SDE: Good post with good information. I used to work with a large insurance broker (same one that just renamed Sears Tower) and I’m familiar with all of the tricks the insurance companies pull to either deny or delay payment or just generally screw with your coverage.
You’re also absolutely right about ER treatment. Versus any sort of programmatic care, the costs are obscene. In many instances, where the injury isn’t an emergency, uninsured folks are using the ER the way insured people are using a regular doctor’s office.
The European programs seem to work well and are fairly robust. Even England’s NHS seems to be a good program, albeit a government run program.
