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Originally posted by Gluk Schmuck
what's an HMO?
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Health Maintenance Organization.
It's a relatively new (20 years? could be longer) type of health plan in the US. I'm not an expert, and there are many variations, but the way they essentially work is the costs are generally lower than other health plans, the tradeoff being that you must pick from a list of doctors and other health care providers that participate in that particular HMO.
The connection with Satan comes from the fact that they are almost universally despised for the way they put profits ahead of patient care by restricting tests and therapies, prescribing the least expensive drugs regardless of effectiveness, and the like. On top of that, you practically can't put a band-aid on yourself without getting administrative approval from the HMO.