A few observations and thoughts on Medicare
I have rated Medicare in the past as the best health care I ever had---and I would still say the same today.
However, Medicare has undergone subtle changes that only show up when something serious happens---as I have recently found out.
There are a lot of costs associated with extended care that previously were covered that no longer are---and those costs are cumulative and could easily become burdensome to many.
I have to admit that they are annoying to me for no other reason than the high cost we pay into Medicare---but I'll manage. Others might not
For specifics, I could get a walker or a cane---but not both. In the hospital I was loaned a "wide" walker which is more stable. However, I could not get a "wide" walker for home because I don't meet their weight requirements 
I am currently using a hospital bed with a trapeze which allows me to move around in bed more easily as well as do considerable PT--- those (including a table) are no longer covered by Medicare.
Some of my wound dressings are covered, others are not. All of these things were covered in the past.
To add to the implications of this---the gap insurance which is private insurance and covers the 20% that Medicare does not pay---also will not pick-up any costs
not honored by Medicare.
Is Medicare a valuable benefit---absolutely, but for those of marginal means this could be problematical---and it seems to be happening without discussion.
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
"Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis
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Originally Posted by mgrist
...Ben
