This is very sad.

I was just at Epcot on Monday. This is not a ride I could go on.

As for treating hypertension. Well, unfortunately there is still a double standard (although plenty of people would like to think otherwise). I was diagnosed after the birth of my second child. Went to the same doctor as my husband. He thought I had "white coat" hypertension, lol. The medication never worked -- never thought that what worked for my husband might not work for me. And I could never figure out why the doctor would give my husband an EKG and not me. I left that quack in a flash and took the husband with me!

Call this an early Friday rant.

I don't understand these thrill rides. How can anyone be 100% certain that something they have never experienced before won't end in a negative way?

We rode it 3 or 4 times last year. Lots of fun. No one in our family of 5 had any adverse effects.

I really wanted to go on it, but lately have become a little motion sick on rides, after the second group of warning signs, I was convinced it was not for me, they have alot of warnings...

seetheworld -

Good for you on the MD - way too many MDs don;t recognize differences in male and female body chemistry. I know the FDA is trying to address this in clinical trials - but there are issues in terms of both the way test subjects are recruited and the risk of unplanned/unknown pregnancy in female subjects.

As for the rides - well - no one can ever be sure of anything. Crossing the street is a calculated risk - getting out of bed is a calculated risk. Some people enjoy them. Unfortunatley, some people don;t bother to think about them in terms of their own condition.

Neapolitan - well a $2500 deductible seems like an awful lot. And have you considered an HMO/POS plan? You can get the basics done for next to nothing ($10 copay) and still have the option to pick whatever MD you want for any serious problem that may arise. And usually these plans pay for an annual physical.

In any case - for BP there's still the pharmacies, health fairs, free offers on the streets - or Doc in a Box if nothing else is available (their charges are minimal and they don;t insist on every test known to man).

When you're paying for your own medical insurance, not getting it through an employer, you tend to stay away from HMOs because the monthly premium is much more. I also have a huge deductible, and I pay a percentage after that's satisfied. You just have to look on it as coverage for major medical stuff that you hope you won't ever have. I have absolutely no sympathy for employees who have fantastic, and very expensive, medical coverage and who complain when their employer wants them to pay more for the coverage they have.

We have a massive health care problem in this country.

I had an insurance advisor check out all possibilities and my current policy seemed to be the best alternative. Try being 59 and having diabetic -- the first problem is that half the companies flatly turn you down for individual policies. All this was a result of not one but two insurance carriers I had dropping individual plans all together in Florida.

I have saved a bundle by dropping The Cleveland Clinic here as my main medical provider. They charged me over $600 each for a four times a year full blood work up for my diabetes. I now get the exact same thing from an independent laboratory for $116 each time! And my new doctor who specializes in diabetes said there is no need to even continue with those tests at all since I do daily testing (unless I show a major change)-- something that Cleveland Clinic said was an absolute necessity!

nytraveler, my husband and my insurance seems about identical to Neopolitans.

We pay around $13,000 per year for the policy and have either $2,500 each deductible or $5,000 family.

I didn't care about the copay as much as I care about Major Medical. Strep throat will not bankrupt me but Cancer could.

So true, GoTravel. That was my biggest concern. Many cheaper policies will pay "up to" 80% of major medical. Well 20% on a $400,000 cancer or major heart incident is still $80,000. And that could be just the beginning in the case of a major problem. I like my 100% major medical.

And of course no matter what policy you sign up for, expect the cost to rise by at least 20% per year -- mine has.

Very sad, and very true. One of my coworkers chose the traditional 80/20 plan, and is now filing bankruptcy after her husband was diagnosed and treated (successfully, thank goodness!) for prostate cancer. She siad her portion of the radiation treatments alone was $15,000...yikes!

I would love to be self-employed, but I work for Uncle Sam because of the cheap group insurance. ;-)

I can't imagine taking this ride for fun. But then you won't catch me riding a roller coaster either.

Just curious, is it one of the rides that has long lines in high season? And are the health warning signs posted at the back of the line or only at the front (even without going on the ride, my blood pressure would soar if I'd waited ages in line only to find out I shouldn't be going on the ride in the first place).

How may other rides at WDW have similar health warnings?

Yes, the healthcare system is in major need of repairs!! (I won't go into politics, but I don't see it getting any better before W is out of office either!)

Thankfully, my DH has a job that provides excellent insurance for us. There's a small amount we have to pay for it, but I'm not complaining - it's so much better than the major medical we had before. (I'm self-employed.)

As for Mission Space - there are so many warnings all over the place before the ride, I almost didn't even try it. I'm glad I did, but like I said before, once is enough!

May you all be healthy & happy! :)

BTilke - you can see the warnings way before you even get in line. Then you see them again and again until you actually ride it. They really try to scare you - and it looks like it's for a good reason!

Other rides have warnings, but IMO, not nearly as bad. And I don't think any other ride is as scary or dangerous either.

"Just curious, is it one of the rides that has long lines in high season?"

There is an written law in the book of Theme Park Rules. "The length of the line at any attraction will be directly proportional to the number of warnings of its danger."

So true, Neo, so true! :)

I hated it. I do not like to be restrained.

I just read that the woman killed was a German tourist. I'm assuming her English was good enough to understand the warnings.
But that won't do Florida's tourist image any good. It's already been reported in the European news that travel to Florida from Brits and other Europeans has dropped by as much as 20%. Much of it is blamed on the new immigration hassles (not my view, merely what I've heard Europeans saying on the news), but this isn't going to help.
German touists seem to have the worst luck in Florida--years ago, I remember it was primarily German tourists who were attacked in their rental cars in Miami (remember, those were the attaacks that got agencies like Hertz, Avis, etc. to stop putting those big RENTAL stickers on their cars).

If mere high blood pressure were enough, combined with this ride, to kill a person, then there would have been far more than 2 deaths among the millions of riders over the years.

I personally do not like to be terrified for fun, so I avoid this and other similar rides. (Too many unavoidable anxiety-provoking situations in real life - why pay for more)

Gail, amen.

We don't even play Monopoly anymore. The last time I played (with my husband and father-in-law), we all agreed to quit less than halfway through. We figured, we have enough worries about bills and taxes and property in real life, why bother with them in a game?

Gail & BTilke - you guys are too funny! The whole reason I ride these and other rides, and play Monopoly, is to ESCAPE the realities of life! :) The fantasy life always seems so much better...