Let’s take a moment and consider healthcare in the United States. Emily, the Queen o’ Memes posted the YouTube video (below) and asked that we share a personal anecdote that highlights why the current system needs to be reformed. I am particularly compelled to do this after President Obama’s speech last night and the disrespect and incivility that was on display from certain members of Congress. Healthcare needs to be reformed, costs need to be contained and every American should be able to obtain care no matter what. No on should be made to go bankrupt from medical bills or to choose between paying for a needed prescription and paying the rent. It doesn’t matter to me how healthcare gets fixed, just as long as it gets fixed in a fair way that benefits people and not insurance or pharmaceutical companies.
I don’t have a horrible personal anecdote to share. There was a time early in our marriage for about two, maybe three years when neither my husband nor I had health insurance because we couldn’t afford it. We were lucky that we were both healthy and nothing happened that sent either of us to the hospital. These days even though we have insurance, it is still a worry. It is expensive. Since my Bookman has MS he needs the best health coverage he can get. I can’t say how much time he has spent on the phone, waiting on hold with the insurance company about why they didn’t pay a bill; how much time he has spent having to call this doctor or that doctor over and over in order to get them to send the referral to the insurance company that says it was ok for him to see his neurologist, or some other specialist.
The economy tanking had us nervous for a while. What if he lost his job and thus his insurance? We can’t afford to pay out of pocket for even one month of his MS medication because it is insanely expensive.
As for me, I don’t need premium coverage so I have opted for a high deductible insurance plan with a health savings account option through my work. My plan is relatively inexpensive and helps us afford the premium coverage for Bookman. We are lucky. There are lots of people who aren’t.
And lest you should think healthcare and books have nothing to do with each other, September is National Literacy Month and this graphic came to me in an email today compliments of Better World Books
So even if you disagree with President Obama, I think increasing literacy is something we can all get behind. Reading: it’s good for you health!
Thanks so much for passing on the message, and I love the literacy link!
Good for you for speaking up. I can’t imagine having worries like that hanging over my head for my entire life, or at least the parts of life not covered by Medicare. I really hope Obama is successful here and can make your insurance system work. It’s too bad you’ll still be paying for corporate overhead and profits, but the way your country is I guess that’s about as far as you can go right now. Good luck! May St. Teddy watch over you!
I do get tremendously fed up with the way that politicians can only debate issues by being mean about each other (not that Obama has done that, of course). I can’t see how this is supposed to impress me. Good luck with your health care debate. I don’t know how as a country America manages, still having to pay the doctor every time someone gets ill. I’ve written about this too, in a response to Emily’s appeal, although given that I don’t know enough about the situation to discuss it in detail, I had to take a different approach.
I’ve been reading around seeing these stories, and of course I have my own and have seen countless others. I have lived most of my adult life without insurance, in communities where the people live well below the poverty line as a matter of course. We all trade in antibiotics, in pain killers, in other common drugs that sometimes you simply need but cannot afford the $50 to go get a legal prescription. What I wonder about is why it has taken so very long for this scandalous thing – a wealthy country with so very many people without care – to be spoken about, to be dealt with.
Sometimes I think that the country is like an abused wife running to the defense of HER MAN. Her assurances that no matter how bad it is sometimes, that HE loves her, HE is the one she must stick to – those assurances – no please don’t take HIM away from me – how will I cope – how will I make it alone. I’ve seen too many of those situations and I can’t help but see the similarities between the terror of an unknown future outweighing the battering one has gotten used to.
Amen! Thanks for spreading the word
Good post. I will do this one too!
Great post, Stefanie! And, how great is that poster? Love it.
How interesting that increasing literacy will save money on health care! I agree that the system needs fixing desperately, and I don’t care how we fix it as long as it gets fixed in a way that’s just. Apparently that’s asking a lot, though. Sigh. I’m glad you and your Bookman are okay, and I hope one day we can say the same about everyone.
Thank You for posting this! Is it just me or does it seem like the naysayers are the highly vocal group and especially well represented group on TV and in ads? It’s the flip side of the coin that should be seen–why can’t Congress understand that this is a problem that needs to be fixed Now? It’s not as if no one knew there was a problem and it’s certainly not as if others have not tried to bring it to the table to be discussed and changed yet nothing ever happens. I’ve been lucky so far, but I still am afraid of losing my job and thus my insurance and I feel like nothing is ever going to improve.
Emily, thank you for getting it started!
Sylvia, I was hoping St Teddy’s death would be a force to help galvanize Congress and get them to work together, but alas, a certain segment is too far gone for that. How did Canada make health care for happen? Maybe you can send some folks down to provide a lesson.
Litlove, politicians are infuriating, aren’t they? They say they have the people’s best interests in mind when they argue against health care but I’ve yet to meet any of those people they are referring to.
Mary, it is scandalous. And you make a very apt observation!
Gentle Reader, thanks!
Daphne, thanks! I know you have plenty to say on the subject.
Iliana, thanks. I love the poster too. The little piggy is adorable and the statistic is surprising.
Dorothy, isn’t that an interesting statistic? I had no idea, though when you think about it it makes perfect sense.
Danielle, it’s not just you, the naysayers have been very loud and it is a bit disappointing that it has taken so long for those in favor of reform to start being heard. But hopefully things will swing back in favor of reform and something good will happen. We’ll keep our fingers crossed!
I don’t know all the details of how Canadian medicare came about, but it started with Tommy Douglas, a preacher, becoming premier of Saskatchewan, and bringing in health care there. All the doctors went on strike and they had to bring in doctors from elsewhere until they gave up. It was not pretty. Then he got into parliament and just hounded the government until they brought it in nationally.
The thing is we have a very different culture from the US, even though we look like you.
I think it basically comes down to compassion. I don’t know where that comes from, but it might have something to do with being small fry. Power corrupts, as the man said.
Ah, so it doesn’t sound like it was all that smooth and easy for Canada either but your better natures won the day. You may look like us but you sure talk funny up there, eh?
Heh. It’s probably the high alcohol content of our beer.