Medicare is as useful as Linus's security blanket.

The Virginian ^ | 4/19/2014 | Moneyrunner

[moneyrunner]

SCIENCE!

It turns out that the latest study of the effectiveness of Medicare on patient health is non-existent. Here's the summary from the New England Journal of Medicine:

CONCLUSIONS This randomized, controlled study showed that Medicaid coverage generated no significant improvements in measured physical health outcomes in the first 2 years, but it did increase use of health care services, raise rates of diabetes detection and management, lower rates of depression, and reduce financial strain.

Like a child's security blanket, it made people who had it feel better for having it.

[moneyrunner]

You don't want to deny science, do you?

[cherry]

reduce financial strain on WHO?.....the tax paying public which is getting down to fewer and fewer people...

[Moltke]

It turns out that the latest study of the effectiveness of Medicare on patient health is non-existent.

So if the study doesn't exist, how can they report on it?

[catman67]

Article seems to be confusing Medicare with Medicaid. The first one people pay for out of their paychecks. The second one is a Government freebie for the Taker population.

[9YearLurker]

Yep. Medicaid doesn’t affect outcomes; Medicare, I’m quite sure, does.

[weezel]

I remember the days before medicare. MOST people had no health insurance, and when people did go to doctors, they paid their own bill. Back then you’d go to your local doctor, he’d diagnose you and prescribe any medicine you might need, and in most cases he would have that medicine on hand to give to you. When you left you paid about 8 bucks. IF you had to fill a prescrip at a drugstore, it would cost about 2 bucks. THEN came medicare, and from that day forward, with the patient no longer CARING what it cost, cause they werent paying it anyway, healthcare costs have skyrocketed.

[TomGuy]

Medicaid or Medicare?

The comment at the link:

Comments:
The study is about MEDICAID, not MEDICARE. Your headline/intro was misleading. Please do not continue to add to the confusion.

Looks like a blogger hit piece from a blogger who doesn't understand the difference.

[oh8eleven]

The blog pimp who wrote this doesn’t know the difference between MediCARE and MedicAID.

[Procyon]

Original journal article was about Medicaid. The Virginian reporter/editor not doing a good job.