I fail to understand at all those who are completely against the health care reform that the United States is currently debating unless, of course, they are simply shilling in favor of the insurance company that they work for. Who hasn’t had to deal with the twisted quagmire of plans, coverage, premiums, deductibles, copays, coinsurance, pre-existing conditions, and denials of coverage?
Oh, right — THE RICH haven’t, because they can just pay for it all to be taken care of.
This is not to say I don’t like the rich or the Republicans that often represent them. Some of their work ethic is very admirable — work hard, save much, be smart, frugal, and conscientious and you will reap much good. Anyone can become wealthy and live in the lap of luxury — after all, that’s the American way and ultimately, I have no issues with that philosophy.
The problem with these ideals is that they break down in the face of major health issues. Even the best planners, savers, and investors amongst us living on a modest income can be thrashed into a bloody pulp by one large medical issue and the costs it incurs. Considering that they can run into six figures in a hurry, even if your savings account has a wonderful $20,000 balance in it (which most of us can only DREAM of), it’s simply a drop in the huge ocean of expenses you can rack up for a heart attack, stroke, cancer, or any number of other problems that nobody plans on having. The birth of my son was $56,000 before insurance alone, with us having to shoulder about $8,500 of that in payments that are still being made. (We’ll own him outright one of these days, by golly.)
So while the conservatives are saying, “Government running health care is a bad idea; just work hard and you’ll get enough to afford coverage, the system works like it is,” the reality is that even with hard work it may not be enough. You may get coverage, but at such a huge price that you cannot afford it, and likely you will earn too much to be eligible for “poverty” status and the coverage that provides. You could get coverage denied because you have a pre-existing condition or because you develop a condition that the insurance company chooses to not cover. Maybe you’re switching jobs and the coverage will drop in between, leaving you exposed and vulnerable. The drugs for your particular condition may fall outside the blanket of your prescription plan and rack up thousands of dollars every month. If you’re lucky and receive coverage you can afford and it kicks in to cover your problem, you might be slogged with paying a high deductible, copays, or your insurance can hit the lifetime cap and all assistance dries up for everything now-and-forever.
Any one of these situations is enough to throw a reasonable middle-to-lower class person into despair; many have had to struggle with several blows for a single situation. The fact is that these are more the norm than the exception and we all know someone who has dealt with the hassles of at least one of these is testament large this problem looms over our society.
I don’t begrudge the insurance companies for being a business and making a profit, but at the same time it’s the point of the entire system that has been lost, and that point is caring for a real human’s health and well-being. People are being analyzed, economized, and marginalized due to numbers, not needs. Uncle John’s cancer treatment has become a fiscal decision, not a best-tool-for-the-job selection. The pregnant mother in between jobs can’t get maternity coverage for herself and her baby in the month in between because it’s not a good risk profile. Because it’s a drain on the bottom line, the lifetime cap slams the door on the couple with the bouncing baby boy with the genetic disorder who has used up all the benefits and now has no coverage for his intensely-expensive needs.
We need to get our health care system back to one that takes care of people first, profits second; patients, not liabilities. This is what the propopsed health care bill is fighting to achieve through some regulations that ensure coverage when things don’t go right and life hands you lemons you are too weak to squeeze for yourself. In the end, if it costs each of us a bit more out of our paychecks to ensure that anyone and everyone has access to affordable, useful health care in all situations, then I say, sign me up; I’m all for something that gets us back to one of the most important causes we have to fight for today — taking care of each other.
Okay, first of all, anyone who knows me know what I pretty much agree with just about everything Nathan said in this post. But there are some things that some people I know assert which I would like to bring up so I could get some good rebuttle material (mine is wearing thin).
1) Health care is not a right, but a priviledge. People talk about getting back to health care that cares about people, but the reality is that when this country was born, most people didn’t have health care, babies died young, cancer killed and chronic conditions caused people to die at 60 instead of living in extended (even if minimal) pain until they are in their 90s.
2) Before the system of employer health insurance, medical care was always determined by what you could pay for. If you didn’t have the money for medicine, you didn’t get the medicine. If you didn’t have money for the doctor, you didn’t see the doctor.
3) Why should those who have worked hard to be able to afford seeing a doctor have to wait? The massive influx of people who are finally able to see a doctor will flood the system and slow down the time it takes to see the doctor since we have such a massive shortage of nurses and primary care physicians.
Julie: Glad you think likewise, and here’s how I would respond to the points you bring up:
1A. This is a two-part question, really. First, speaking about health care in terms of “rights” and “privileges” is meaningless given the actual debate that is at hand. Maybe it is a privilege, but the fact is that in the current modern society, we have the ability to actually provide for anyone in our country who wants to have affordable health care, so why shouldn’t we take steps to doing so? Notice I never said, “free” health care, but affordable, and that’s an important distinction. I know a lot of conservatives get their panties in a twist over the idea that we’re going to be giving every lazy ass on the street access to a doctor, which isn’t true. Sure, you’ll have some that exploit the system — you always do. But the welfare system generally works for the majority of cases, and so will tiered health care choices. To say it’s a “privilege” is suddenly giving it credence only to the upper classes simply because they have more cash or they are somehow, “better”. Some of the lower classes are there due to their own choice; most, I would say, are stuck in a position where lots of hard work only incrementally advances them and they will always be dealing with a cash flow problem. Are they somehow unworthy of proper treatment simply because of this?
1B. True about the conditions when the country was younger, but that’s due to technological advances that we’ve improved those conditions. Caring about people isn’t defined by the technology being used, but by the attitude and emphasis applied. Back then, doctors were the personal, country type most often, knowing everyone by name, following families through their lives, and making sure that the health care came first and the worry about paying for it second, not the other way around. I don’t care if my doctor ever knows me by name or my family history by heart (in a chart is fine), but to get back to a point where we say, “We’ll treat you and get you back on your feet — we’ll work out the money later,” is the goal we should all be striving for.
2. That’s very true but, again, in this modern society we have the ability to provide for everyone’s care. Our society, standard of living, and resources have advanced to the point where with everyone incurring a small portion of the costs, the entire need can be met. If we tried to do this with, say, providing pizzas to everyone in the country, they’d rightly run us out of the building as being loonies. But with something so essentially basic as health care, we can and should now make the efforts to ensure that this happens. We don’t have to build public roads, but we do, because we can and because by every citizen shouldering a small portion of the costs, everyone benefits and everyone can use them.
3. This is a straw man argument backed up by zero facts whatsoever. There’s no proof that simply by opening up the gates to universal health care that the system will become overwhelmed. Perhaps at the start, yes, as people go and catch up on the routine tests and so forth that they’ve been skipping for ages, or they get treated for their chronic condition that they’ve been tolerating due to lack of funds, but the system will even out. Secondly, there’s no reason why having money should promote your position in the public health system. If you want to hire your own doctor, go for it, but if you’re going to use the same one as everyone else, then the rules of triage apply because health should not bow down to the dollar. What if my son was desperately sick and needed attention right away but, because we’re a starting family who struggles frequently with finances, the hospital knows that we will be paying it off over many months — should an single executive with no kids and plenty of spare cash be able to walk in ahead of us because of a bad headache? These sorts of situations are present all the time and this discrimination has to stop.
I know I said this on twitter but just wanted to say again I think it’s a great post. Personally, I want to urge you to call your Senators and Congressman. Senator Grassley is one of the few Republicans who I think will be able to influence if this is a good reform bill or not, and if it passes or not, and I know he cares what his constituents think. Sen. Harkin supports the bill, but at a time like this, he needs all the support he can get. I don’t know who your Congressman is but again, they like and need to hear from you. Also, you could consider turning any part of this post into a Letter to the Editor and submit it to the local paper. There are all kinds of ways to be heard, and trust me, every Congressional office literally does a tally of the calls, and word gets back to the boss. The Senator will know: Today 49 people called in support of health care, and 130 people called against (or whatever).
I hope I am not being too pushy about it – I admit that because I don’t have Senators who represent me, there is no one I can call and I get so mad about that! So do it for me, the girl with no representation in Congress!
.-= janet´s last blog ..love & hate, hot summer edition =-.
Excellent post, Nathan. It’s about time someone said all of this!
People who are comfortable financially naturally turn a blind eye or shrug their shoulders at those people who aren’t in their position.
But still. Thank you, Nathan. This means a lot to me.
“Well if you worked hard and made a million dollars like me then you would be able to afford good care. I don’t want a bunch of POOR PEOPLE taking my hard-earned money from me. Go get hand-outs from someone else!” That’s the most ignorant, lazy point I’ve ever heard and it’s EVERYWHERE. I hear it and read it all the time. Of course, they’d be singing a different tune if anything ever happened to THEM. Just because I had a bunch of bad things happen to me, which were not my fault, that put me in a hard spot, I should be made out to be a lazy beggar because I don’t pull a six figure salary? I don’t deserve health care? No one can tell me that I don’t work hard to support my family on what I make. The rich should not be the only ones who can afford to jump through the hoops of health care. If you can even call it “care”.
Sorry, got on a rant there.