boobs out
All the best!!!
Cheers !

Just over 2 weeks ago my PSMA PET Scan which is used to show if the cancer has spread (Metastatic stage 4), showed up a spot on my L3 Vertebrae :(

Had another MRI last Sunday concentrating on my lumbar area.

Found out this morning this was a hemangioma, basically an internal birthmark (like the strawberry marks on the skin) that has a concentrated blood vessel form like cancer.

The news this morning went from stage 4 Metastatic to stage 1 low grade.

Fucking worst 2 weeks of my life, having a beer and will sleep tonight.
 

ozzybmx

taking a shit with my boobs out
WOW, shit yourself much?
Haven't really slept well for 4 weeks, riding around looking at old people walking... thinking if I would get to that age. Listening to people talking about retirement, what they were going to do in 3yrs, not knowing if I was going to see that healthily.

Lots of shit has gone through my head in the last 4 weeks, not good. I don't have any head issues and never had, I feel for those who do but the last few weeks has been a shit sandwich.

I never thought I would ever be celebrating stage 1 low grade cancer... it was a the best thing I have ever heard.
 
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