quote:
Originally posted by EvilGenius:
Most government programs serve a defined purpose originally and for the most part work. Social Security doesn't have a significant amount of waste and fraud. Medicare works well for the people that need it, because of large corporations involvement in it, sucn as medical professionals, insurance companies, and drug companies, trying to all grab an excessive amount of the pie has generated quite a bit of waste and fraud. But it and social security still provides elderly people, your parents, grandparents, and great parents over the years a basic comfortable living and health care they couldn't afford otherwise.
I mention these two programs, because that's usually the ones the hot heads like to attack without thinking it through.
Our work should be to reduce the waste and fraud and improve programs that give our citizens a happy productive full life.
I would also add the military and its suporting industrial complex to this example. It works well in the end result but is also full of waste and fraud.
You obviously are not familiar with Medicare/medicaid and the way it works. I assure, no doctor anywhere is getting rich off of Medicare, especially since they pay about 50% of what they are billed, and sometimes can take as long as two months to do that....
Let's try organizations such as the scooter store, who promises to provide you a "personalized scooter" at no cost to you...who pays for that....the taxpayer, rest asssured these type of scam operations defintely hurt social programs like this. I know an idividual who applied for one, who was walking around as good as could be, who had a little gout and some bad knees, but no more so than any one else. he got his scooter, free and clear, rode it a couple of days and then put it up. but he still has one.
My solution to that problem is this. You make the companies who provide these things responsible for them. make people put a small deposit on them, and then when they die the scooter is returned to the company, who puts it back into use. these things cost taxpayers a fortune, and I do not begrudge the recipients but lets reuse them rather than buying new ones which adds to the expense.