Kittenish / Sicko

Kittenish today. Maybe it's the contrived illusion that I actually have friends. Or that I am tracking on success, or maybe its my extremely cool new brother in law. The guy keeps like a seven minute mile pace or something. We are going to run the Atlanta together. 26.2. So feeling kittenish. Guess we always feel this way three months before the race and no training program.

Sicko is going to be worth the ticket. As usual, people are getting rich because America has so much trouble these days. The problem regarding healthcare IMHO is that each healthcare provider places a solid markdown on any particular hospital or doctor. Usually automatically, by diagnosis and procedure code. In fact, i think its a paid position just to call in the codes for ea. patient each day or something like that. Then healthcare provider then does a blanket markdown on the procedure cost - ex. suppose its a biopsy. For one provider, they always mark down 30 percent. Another might mark down 50 percent. So what happens is that the hospital then has a 50 percent cost markup to apply and they do it now, automatically (again by code). Now, since you are a normal human being you may ask the normal, fair market question such as "gee. how much does a biopsy cost me?". You will get a blank stare. You have no established accounting code . And no one can even remember the codes to begin with. So they push it off to some billing department somewhere. We have an entire market that in the end, can't quote you a price, doesn't know the costs or standards and makes a fortune playing games with your lab work. Need a "team" approach? It doesn't matter how you cut it not having any price basis for anything destroys the market. Thats the bottom line. At least thats me. Theres a line in Sicko where an exec says she got someone killed as a result of saving money on procedures.. and then says it guaranteed their advancement in the company.IMHO the free market works, because entrepenuers are able to innovate and experiment a bit - the healthcare market is simply isolated and artificial. And like all artificial markets (like natural gas) the net result is increased prices.

The solution IMHO is a federalized universal healthcare plan that lets everyone opt in, and gives the fed the power to bargain - which could hold the promise of a standard price schedule that would then act as a level effect against the other wierd price schedules and eventually become standard costs, so that people can know how much something is. Sicko will tell a true story as well. Moore may be annoying, but he is authentic. I'll probably attend. It will be at the Tara hopefully soon. They stepped up release because someone leaked a +cinema quality+ version of the film on the net (ie. a studio copy.. can you say 'corporate espionage'). For what its worth, in the next two days there will be 40 foot tall lcd projector displays of the film in LA, San Fran, New York , OakTown and Chicago. Full sound. Subtitles. 40 feet high. Should be fun. The Bush Republicans will have something to say ...

Just a final note on the past weekend before tuesday gets too much going, I have to say that staying in the home where the rockefellers, and the chases stayed was cathartic and very cool. I had to wonder what it was like for them.. no air conditioning.. this place must have been something else. I can still see horse - the dark southern night - the sweat glistening on the bride. After about three or four days over there - and a little bit of careful thought and play - I think I've figured out the secret why the rockefellers liked Jekyll Island so much. .. and I'm not telling anyone . >:) except. you.

Pretty stoked about how things are going. Hope things will be ok today for everyone. :) ok that band was cool. even body language, i like dirtie blonde.