Merged "Bitter Pill": Major article on US expensive healthcare (Time)

[TragicMonkey]

I know the answer to that one!

[qimg]http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/imagehosting/thum_47406513644760d9fc.png[/qimg]

I could afford a lot of pairs of $16 jeans with that income!

 

[jimbob]

Some of the debate seems to be misconstruing gross profits with net profits.

Gross profits are the amount of money a business -or hospital- has collected minus actual costs of goods sold. That is, after the costs of tangible items (bandages, medicines, crutches) that were sold to someone is subtracted.

Net profits are what is left after all of the expenses -including utilities, everyone's salaries, etc- are subtracted from the gross profits.

According to the article, most hospitals are making net profits that would turn Hollywood green.

Exactly. And to your last sentence I'd add, "despite paying significantly high salaries, such as CFOs getting paid in the seven figures".

Sigh. Then we're back to a few pages ago. What should my salary be?

Well the 30-odd percent that goes on administrative overheads as opposed to the small fraction in other countries is pretty important.

Many other OECD medical salaries are not bad. Maybe not as high as the highest paid clinical staff in the US, but still sufficient for a very comfortable lifestyle.

The top pay, and mean pay can be higher in the US, but the median pay could still be lower (I CBA to google to compare the distributions between other systems)

 

[TragicMonkey]

Well the 30-odd percent that goes on administrative overheads as opposed to the small fraction in other countries is pretty important.

Many other OECD medical salaries are not bad. Maybe not as high as the highest paid clinical staff in the US, but still sufficient for a very comfortable lifestyle.

The top pay, and mean pay can be higher in the US, but the median pay could still be lower (I CBA to google to compare the distributions between other systems)

As I said several pages ago, in France I'd make the same doing my job, in the UK a bit more. Yet I'm making "too much". So what should I be making, that would correct the evils of my vile industry? Minimum wage? Less?

 

[ZirconBlue]

As I said several pages ago, in France I'd make the same doing my job, in the UK a bit more. Yet I'm making "too much". So what should I be making, that would correct the evils of my vile industry? Minimum wage? Less?

Other than Wildcat, I don't think most of us believe that everyone in the medical industry is overpaid. But, it's pretty clear that hospital administrators, etc. are raking money in hand over fist.

 

[jimbob]

Well the 30-odd percent that goes on administrative overheads as opposed to the small fraction in other countries is pretty important.

Many other OECD medical salaries are not bad. Maybe not as high as the highest paid clinical staff in the US, but still sufficient for a very comfortable lifestyle.

The top pay, and mean pay can be higher in the US, but the median pay could still be lower (I CBA to google to compare the distributions between other systems)

As I said several pages ago, in France I'd make the same doing my job, in the UK a bit more. Yet I'm making "too much". So what should I be making, that would correct the evils of my vile industry? Minimum wage? Less?

I suspect the problem isn't with your part of the industry. The highlighted part.

ETA: Ninja'd by Zircon Blue

 

[TellyKNeasuss]

Would anyone argue with the claim that the health care industry is one of the 2 or 3 largest recipients of economic rent in the US?

 

[Alareth]

Sigh. Then we're back to a few pages ago. What should my salary be?

One bunch of bananas a day monkey boy