When The Wolves Are Responsible For Protecting The Sheep...

 

Hey Everyone! 😊

I just thought it was time for a little reminder of all the "benefits" of not having a sensible, universal healthcare system like every other developed nation on the planet. Enjoy... 😉

Excerpt from Answers from Alyce:

We continued down the hallway until we reached what looked like a bus stop. Standing next to the bus stop were two large, robot men that were dressed in medical scrubs, and they were pushing a smaller robot woman in a wheelchair. The robot in the wheelchair was dressed only in a hospital gown and socks. The two men seemed to be trying to lift the woman out of the wheelchair and put her on the bus stop bench.

It took me a moment to figure out what was going on, but then I remembered reading about something like this in the news. I cocked an eyebrow at my two hosts and said, "Let me guess, this one is criticizing our healthcare system?"

Yax cocked his head at me and said, "So, you recognize the incident that inspired this exhibit?"

I shrugged. "I read something about it. I don't know exactly what happened, I'm not sure if all the details weren't released or if I just don't remember them, but for some reason some hospital staff took a woman who was suffering from some kind of psychological disorder to a bus station rather than treating her or arranging that she be transferred to a psychiatric facility. The temperature was below freezing and the woman wasn’t dressed to go outside. Someone who was just walking by found her shivering in the cold, confused, and unable to respond to inquiries. The person called emergency services and the woman was eventually returned to the hospital. An investigation was conducted into how something like that could happen, but I don't know what was found."

"And this is normal in your society?" asked Squid-boy,

"No. Like I just said, the matter was investigated. Investigations aren't conducted when something normal happens, only when something abnormal happens. I don't know why the woman was treated the way she was treated, but it wasn't right and it isn't normal."

"So, then those who are sick are able to receive help under normal circumstances?"

I sighed. "Sometimes. It's not a simple answer."

Squid-boy blew a buzzing gurgling sound at me. "Why is everything in your society given to caveats and conditions? Why is nothing straightforward?"

I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him the stink-eye. "Some things are straightforward, but you've just gone and plucked all the craziest parts out to put in your museum. Of course, those things are more complicated to explain."

We glared at each other for a few heartbeats before Yax interjected, "Naturally, the aspects of your society that we chose to focus on will be more convoluted than other parts. As you said, that's why they've been selected for this museum and also why we need you to explain them for us. For instance, one thing we heard was quite common in your healthcare system is a 'wallet biopsy', but we couldn't discern enough about what it was to even begin to create an exhibit about it. It certainly didn't seem credible that it could be a literal descriptive term."

I held my stare on Squid-boy for another half a second and then turned to look at the taller alien. With a bitter laugh, I said, "Well, sugar, that's actually almost exactly what it is."

"What do you mean?"

"A 'wallet biopsy' is when a doctor, or more often a hospital, focuses on a patient's financial condition instead of their medical condition. They first find out if a patient has insurance and, if so, what that insurance does and does not cover and how high their deductible and copay are. If the patient doesn't have insurance, they find out if the patient has the cash on hand to pay for their treatment. If they determine that a patient can't pay and doesn't have insurance that will pay, they do the absolute minimum required by law and then send the patient away. Basically, they just make sure the patient isn't going to immediately drop dead and refuse to do anything more." I gestured at where the robot in a paper gown was turning in circles by the bus stop bench. "That might be what happened to her, I don't know."

Want to hear more about wallet biopsies and more little "perks" of for-profit healthcare? Go ahead and grab your copy at the link below. Happy reading! 😊

Answers from Alyce