I hesitate to write this because I am not an expert and this is not a political blog. I’m well aware that my readers don’t come here to get their policy lessons.
But I believe in civic responsibility. And today, the first day of early voting in Florida, I believe that it is my responsibility – our responsibility – to change the dialogue.
While the media and majority of the voting public talks about Joe the Plumber and Saturday Night Live, I’d like to remind you that there are real and pressing concerns that need to be addressed in this country.
Issues that have the power to impact your day to day life. Systems whose dysfunction can derail not only your family’s future, but your ability to survive life as you presently know it.
Issues like healthcare.
It seems strange to some that in a democratic nation that prides itself on the values of capitalism and free markets that we should even be discussing Universal Healthcare. The very idea of a Government Regulated Healthcare System screams of socialism – a fate worse than death to those who would call themselves conservatives.
Ten years ago I would have told you that the government had absolutely no business interfering with our healthcare system. To suggest otherwise would be to open the doors for Uncle Sam conferring with My Doctor about My Medical Decisions. Ten years ago I would have told you it was my right to decide whether or not my family would purchase health insurance. I would have told you that no one had the authority to force me to take care of myself according to someone else’s standards.
Ten years ago, I would have told you that healthcare was a choice.
Because it was.
For millions of Americans, that is no longer the case.
A Republican friend told me recently that he didn’t believe anyone had a right to “above average health care”. He feared that I would think him insensitive, but my internal reaction had nothing to do with his sensitivity and everything to do with his perspective – or lack there of. It reminded me that there are two completely different conversations going on in this country.
What my friend seems unaware of is that the battle for above average health care is irrelevant for most Americans. It is not a question of quality or priorities. It’s not a matter of choosing health insurance over a big screen TV, as I’ve heard some people claim.
For millions of Americans the battle is for some coverage, any coverage that allows them basic, life saving medical care without bankruptcy.
That is the reality. It’s not spin or stump speech rhetoric. It’s what normal, middle class families just like yours are faced with every single day.
The reality in America is changing – has changed – and it seems that many people have yet to have an up close and personal encounter that opens their eyes to that fact.
If you have employer provided benefits, you are lucky.
Nearly half of working Americans do not have the option of health insurance through their work. Half. These are not lazy people. These are not drains on society. These are working Americans (80% of uninsured are native or natural born Amreicans) who have to purchase health insurance on their own or go without.
So why not purchase it on their own?
- Rising insurance costs mean many families simply can’t afford it. And not because they are choosing other “luxuries” over health insurance. Not because they’re asking you to foot the bill for necessities while they roll around in wants and extras.
- Three years ago when my family had to purchase our own health insurance, our premiums were over $500/month for two adults and one child – and we were both in good health in our early 20s. A few months ago, our friends were quoted $2,000 a month to cover 2 adults and 1 child – non smokers with no pre-existing conditions. Needless to say, that family is not currently covered.
- Many people who need insurance the most can’t qualify for coverage. How many people do you know affected by cancer? What about asthma? Diabetes? Hear disease? These people would find it nearly impossible to find coverage on their own. In fact, I’m not personally aware of any policy that would cover someone with a history of cancer.
Are these people asking for “above average” care? Are they looking for a handout?
The costs of basic health care has risen to the point that one serious emergency room visit or extended hospital stay can literally bankrupt a family. A burst appendix. A newly discovered lump. A broken bone. How many families would find themselves financially destroyed with one slip on the ice?
But is it the government’s job to get involved?
Isn’t our constitution based on less government interference, and not more?
Maybe, in theory. Maybe, as a matter of ideology, our federal government was created for nothing more than national security and stable infrastructure. And yet, our history has proven that our government is in reality a growing, evolving, living organization that is constantly adapting to current needs.
Who among us would insist that the Bill of Rights – an addendum to the original Constitution – is unnecessary or unconstitutional? Who would debate that woman’s rights or the Emancipation Proclamation represent anything remotely anti-American or anti-democratic? What about FDIC insurance of your funds – something that is no doubt preventing bank runs even now?
Is the federal government too big? Is it far reaching and intrusive? Does it need to be scaled back and beaten back to Washington in many areas? Absolutely. Without a doubt. There is a time and place for federalist principles that keep a sprawling government in check.
But a country as large and diverse as ours simply cannot afford the luxury of an all or nothing ideology.
And healthcare is a perfect example of that.
This country is supposed to be about Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Those, above all else, are our inalienable rights. It does not guarantee us success or happy endings. It doesn’t even promise fairness. But it does pledge to give us the opportunity to live freely in pursuit of our dreams. That, above all else, is the role of our government.
The current state of the healthcare system in this country is a very real violation of those rights for many Americans.
People are dying because they cannot afford treatment. Not above average treatment. Not elective, experimental procedures. Basic, life saving care. Here, in the “richest country in the world”, people are dying.
And those who don’t? Those who finally choose life in the form of bankruptcy and medical care they cannot pay for? Their lives and expenses become the responsibility of all of us in the form of taxes and higher medical bills and premiums.
We are paying for this country’s healthcare one way or another – whether it remains broken or not.
I wish more than anything that my conservative friends could see that this is no longer a question of becoming a “welfare state”. Healthcare is no longer the plight of the poor or lower working class. It is no longer a question of “fiscal responsibility”.
We are not talking about welfare mamas looking for boob jobs!
We’re talking about a small business owner who has to postpone her child’s oncology surgery because of insurance coverage.
We’re talking about a supervisor and his pregnant, recently laid off wife, who can no longer pay their mortgage AND provide coverage for their 2 year old daughter.
We’re talking about a mother with cancer who will never be covered by insurance again, even with hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills in her future.
The healthcare crisis in America is affecting middle class, upper class, every class of people in this country. And it could happen to you just as easily as it has anyone else.
It’s time, at the very least, that we change the dialogue. Do you think healthcare is a right?
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Posted in Serious Discussions - Politics, Religion, Society Tagged: conservatism, election, healthcare, liberal politics, politics, social issues
I think that employers above a certain size should be required to provide health insurance options for their employees. If you weren’t already covered under Jared, even I would try to provide whatever I could.
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I work for a huge company and our health care sucks. It’s more than 1/3 of my check to pay for it (granted, I work in retail so I make crap) and I’m still not sure it if it’s worth it. I’m healthy, no cancer, no high blood pressure, but still. It’s like you said, a trip on the ice could bankrupt you. I’m a strong supporter in access to affordable health care (which in no way equates to socialism.)
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I am just curious as to what you think of this post of mine… this topic is VERY personal to me http://www.junkfood4thesoul.com/2008/10/ok-for-those-of-that-want-to-know-here.html
And yes healthcare should be our God given right as American’s. If the goverment can tell me what fucking tar we have to use to cover our roads they should be able to provide healthcare for us. If we so choose, as in Poland, to up our healthcare to be sure we are seen more quickly by paying a little extra, then yes. But when MY healthcare won’t cover me to get my breast checked for cancer, but WILL cover in the event I GET brest cancer, something is WRONG! It is OUR right to demand healthcare, just like it’s our right that the goverment makes sure we aren’t driving on roads covered in tar that will explode if touched by rubber on our tires. I know that’s an extreme example, but still… it’s nice how the goverment picks and chooses what it will protect us from, yet healthcare is a no-no. We already have the goverment telling us what we will and will not do… try not giving your kid some form of education or try not paying the tags on for your cars yearly, try not paying the taxes out of your paycheck. The goverment tells us everyday what we will and won’t do because we are Americans yet, healthcare is something they won’t help us with. It just seems so off balance to me. Ok, stepping off my soapbox now.
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Us kidney transplant recipients who want to work hard agree. We are a third world country when it comes to health care.
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In so many ways people in our two countries think alike, yet sometimes you are from Mars, we from Venus. Yes, I think at times our government is too socialistic even though our governing party is conservative, but in more ways than not, our societies are alike. But, looking at what is happening on wall street, don’t you think”our” banking system (called the best) is SO much better with checks and balances? It was impossible for anyone to get a mortgage like the sub prime ones there because ours are underwritten by CMHC, the government, insured against loss. Banks would not loan money without CMHC. And, our health care, with all doctor appointments, mammograms, x-rays, cat scans, mri’s, surgeries, hospital stays, etc. etc. etc. is TOTALLY covered, with NO deductibles. (No, not cosmetic surgery for welfare.) No-one in Canada ever loses a home over Canadian health care bills, no-one ever goes bankrupt.
When Poppa had a myocardial infarct this year in Florida, his health care bill from there came to about $80,000. Wanna know what our insurance required him to pay? Nadda, zilch, nothing! And they payed the difference for our early return trip home. He has been in ICU twice since then, with ambulances, another angiogram and nuclear stress test. No cost, No wait time, No lifetime limit to his health care cost! Ever!
Our monthly premiums for our insurance is “$0″!! Before our retirement it was under $90 a month per family.
Yes, our taxes are higher, and like yours, the FAT CATS get breaks. Scum!!!!
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Oh and sorry Britt, I didn’t read your post all the way through because I’m well, lazy, and I promise I will tomorrow at work like I always do. But I hope somewhere in there (and I sure you did) remind people that McCain wants to tax his healthcare plan! WTF?!?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME! AND he is serious! How this is a close race is beyond me?? I know there are more issues than healthcare that people can’t get past, I respect that, kinda. BUT what are we handing over to our children if things keep going this way? A country they won’t be able to afford to live in? We already are the first generation that may not do greater than our parents and we want that cycle to continue because someone wants Roe V Wade overturned. Yep, I’m gonna get some heat for that statement, but I stand behind it damnit. If I don’t want my daughter to have an abortion, I will be the one to teach her that at home, in my home, because of my religion and teachings, NOT BECAUSE the government tells me so. BUT back to healthcare, if we don’t fix this mess now in some way, we are going to keep doing worse as a nation and yes I think it’s that important and crucial. If we don’t fix this crisis now, what country are we handing over to our children?
Ok… I think I may stay away from your comments for today. I don’t take “heat” very well and I may cry, but I just have to get it out there and off my chest. I honestly don’t want to offend anyone, really I don’t. However, healthcare is so important and it touches Every. Single. One. Of. Us. How can people NOT make that one of the primary concerns this election year?
And just to add more heat to the fire, I’m pro- choice and I early voted and voted for Obama. Just gotta put all my cards on the table in case someone wants to rip me a new one, I want them to have all the facts. Oh! And don’t forget, I’m a card carrying republican. Voting against my party was VERY hard for me this election year. VERY, VERY hard.
Ok, feel free to rip away…
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Ok, last comment I promise… people want to talk about how high our taxes would be raised if the government took over our healthcare… um. look at what you are paying for healthcare out of your check each week… what’s the difference if that went towards taxes for healthcare where you would NEVER get a freakin’ bill from another doctor/hospital again. I’d rather my healthcare cost from my paychecks just go to taxes knowing that if I get breast cancer, or my child gets a tumor, I don’t have to worry, “How the hell am I gonna pay the mortgage, light bill and heat for my house AND by food and gas.” My child just spent three days in the hospital because of MRSA and I’m sitting on about $2000 worth of hospital bills from that! PLUS what I pay monthly out of my check and before my deducible was met. What the hell is the difference if that money was going toward taxes instead? Ok… now everyone can rip me a new one if so inclined… I think I can take it. **Britt please protect me!!**
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One important right, is the right to FAIL, because without it there is no incentive to succeed.
Universal health care just means no one gets any after a couple of generations.
In Britain now, the mortality rate for women diagnosed with breast cancer and waiting for surgery or chemo is higher than our overall mortality rate for breast cancer. They die waiting in line for surgery.
Health care with the competence of Fannie Mae and the compassion of the IRS.
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PS- I like the new look of your blog. Cute!
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While I don;t think health care is necessarily a right, I do see health care as a part of government’s responsibility to maintain a safe and secure country. After all, if we’re all sick, are we safe?
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I don’t know if I think it’s a right, but that’s probably just me being picky about the word because I know entirely too many self-entitled people who think they have a “right” to any number of things.
But yeah, I think it says something about our society, our culture, our people if you will, that we’re so terrible at taking care of each other, that we’re collectively better off if we improve the lot of those of us who are down and out with health issues.
Millions of people without access to health care. One of the highest (if not THE highest) rates of capital punishment on the planet. Aggressively going to war on almost any pretext. “Culture of life”? Oh yeah.
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I believe it is the responsibility of the wealthiest nation in the world to make the care of its citizens its foremost priority.
Janelle,
I’m not going to rip you a new one. I do want to tell you one thing, though. I live in Canada, and have for two years. I LIVE socialized health care. I pay about 5% more out of my checks in taxes than I did in the states, JUST 5% more, and I have no-cost health care, great roads, bridges that don’t crumble, excellent schools that don’t have to hold bake sales every week, and I still live under a democracy. It CAN be done, so long as the country is fiscally responsible.
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i am currently one of the uninsured…my husband works full time…for insurance for just him it’s just over $5 a week…when you add his spouse, the policy jumps to $98 a week, when adding our entire family, it’s $117 a week…my children are covered by the public healthcare (medicaid) here in michigan under healthy kids…me, i go without…i am covered if i’m pregnant because of healthy kids, once the baby is born, or once i miscarry, i’m done, no more…i went two years without my annual, and i’m hpv positive and NEED those annuals to ensure that i don’t have cervical cancer, because i had no insurance to pay for it..this past year, i got the annual because i had recently had a miscarriage…we can’t afford the $98 a month to add just me to my husband’s policy…that would be, in all honesty, a little over 1/4 of his pay each week, after taxes…we live in an area, thankfully, where the cost of living is minimal compared to some areas of the country (east coast, west coast, florida) and we do all right with his pay and my child support…we struggle though, and an extra $98 a week goes a LONG way…my husband has insurance, it’d be silly to not to at $5 a week..buy why does it cost so much to add just me? i don’t have cancer, i’m not a smoker, i don’t have any other kinds of diseases that are life threatening…i’m overweight, but that is easily remedied and i’m suffering NO health issues because of it…
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When I quit my job in Vegas, I signed up for COBRA insurance coverage. $342 a month for single coverage.
It turns out, they didn’t even cover me here in Kentucky. COBRA basically uses the insurance that you had at your last employer. If you move out of their “coverage” area, you’re screwed for 100% of the medical bills. It’s like not having insurance at all. I have medical bills piling up from that experience.
I ended up stopping paying that monthly fee early in the year. I had to eat and pay my bills, right?
I now have medical coverage AND dental coverage through my employer and I truly feel blessed for that.
I went without medical insurance basically from September of last year until May of this year. It was horrible. It’s not something I wish on anyone.
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i am grateful for my employer and their excellent benefits. scary stuff to not have health care coverage.
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although i would like to mention that drug companies and outrageous charges from hospitals piss me right the fuck off.
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I believe health care is a right.
I do feel, however, that our government is not well known for its ability to manage public institutions very well.
When I worked in a Dr.s office (over ten years ago, so this is dated information), the only way a Medicaid recipient could get an HIV test was if they already had a diagnosis. Umm. Hello?
My biggest concern about Universal Healthcare is that it might end up being grossly mismanaged. Still, that’s no reason to dismiss productive dialogue on the subject, or to avoid finding a solution.
Also, I think, as a nation, we need to address why healthcare is so expensive in the first place. I know this might be a hard pill to swallow for a lot of people, but liability insurance and unchecked litigation should be addressed, as well. If an OB didn’t have to worry about paying 80K a year in liability *insurance*, even if their record is spotless, perhaps they wouldn’t have to charge so much?
This is a wonderful post, the line about “maintaining infrastructure and the national defense” was just brilliant.
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Love the new look.
Of course, I totally agree with you; health care is one of the major differences between our countries, and probably the biggest obstacle I have to moving to the US (I grew up in a border town; I love the US as a place to be, just not to raise a family).
And for those who think government funded health care equates to socialism, they should ask if Canada is a socialist nation or not. We have health care, and are not marching in the streets in the shadow of Lenin’s statue.
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We need to do something. My kids have been on Medicaid/Childrens Medical Services ever since they were diagnosed with diabetes. I haven’t had coverage for 4 years now, and HHH will finally have coverage for himself next month at his new job, but they won’t take on the kids and I because of our pre-existing conditions. It’s so stupid! Even if we could be covered, it would cost so much that we would be deciding between food and coverage. People should not have to decide between feeding their kids and being able to buy insulin!
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I definitely think health care is a right. I am not an expert on the US Health System by any means but my cousin (who lives in New York) recently told me a story about one of her neighbours. Her husband needed a bypass after having a heart attack and his insurance wouldn’t cover it. He had to sell his apartment to cover the costs. It was over $50,000. This kind of thing shouldn’t happen anywhere in the world. Can you imagine the stress you would experience being so ill and having to sell your home? It’s awful.
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First off – I haven’t read you outside of my reader in a while – I *LOVE* the new look. Very cute.
Secondly – only one thing to say about the post”: I am socialist in my political views. I belong in France or Canada or whatever but I’m broke and I can’t afford to uproot my girls and leave without the approval and assistance of their father so whatever. I’m all down for Egalitarianism although I don’t believe that it’s right for America, and I don’t see how adopting a few more altruistic policies automatically deems our society Socialist and doomed to fail. I just don’t.
That really has nothing to do with your post, but it just irks me how giving a shit about the little guy and hating how basketball players can make millions a year and families of five across the cul-de-sac from us are losing their homes [ie, being socialist] is viewed as wrong or bad.
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Maybe health care costs would be ‘reasonable’ if there wasn’t a huge pool of insurance money waiting to be drawn upon.
Maybe health care providers would be forced to address the ridiculousness of so many of their charges.
I pay more than $300 per month for health insurance. It’s good coverage but when I look at what is ‘paid’ by the insurance company and what is ‘not covered’ but also not charged to me either I wonder about all this ‘phantom’ cost–where does that go? Is it real? If so who ‘eats’ it and why?
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Yeah, I’m with you. My views have changed over the years, too. I think it’s normal for our perspective to evolve. Health care is a right, not a privilege. Scary how many people do without. I’d be screwed if I didn’t have VA coverage. And I have absolutely nothing for dental.
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I believe that every single individual has the right to have access to the best health care available. Equal access. Even people who have employer provided coverage are finding themselves paying more for their coverage and are getting less for what they pay for.
In all honesty I’m afraid that health care is going to become a back seat issue, as it always does, in light of the economic crisis our country is in.
I believe the insurance companies are a large part of the problem. Just take a look at the United Healthcare debacle with a CEO who was making over a billion dollars a year. Can you say GREED?
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Basic life saving treatment and procedures are already a right.
It’s true, the cost could easily bankrupt a family, but that’s because of both the large number of unpaid bills from the uninsured AND the below cost amount the government is willing to reimburse the healthcare system through its MediCare and MediCaid programs.
Universal Healthcare is not as easy as it sounds… and neither candidate has truly addressed it in a satisfactory manner for both the potential patients or the healthcare providers… but at least the Democratic plan is a step, albeit a small one, in the right direction.
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Just my luck I end up in the pink comment box.
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What a great post!
As a Canadian, it’s difficult for me to understand how someone might ever think that government-run health care is a bad thing. I never worry that the government is conferring with my healthcare provider; I’d be a lot more worried dealing with your HMO’s!
After all, my government wants to keep me alive to vote; your HMO’s want you to either stay healthy, or die quickly, so you’ll stop taking away their profits!
100% profit-driven health care scares me more than almost anything else in the world; I can’t even imagine getting cancer, for instance, and then realizing my insurance doesn’t cover it, so even if I live through the treatment, I’ll still lose everything.
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My comment got eaten!
Yes, it is a right. We have the right to be healthy, the right to be cared for when we are not.
I think goverment exists to do the things that individuals cannot. And clearly we can no longer provide ourselves access to basic health insurance, which means that many people do not have access to preventative care, which means they die because their illness was not caught early enough. This is not acceptable.
I worry for Lil’ M. I worry that he will not be able to get (even if he could afford it) insurance to get the care that he needs to manage his condition — including seizures that require medication.
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Two weeks ago I had to take my husband to the emergency room for stomach issues. After an hour of tests he was admitted. The doctor came in to see him the next morning, can you guess what the first thing he said to him was? It wasn’t how are you doing this morning or this is what we found wrong. The very first thing he said was “I told them last night not to admit you because you don’t have insurance.”
Had he had something life threatening I guess in that doctor’s eyes he was just supposed to lay down and die because he had no insurance.
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The whole U.S. healthcare situation is beyond frustrating for me, especially as a Canadian living in the U.S. So, can we talk more about your hair so that my head doesn’t explode? (I don’t think I can afford to get an exploded head fixed with my current healthcare plan.)
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Do you want universal health care to cover smokers and treat the ills that smoking causes in spite of all the warnings?
Are there exceptions to covering everyone?
If there are exceptions, is it really “universal”?
I think the greatest travesty is that insurance companies often refuse to cover a $500 test that could find a condition before that condition becomes a $500,000 problem. Which leads to the next question; what power over existing insurance companies would full coverage require?
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It is a right – absolutely.
I really can’t say any more – I get pretty worked up over this shit, but I think you covered my feelings on the whole topic pretty well!
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Viva la Canada.
heh.
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You already know my views on most of this so I’m not going to go all ape shit and be eaten alive because my words were taken out of context.
But I will say that since November 12, 2007, my family has incurred almost $100,000 in medical bills – this does not include all of the costs associated with the pregnancy but does include the emergency c-section. I thank God that we were able to scrape by after almost $200 a week were taken out of my husband’s paychecks.
Access to health care is a right – that is why there is that little sign on the wall at the hospital that says they are required by law to treat you. But, you are also required to pay those hospital bills. Outrageous medical costs are due to ::ahem:: welfare mamas wanting boob jobs and people who dodge their medical bills. And, of course, the greedy insurance company CEO’s – but that’s a given.
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I worry about my sister’s children..two of them with type one diabetes, who are covered by good insurance now but once they grow to adulthood? Who knows. It’s not like they can go without treatment.
My own insurance doesn’t cover well child visits, birth control (with the exception of my tubal ligation procedure), or inoculations. To get those things I have to rely on government programs and I was a regular Planned Parenthood customer.
Once we considered buying private insurance until we learned that they didn’t want to cover me fully because I’d had hemorrhoids with the birth of my children. Not piles that needed surgery, but no matter, hemorrhoids was enough to limit my benefits.
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To be fair, it isn’t only the insurance companies at fault. Lobbyists for the medical/drug companies are. The difference between the cost of our health care and yours is impossible. For instance, our hospital stays cost roughly $250 a day, or $350 a day for those who come across the border for their health care. Yup, folks living close often choose to come here and pay. Poppa’s $80,000 bill in Florida would have been less than $5,000 here in Canada, or equal to many deductibles. Our insurance company wanted to medivac poppa home from Florida to Alberta-they are better off paying for a medical plane and medical team than paying for American health costs, that much difference. Yes, if we wanted a faster MRI we may have to pay ourselves, but we could wait and not pay for it. Wait times can be a couple weeks or more, and hip replacements can be longer, but it isn’t anything like the media claim. No. Boob jobs aren’t covered, except for medical necessities, like reducing size for bad backs, but NOT enhancements! AND we are a FREE DEMOCRATIC COUNTRY, not socialists!
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I believe health care is a right. In a supposedly evolved and civilized society, it is abominable that so many do not have health insurance or have mediocre health insurance. Sure we all have the right to health care, but only if we are able to afford the bills that follow. I am one of those American citizens who have health insurance, through my employer, but do not have good health insurance.
My deductible is so high that even with monthly physician visits and prescriptions, an ER visit, and various medical tests throughout the year, I will never get my deductible paid off and so am barely making ends meet with medical expenses on top of normal monthly expenses. I work in a bankruptcy firm where many clients either have insurance issues like my own or do not have insurance but have health conditions, a sick kid, or have some other medical-related issue come up. People end up in bankruptcy because of their medical bills alone in this country and that is alarming.
It is astounding to me that other countries have national healthcare, but we do not. Politicians, the media, and Conservatives will claim that national health care would simply not work or is socialism in action; however I have seen information proving that it is indeed working very well in Canada, England, and even Cuba, for doctors and patients alike. Look at the data before claiming it doesn’t work. Socialism? The way I look at it our country is based upon “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” right? Then explain to me how health care for all does not provide greater quality of life and a greater chance at the pursuit of happiness.
The non-existence of a national health care system in this country very likely has more to do with lobbyists and corporate interests than the question of if one would be of benefit to the people or would be a valid solution to health care troubles.
I hope to God that Obama is elected and is able to do something, with Congress’ help, to fix the American health care system. It is broken and it is breaking us.
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avitable: I don’t even care if employers provide it. I really don’t. If I had the choice to get it some place else, I’m cool with that.
I just want the CHOICE to get it from SOMEWHERE.
And a lot of people don’t have that. As hard as that is for some people to believe.
Amanda: I’m surprised at how poor the coverage that most people get from their jobs has gotten. My mom is a NURSE and she DECLINED her work provided insurance because it was THAT DAMN BAD.
Janelle:
regarding your post – I am SUPREMELY impressed that you were able to go against your own tradition to do what is right for YOUR family. Very, very few people on EITHER side of the aisle are able to do that.
And you’re right – we don’t have a “hands off” government now, with our without healthcare.
othurme: yes, we really are.
Momma: I think it’s lucky for you guys you’re so far north (COLD!) – or you’d be dealing with your own immigration problems right about now.
Janelle: I am just giggling at you.
georgeh: if you reread this post carefully, I think you’ll see that I also believe in the right to fail. And that what I want to protect is the ability to PURSUE.
Britain is not the only country that provides universal health care. And there are MANY examples of nations that have done it successfully for multiple generations.
I know Americans HATE to hear this – but there ARE some places who are doing THIS better than US.
Fear and Parenting in Las Vegas: I don’t think healthcare in and of itself is a right – but I think not having it to the extreme that many people have right now it definitely makes it impossible for us to fulfill the promises of the Declaration of Independence.
Iron Fist: Culture of Life. Exactly. EXACTLY!
And I’m with you. I hate entitlement. HATE. Hate what it’s doing to our society.
I think that’s why it took me so long (and the system to unravel so much) for me to get to this point on my opinions about healthcare.
Mr Lady: oooh, you know we Americans don’t want to hear that.
I think we avoid TAXES at all costs, and forget that we still pay for those things – sometimes more than what you pay – we just pay for them in other ways, as you said.
Jamie: thank God your kids have it. There was a time when my kids didn’t have it – we couldn’t afford it even for them and we made too much to be covered by the state. That is an awful, awful feeling as a parent.
Sodapop: COBRA is a joke – and a necessary evil for many people right now. As if you can predict when you’ll lose your job? And if you DON’T get it – you could be totally screwed when it comes to getting insurance in the future.
hello haha narf: most of those hospitals don’t have a choice, sadly.
Faiqa: there are a lot of factors contributing to ballooning costs, lawsuits among them. And yes, that absolutely DOES need to be addressed.
And I think that you bring up a valid concern – our government SUCKS at management. That has to change. It has to. We, as a people, need to demand it.
SciFi: actually, a lot of Americans do think that Canada is a socialist country.
Blondefabulous: exactly.
Selma: and that stuff is happening more and more often now. That’s just wrong. That can happen to ANY of us!
Maria: yeah, I feel you. It irks me that social justice is seen as a naive weakness in our society.
Turnbaby: all of those questions HAVE to be answered. They have to.
Karl: the thing is, I have at times CHOSEN not to have health care. I knew I was taking a risk but I had to in order for us to get ahead. But like I said, at least then it was a CHOICE. It kills me how many people don’t have that option.
Lisa: I think about you and your family all the time when this comes up.
NYCWD: “Universal Healthcare is not as easy as it sounds…”
Dude, how stupid do you have to be to think it sounds EASY?
And I agree, right now we just have steps. I’m OK with that because I’m trying to be realistic. It’s a HUGE, COMPLICATED MESS. And our country tends to say “fuck it” when there are no easy answers.
We can’t afford to do that here.
Chelly: “100% profit-driven health care”
Wow, when you say it like that… that is freaking terrifying.
Finn: Ack! Sorry! It’s not even in the filter!
“I think goverment exists to do the things that individuals cannot.”
Me too.
“And clearly we can no longer provide ourselves access to basic health insurance, which means that many people do not have access to preventative care, which means they die because their illness was not caught early enough.”
Exactly. Wow, you said that much more succinctly than I did.
J.O.: if it had been IMMEDIATE life threatening it probably would have been different. But really, is that what we want? To push until we get to that point? Is that really MORE efficient or effective?
Dawn: well, that does seem more popular.
RW: we’ve discussed this and yes, I think you have to cover smokers if you cover people who eat at McDonald’s. Or don’t salt their driveways. Or… well… you get my point.
As to the rest of your questions – I really am too ignorant on this to have an intelligent answer.
Sybil Law:I’m kind of giggling at the idea of you being worked up.
ali: hey! Traitor!
Sheila (Charm School Reject): I continue to respect and appreciate your willingness to engage in the dialogue here. Truly.
“Outrageous medical costs are due to ::ahem:: welfare mamas wanting boob jobs and people who dodge their medical bills.”
That is simply not true. Ask anyone who works in health care and they will tell you it is far, far more complicated than that.
That is one of the stereotypes I was trying to shed some light on in this post. People get so, so caught up with the “low life” theories that they miss how this is affecting hard working, tax paying, responsible citizens. The percentage of MIDDLE CLASS people in this country far outweighs the welfare class.
Becky..Absent Minded Housewife I worry about kids with conditions like that as well. How can we guarantee they have uninterrupted coverage for life?
Momma: I am so, so grateful for what I have learned from you and D. Thanks for continuing to share with all of us here.
Gina: and France. From what I understand, they are doing national healthcare very, very well.
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Sorry, last comment…but….our taxes are high, but certainly nothing as high as monthly insurance costs. Nowhere near $300 to $2000 a month like your insurance premiums that your commentors are writing about! Drugs aren’t covered, and we need insurance for that, most are included by employers even some fast food employers. It can be a problem, but premiums are not very high, maybe $100 or so a month for 80% coverage. No place is perfect for sure, but it beats having your worries about health care
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Basic healthcare is absolutely a right. It boggles my brain that there are people out there who have no problem trying to force someone else’s kid to pray in school, legislate who can and cannot get married, think that the government should listen in on my phone calls and read my e-mails, ban books and write a law that dictates the goings on of my uterus but at the same time say that Universal Healthcare is an excuse to let the government step into a place where it does not belong.
What’s terrible is that there are people who desperately need to see a doctor now but aren’t because they are worried that it will affect their ability to get insurance later.
um….[/soapbox]
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I know that, in the grand scheme of things, welfare is not the only problem. However, when the government is only reimbursing a small pittance of the monies owed to a hospital for their welfare patients (when my mom worked at the University of Chicago hospital it was something like five cents on the dollar), that would definitely seem like a high contributing factor to why health care is so much.
Seriously, being charged $38 for a freakin’ tylenol in the ER??
When it costs $35,000 to have an emergency c-section, yeah you are going to have to pay more in your premiums. I used to bitch about the high cost of our insurance until I realized that, no matter how expensive it is, at least I didn’t have to pay that $100,000.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that we aren’t ever going to not get screwed by the insurance companies until the cost of the medical care itself goes down.
For the record though – I’m not against universal health care though I am worried about the potential ramifications which is because I am, admittedly, 90% ignorant on how it works in other countries and how it would work here. From what I’ve seen and heard, you either love and sing the praises of UHC or you scream and cry in rage at it.
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De-lurking to ask where you got that number where half of working Americans don’t have access to employer-provided health care. As an adult, I’ve never worked anywhere that didn’t have health care.
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“From what I’ve seen and heard, you either love and sing the praises of UHC or you scream and cry in rage at it.”
To clarify, “you” means “people who have UHC”.
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I know, I said no more comments, but, Wow, Britt. We DO have a very BIG problem with illegal immigrants. From Mexico and from everywhere else. In fact, our problems mirror yours in every way. You just don’t hear about it. As a matter of fact, did you know we just had a federal election? The TV ads sounded like yours, only quieter. Steven Colbert likened our election to as if we were the “strange older brother in the attic” ;o) It was hilarious. You should try to find it online.
And, our country has many warm places, like BC which is like Northern California and Spokane, Washington, and southern Ontario which is warmer than, say Iowa, and warmer than northern California. Some places are positively desert, hot as H— or Arizona! This winter, in fact, many of our days were warmer than Arizona, much to the chagrin of the snowbirds with homes there!
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I am facing the thought of not having coverage shortly if things work out. It sucks supremely because PCOS sufferers can’t get insurance. Which is crazy because it’s bad for women to not cycle regularly, but if you can’t afford treatments without insurance you are screwed as well.
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We have chinook winds, which are equal to the santa anna winds in California, with the heat that goes with it
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Let’s see, a house, or insurance for my family. I’ve always chosen the insurance, and found a cheaper place to live. Part of the reason people “can’t afford it” is because they are paying for nice cars, cellphone service, broadband internet, cable tv, itunes, etc. People have to make choices, hard ones.
That said, the system IS broken. Something has to be done. I don’t have the answers, but I know that government run health care doesn’t seem to be working so well for the Canadians I know.
The Government can’t do anything right. Every single day I see the agency I work for spend 10X as much money for things as they should, all in an effort to save money. The can’t see the forest for the trees and make rules that sound good at first, until you think about them. Like requiring competitive bidding on all items purchased. Makes sense, and saves money. Until I have to waste 4 hours getting competitive bids to buy a roll of toilet paper, filling out a requisition in triplicate, mailing it to the capitol, waiting for them to process it and issue a purchase order, mailing it back to me, and then I go buy it. I am NOT making this up. They really do that. And I was told they would fire me if they catch me buying my own toilet paper, that’s not allowed either. But it’s our government hard at rest.
If we require all business to provide health care, that will bankrupt some small businesses. Obama’s idea of the big “pool” to provide the same coverage that congress gets does sound good on the surface. If it will work. I don’t know that it will, since we can’t force the insurance companies to go along with it. If they decide it’s not profitable they will just close up shop. But I commend him for wanting to try it. I’m sure it wouldn’t be “affordable” but it should be more affordable than what a small business could do on their own.
I just don’t want the entire health care system to become unprofitable. We already have a shortage of health care workers in this country, especially nurses, who are generally paid fairly well (but probably not well enough considering their workload!) If they know the pay is going to suck, they won’t want to get into health care to begin with, and that would really put a strain on the system.
Is Healthcare a right? I think probably it is. Is ‘better than average’ healthcare a right? I don’t think so, but I hope it at least remains a privilege for those willing and able to pay for the best (leaves me out).
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Awesome post, Britt.
Probably because I come from a household who sees health insurance as the freaking holy grail, this one hits hard.
I have a daughter with cancer, and the way current insurance is, she can never NOT have insurance. If she were to lapse coverage at any point in her life, she could never get covered again. When my husband changed jobs in the middle of her treatment, we had to time it very carefully, we were less worried about moving expenses and 401K than we were about the reliability of the health insurance package. Because we came damn near maxing out our lifetime benefits in TWO years…and then what?
It’s not a luxury to want to think that if your spouse or child gets sick you can get them the simple care they need. It’s not a luxury to wonder if your child will need a treatment that the insurance company deems experimental and won’t cover when all others have failed. Luxury is a word for those so far out of touch with what it means to be a middle class family that it’s ridiculous.
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I feel so fortunate to even have health insurance, let alone it be Tricare because we are military.
I could go on and on about how fucking annoying it is to not be able to go to the doctor of my choice and have to deal with cold base hospital doctors, but at least I am fortunate enough to have it.
Our country is in a horrible place right now, not just with health care issues, but in general.
This was a great post:)
And I loooove the new look.
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Yes. Period. Fucking YES.
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“Nobody’s” comments can be right that Canadian health care doesn’t work too well for some Canadians she knows. The doctor could be useless, but that can always be changed with a new physician. The health care does work, maybe too well ’cause many people go for a common cold,paying nothing, and that should be stopped. Depending on the professionals in your area, some are better than others, just like any other profession. We saw some difference between the two hospitals in Florida poppa was involved with. Lakeland Ranch Medical center was first rate, Manatee Memorial less so, but nonetheless still decent health care for serious illness. Same thing happens here. Docs are busy,busy,busy, but we have been very fortunate that serious illness is dealt with “tout suite” (That’s french vernacular for immediately) If we cannot get an appointment with our doc, we can go to our doc’s office for a clinic to see another available one. Free. For all.
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Thanks for writing such a comprehensive blog. I agree with everything you’ve said. I am a medical director in hospital system and I see the need you’ve described every day. Your comments reflect the feelings of the majority of people in this country. No one can deny: the system is broken and destined for self destruction. Let’s hope our lawmakers and the present candidates can do something.
charlesclarknovels.com
http://www.charlesclarknovels.com
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I’ve met this government of which you speak, and it is US. Can none of us say, “We need to do…” instead of, “The government needs to…?”
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I actually just mentioned this in my post today.
We still don’t know what we’re going to do once my COBRA health insurance coverage runs out at the end of December. The COBRA insurance that for the past 16 months we’ve had to pay $515 a month for, not including medication co-pays, Since I don’t qualify for state Medicaid and I can’t get my own (or even get added to my husband’s) private insurance because rheumatoid arthritis, like cancer, is an exclusionary illness, my only option is this brand new health insurance program in Indiana that is supposed to provide insurance for persons who do not qualify or cannot afford health insurance and who do not qualify for Medicaid. The catch (yes, there’s always a catch) is that you cannot have been on any health insurance plan for at least six months before you can even apply. Do they have a clue how much damage rheumatoid arthritis can do to joints and other connective tissue (read: organs) in six months without treatment? Maybe. But if they do, they damn well don’t care.
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I am currently paying for COBRA insurance. It’s $400-something a month for medical and dental **just for me**. I can’t afford this much longer. I am healthy, but I know one day of missed coverage could land me in a very bad situation, so I keep paying. I now appreciate what my employer just did for me for 6 years.
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One: I love the new look for the site!
Two: I think we definitely need more healthcare options. Luckily since I’m a student I am still covered under my mom’s policy. My boyfriend is NOT so lucky. He can’t even get coverage through work; only managers get it. I see him suffer every day because he can’t see a doctor, because he can’t afford it without insurance. It’s definitely time for a change.
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As an educator, I am grateful for the National Education Association and the Kentucky Teacher’s Association for their vigilance in assuring our healthcare benefits. I have good coverage at a reasonable price for me and my children. I believe everyone has a right to health coverage. But the solution is going to be incredibly complicated. I think the government is already WAY too involved in our banking and Wall Street situation. And I don’t think smokers should be covered in the same way as people who are simply careless. Buying cigarettes and smoking them is a CHOICE.
Anyway, interesting post.
J.
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I think it is up to the insurance companies, providers, and medical centers to come up with solutions to the healthcare problem, not the government. In the individual market, my entire household is uninsurable. The conditions in the family are: GERD, Asthma, hereditary high cholesterol (hubby and kids), and depression(me). Nothing significant, but they feel we are an unacceptable risk. We need to make prescription drugs affordable to all, we need to better utilize generics to keep costs down. if the government wants all kids immunized, they should pay for it, not us or insurance paying $60 to $300 per shot/series. I see groups every day in Underwriting that are quoted $2k, $3K, $4k for family coverage per month! And this is the only way they can get insurance is through a business. They take plans with very high deductibles and co-pays just to have insurance.
I have been without insurance before and had to cough up money for an MRI up front before I could schedule an appointment. It took me 3 years to pay off medical bills from my daughters 1st year because my husbands insurance at the time was pure garbage. I think the system is flawed, broken and needing a makeover, but its not up to the government to fix it.
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Yes!
Do I need to back up why?
But seriously, yes. Sean has asthma, and it is sometimes VERY hard for us to pay for the medicine he needs every month. Some months it’s not a big deal, but some months..it just is. Now we’re having a baby (I’m in week 9!) and both trying to figure out how it’s going to play out. I’m on Medicaid now in our state, so I can go to doctor’s appointments, and will most likely continue it when we move (out of state), because we’ll both have just graduated and I have no idea what the likelihood of us getting jobs immediately after college is.
I’m one of those nuts who is all for raising taxes (such as in Europe, where people who make TONS of money are taxed at a higher rate than people who don’t) to support public programs like Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP, etc.
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Whew. As usual, hon, awesome post! Many thought-provoking words, questions, and comments. So, here’s my two-cents.
As long as for-profit insurance companies are in place as the main source of health insurance for Americans, no American citizen, be they rich or poor, will ever get the coverage needed. As an example? Look at the similar situation with Katrina victims and their homeowner’s insurance dickering over “was it wind? or water?” and claiming flood damage so the houses could be condemned. It’s the same with health insurance. Pre-existing condition? Sorry, you’re fucked. Too much cancer/heart disease/insert-illness-name-here? We can’t cover you any longer.
But is Universal Health Care, managed by the US Government, the answer? No. Absolutely not. Those are the same dipshits who decide what kind of fracking toilets I can install in my home, who had a big hand in crashing our economy, and who currently have a 12% approval rating. I absolutely don’t want the government stepping in and taking the reins. From what I understand, the Medicare paperwork is quite the headache for doctors. And since the money has to come from somewhere, it will come from our tax dollars and believe me, our less-than-efficient government will find a way to bloat even UHC.
I think we need a mix of the two. I don’t have the particulars (so not an expert), but there needs to be a balance between private and public coverage. We need to start focusing on, and finding a way to pay for, preventative healthcare. Also, frivolous medical lawsuits need to be thrown out of the courts because those? Raise the liability insurance costs of our doctors, which in turn raise our costs, which in turn causes our piece-of-shit health insurance companies to send out letters stating, “We won’t cover that amount.” We have doctors leaving certain states (West Virginia can’t keep OB/GYNs any longer) in droves because of the sky-rocketing costs of medical liability insurance.
Wow. OK. I think I’ve rambled enough. I don’t like our current system, but I’m not a fan of UHC, either. I agree that something has to be done, but it needs to be a mix of the two. Somehow…
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I just lost my health insurance.
Because I have an agreed (meaning the hospital and I agreed on the amount) garnishment of my paycheck of about $100 bucks a week. Which is the cost of my insurance. So.
I gave up the insurance.
To pay back medical bills that weren’t covered by said insurance.
Help.
It SHOULD be a right.
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Momma: don’t be sorry, this is information most of us don’t know that we need.
I think, like you said, that we forget that we are paying more some place else. Although, what worries me is not having the choice. What I’ve always thought before is that at least I could decline buying health insurance if I needed to.
Erin: exactly, exactly, exactly!
Sheila (Charm School Reject): I absolutely agree that we HAVE to figure out WHY it costs so much more to provide health care here. Not insurance, care.
Anyone know where we can start? LOL
Kris: National Coalition on Healthcare
As a working adult, I have only ever had health insurance at ONE job I’ve worked at – and then it was only affordable to have it for me.
This is the first time my husband has had it offered through an employer in 8 years.
Momma: reaaalllllly?
Kristin: damned if you do, damned if you don’t
Nobody™: dude, the people I know aren’t choosing between a McMansion or insurance. Their choosing between modest housing for their children in safe neighborhoods.
And as I’ve pointed out, many people don’t even have THAT option. Look through the coments alone – a number of people couldn’t be covered no matter how much they were willing to pay.
That being said, I think that all of the things you mentioned HAVE to be remembered in whatever solution we come up with. We’re already facing physician shortages – without gov’t healthcare – becase it’s becoming unprofitable for healthcare providers.
Anissa@Hope4Peyton: “Probably because I come from a household who sees health insurance as the freaking holy grail,”
We thought we’d won the freaking lottery when Jared’s job offered health insurance and we only have to pay about $250 a month for it. I feel like a Rockefeller every time I pull out my insurance card.
I forget about parents who HAVE to keep uninterrupted coverage for their children, and hope their children will do the same for themselves as they get older.
Ashleigh: yes, we really are. And we HAVE to keep talking about it with one another. Even when we don’t know what answers we’ll come up with.
Karen Sugarpants: I know, you sing it so well for us sister.
Momma: can I just start nodding at you now? lol
Char;es Clark, Sr., M.D.: and our medical professionals feel the effects as well, I know. Thanks.
Been there, Done that: A-fucking-men sister!
And hanks for the reminder.
Evil Genius: I’m so, so sorry that you have to face that choice.
Poppy: we couldn’t do it. When Jared changed jobs years ago and we were faced with COBRA, we took the risk. Looking back I can’t BELIEVE how stupid – and lucky – we were. But there was just no way we could afford the new hit to our budget.
Elizabeth: you know, one thing I will say is that a doctor’s visit alone doesn’t cost as much as people think. Back home I know it was $75. He might want to call around and ask if he is in need of some medical attention.
At least he’ll know.
HoosierGirl: it is complicated. And the massive distrust (deservedly so) that we have for the “gov’t” doesn’t help.
I think WE, as Lynn pointed out, need to remember that this is OUR gov’t. WE need to become part of the solution.
Somehow.
Jennifer: why does the insurance company have more of a responsibility to our society than our government – our government of “for the people, by the people” ideals?
Stephanie: and unfortunately, your opinion isn’t going to matter to most because you’re on government assistance.
A lot of people still see that as a free ride.
Coal Miner’s Granddaughter: um, I’m just gonna throw two things out there (and thanks for your intelligent comment as always! brilliance!)
1) As Lynn reminded us, WE ARE the gov’t. It’s not some secret force on a hill somewhere. WE ARE in control to the extent that we choose to be.
2) Have you read Obama’s health care plan? You should. It is actually very similar to what you’re describing.
Stephanie: we did the exact same thing after Emma was born. Paid for insurance all through pregnancy. Still was left with THOUSANDS of dollars in bills. We paid for it by dropping the insurance.
And eating mac and cheese.
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Excellent points made in your post. I’m glad you went there even though you don’t usually dabble in politics.
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Honestly, I don’t think either party will be able to implement their plan. There are so many other crises going on that chances are it will get pushed the the back burner. How sad is that?
MANY people lose their home in the US because of health care (or lack thereof). MANY. I’m not sure the answer lies is within the government. There are no simple answers for this issue. Lots of ideas, just not necessarily any executable ones.
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Following up, since I actually have the bill in front of me: $498.74 per month for medical and dental insurance.
PLEASE LET ME GET THIS JOB. Benefits start day 1.
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Nice, comprehensive post. I also like how most of the comments were civil – and in today’s volatile, politically charged environment, especially when a personal issue such as healthcare is involved, it’s easy to throw profanity, illogical arguments and get emotionally outraged. I have to admit, after reading the post and seeing 65 comments, I was bracing myself for keeping calm
I was pleasantly surprised.
Now, onto your question. I personally do _not_ believe healthcare is a right, just as I do not think eating is a right, shelter is a right, clothing is a right, college education, a job, a cell phone, or protection from being offended. Those are “nice to haves”. Privileges. Rewards. Or, for lack of a better term, “incentive.”
To me, a “right” is reserved for those very few, very sacred, more-important-than-food-itself things that 99.9% of citizens agree on. Not coincidentally, these items happen to have made it into the Constitution. They include such things as life, liberty, pursuit of happiness. They also include stuff like the military to protect our borders and prevent invasion from other countries, our road system, our post offices, protect copyrights, prevent murder, and the like.
And then we had these ten special amendments (Bill of Rights) that specified in greater detail things like free speech, right to keep and bear arms, self-incrimination, etc.
As georgeh said above, we must remember the right to fail. This should cover everything else. And it goes directly to the concept of incentive.
Scenario #1: You purchase health insurance that requires a small copay and all your bills are paid once you take care of your monthly premium. What incentive do you have to stay healthy?
Scenario #2: You are provided free health insurance that has no copay and all your bills are paid. What incentive do you have to stay healthy, AND what incentive do you have to purchase health insurance? What incentive do you have to even do anything but sit on your couch, watching TV, eating bonbons and wait for the ambulances to come get you out of bed?
In my eyes, as soon as the government is providing health care, less people will see the need to get their own health insurance. When the stigma of government-provided healthcare is removed, everybody and their brother will flock to it. And that is very dangerous for our long-term health as a nation.
In essence, the very thing many propose out of an urgent need to get everyone more healthy will end up making everyone less healthy.
Tell me know is more likely to enjoy their bachelor’s degree – someone who has it paid for them or someone who earned their way to get it? I personally do not want to bestow upon my children a nation run by snobbish spoiled brats who are raised thinking they are “owed” all sorts of things like healthcare or food. If they want to eat, they need to work. If they want health care, they need to pay for it. And if they want to reduce health care costs, they should act accordingly to stay healthy.
I thought of another “right” – my right to give. My right to help. My right to assist my fellow man with a meal, a supportive hand up, a bed in my home or the shirt off my back. My right to help donate to charities that help pay for sick children with horrible diseases.
Universal Healthcare infringes on my right to give.
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I do thank you for this post, Britt. As unpopular as my views are around here and the blogosphere in general, I appreciate being able to have a voice.
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I wrote this over at whalls so i will just copy and paste it here.
I do not feel healthcare is a right. The constitution was set up so that the government would be split apart to prevent from too much power. Our founding fathers warned us to not give the government any unecessary powers that would take over aspects of our lives. They are there for foreign affairs and defense. The constitution does not outline any right for healthcare. It does not for the same reason massages and sandwiches are not a right. There are two major things wrong with this. One is the increasing power of government. We are completely changing the way we were founded and how we were intended to handle these issues. Secondly, the government has shown no evidence of being able to take over something and make it “good.” This is a little too close to socialism for my taste.
Of course it sounds very nice to think of “fairness” and of “equality” but no such thing exists. There will always be class divisions, people who can’t afford things others can because we are a democracy. Some excell some do not. But let’s not bring us closer to a socialist nation where we start paying to make everything “fair.”
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I must say that I am shocked at the monthly rates mentioned here. I have also had (good) employer-provided insurance, and I’ve always counted myself lucky in that regard, so I expect I’m just completely in the dark about the true situation.
For a long time I’ve felt that people tend to over-insure themselves, trying to get healthcare with low deductibles and low co-pays, when what they should really be doing is getting as high a deductible as they could afford to pay without having to sell their house, declare bankruptcy, or face any other extreme financial hardship. They should not, however, expect that if they run into some expensive health problems, they shouldn’t have to make any lifestyle changes. Bad shit happens to good people, and while it sucks, it’s unreasonable to have a system that takes away all of the financial burden.
What if, for example, a cure for cancer were discovered, but the cure involved daily access to advanced medical equipment that was both expensive to produce and required sophisticated daily maintenance. Let’s say the real cost of said treatment turned out to be $1,000,000. Are we saying that we want a system were anyone with cancer automatically gets the cure? Perhaps it would be treated as organ donation and there would be a queue, but the restriction would be that only a certain number of the procedures could be afforded per year.
I’m not sure I’m making any sense, but I feel that the available medical care has advanced hugely over the past century and to just assume that everyone should automatically get access to any level of care available just doesn’t seem manageable.
Maybe we need a tax on elective medical treatments to fund life-saving medical treatments? (I’m not sure where life-improving treatments, such as hip replacement surgery, or ACL surgery or even something like a kidney replacement just to avoid dialysis, would fall in this scheme.)
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I live in Canada where there is national healthcare. Before I had a child, it was nice, but I could take it or leave it. Now that I have a child, I could not be more grateful for having basic coverage so that I can make sure that my daughter is taken care of without me worrying about losing our home in the process.
Healthcare is a right. Everybody should have access to basic healthcare.
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Also, if healthcare is a right then surely so are food and shelter. So I should be able to choose not to work and not have to worry about any of those three things (not that I’d like it). I’m not saying that this is the current situation, just that it follows when you elevate these things to the level of rights. And perhaps that’s okay. Perhaps we’ve reached a level of affluence as a society that we have the luxury of working being completely optional — but I don’t think so.
Again, I’m in no way saying that laziness is the current problem, just clarifying how strong a statement it is to declare something to be a right.
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I am currently un-insured because to add me to my husband’s insurance would cost more than my weekly paycheck, per week. $125/week. Just to add me. Free for him, not for me. My job has no benefits. The ONLY reason I am against a national system is that currently I get to choose which doctor I see, and what test I can have done, and what hospital I have. Sure, I have to pay up the wazoo for it and my accident insurance will cover a major injury, but still, I get to choose. My friends in Canada and the UK and Australia? They can’t fight the system. What the system says the need, they get, and that can be a problem if they need something and ‘the powers that be’ disagree. Where are my rights there? I’m all for having the gov help me out, but I want the freedom to make my own choices too.
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First off Britt, I’ve not been here since you redid your web site. Nice work.
On the issue of healthcare, I work full time and each year at open enrollment, we get to watch our coverage get worse and the bi-weekly portion each employee pays increases.
As Ren said he’s shocked by the monthly rates, I’ve spent the last 20 years watching the coverage get worse and the monthly fees and deductables go up. And I personally know at least 50 people that can tell a similar 20 years story. Is this a trend? I don’t know… maybe some of us are just getting fucked over and the rest are smart enough to find kick ass jobs where healthcare is a nice benefit.
I rarely get sick, so I could take the mindset and attitude that I really don’t giv a shit about anyone else. But that’s not me. I do care what happens to others. I’d like to associate and be part of a society that provides for others. To me, it’s pretty selfish to say, “Hey, don’t take any more of my money… if someone else gets sick, it’s their own fault for eating wrong and living in the city”
I don’t know much about taxes, with the exception of they are needed for survival (we aren’t exactly Lord of the Flies here in the US), but I would be comfortable knowing that in exchange for what comes out of my paycheck at work, is going to not only insure me but others, too. And I think that would be just one of the options, not something mandatory.
This stigma about “socialism” seems more fear induced than caring for others. Volunteer work as Wayne mentions is nice and admirable, but we need a lot of volunteers to make it work.
Will people be dropping their health care at work if it’s free from the government? I don’t think so. If it works for you, then it should stay that way. If it doesn’t, it would be nice to have another option. If you are 75, don’t work and have a limited income, it could very well be the only option of life or death.
Personally, I’d like to know how far a $5,000 taxable tax deduction will add to someone’s health care.
I personally think taking care of our own is a right that everyone deserves.
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Britt, Ditto on your post. I think everyone can agree, like most important issues facing our nation, the current situation is not acceptable and we need change. But change to “what”.
I see so many of our problems being a direct result of government’s (specifically Congress & lobbyists) inability to get beyond “what can we do now that will get me re-elected so I can stay in power and serve my ego and get out with my pension, before the Sh*t falls apart.” instead of what is best for the country and will not pass along a huge burden to another generation.
Social Security, Medicare and other entitlement programs were started under the guise that only the “rich” will pay for them. But over time, who would pay and what percentage increased again and again. This tax increase was not because of the current demands of the program, but the future obligations.
Where did the money go? They spent it! And then some. Adding on more and more debt (way more than the much talk about $10 Trillion) for a future generation to pay.
Well, our generation, in the next 10 years will be forced to pay back this debt to the baby boomers that will be retiring. We are already spending all the payroll taxes money as it comes in and each year the amount paid out will get bigger and bigger with less available for the “extra” program.
There is no way this country can afford yet another major entitlement program. As much as it would help so many people, we just can’t force more people to pay more for others.
What could be done is to give individuals the same tax breaks for buying health coverage as companies do. Companies can write off the premiums they pay for their employees, but as individuals buying our own policy we can only deduct medical expenses when they amount to more that 7.5% adjusted gross income. I call Bullshit.
Also, give people the choice to setup a medical savings account (like an IRA) but without the annual use-or-lose provisions so we could put away in a rainy-day fund to cover “life’s unforeseen events.”
Then health coverage could be more affordable for a family to buy a high-deductible policy, take charge of their medical treatment and not be on the government hand out.
Case in point, my small business offers health insurance (PPO 80/20) with premiums about $5,000 per person (spouse & kids add another 5K each) with the company picking up 65% of the tab. Year after year our premiums go up 14%. We are currently reviewing other policies and one that reduces premiums by 22% is a high deductible ($5K) policy before 100% coverage kicks in. That would make employee cost about $341 per month for an entire family (Mileage may vary).
If someone was truly in a bind, how many cell phones, cable TV, Starbucks, DSL, Blockbuster rentals, iTune’s songs… would it take to buy your own coverage?
Like Whall alluded to above (great post by the way) too many people who are given something for free will do nothing to help themselves. Just like Hawaii. Recently they had to cancel their universal child coverage because it was costing too much. People were dropping their coverage to get the free-be from the State.
Lets try to get a private solution first, before looking to Washington.
Sorry for the ramble.
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NATUI: oh yes, I’m normally such a wallflower when it comes to controversy.
Darla: I think that Obama’s IDEAS are a step in the right direction for the dialogue.
Poppy: for ONE person? Wow.
whall: you don’t think eating is a right? Isn’t something required for “life” – such as food – a right? And by saying that, I am not suggesting that the gov’t is required to give people food.
The thing is, I don’t think that the government’s job is to make sure we get our “rights” – or to GIVE stuff to us. I think the government’s job is to make sure we CAN get them, that nothing is standing in our way – like discrimination, tyranny, etc.
The reality of the situation is that there are lots and lots of things standing in the way of people’s ability to live and pursue happiness when it comes to health care.
Amanda: “They are there for foreign affairs and defense.” That hasn’t been the case for a very, very long time.
For example, apparently the government is there to make sure that everyone knows marriage is between a man and a woman and not two men. Why are the same people battling against UHC not demanding the government stay out of THAT discusion?
Ren: I’m not sure I’m following the cure for cancer line…
Courtney: I was a mother with uninsured kids once – it is awful. Awful, awful, awful to weigh those options.
Ren: in reading your description, I think a lot of this comes down to a different view of the term “right”.
I don’t think the government’s job is to GIVE YOU things you have a right to.
Sue: that was one of the concerns I originally had, so I can understand that.
martymankins: I’m 100% with you on taking care of others. 100%
Also, I don’t think people understand what is being proposed to them in this election. NEITHER candidate is talking about Free healthcare. Not even Obama. Obama’s plan is about making sure that EVERYONE really does have the opportunity to get healthcare – either from an employer or a gov’t insurance like what is available to Congress.
Ty-man: you are a very, very smart man so I hesitate to say this – but have you really looked into the Obama idea?
I think your idea on tax credits for health insurance premiums is a great one. As well as the savings account idea.
I’m all for people coming up with a private solution. But I think in order to do that, a LOT of people in this country – mainly conservatives, although I hate to use that brush – need to realize that we are not talking about lazy people looking for a freebie. We’re way beyond that.
They need to see the people who are working and losing everything – who played by the rules and did everything right, and don’t have enough Starbucks to give up in the WORLD to make things right.
And also, can I just say, HOLY CRAP TY-MAN COMMENTED ON MY BLOG!!!!!!!
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I want to say – I’m really, really proud of the people who are contributing ideas here. As I said in my post, we need to change the dialogue – and you are.
I’m glad to see that people are willing to go beyond “Socialism! Ack! No talking about it!” and “you hate poor people! why?!?!” to discuss ideas.
It’s THAT spirit, if it is fed, that will find a solution to this problem.
So, thank you.
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Ty-man, I believe it is already possible for an individual to purchase a high-deductible plan and then setup a Health Savings Account that allows you to save tax-free for future health expenses. This account is *your* money, not a use-it-or-lose it reimbursement account. I do think this, combined with enlightened self-interest on the part of the insurance companies so that they realize that funding preventative care is in their best interest — which it seems at least some have started to realize, is a big part of the solution going forward. Of course, it still leaves the elephant in the room issue of ever-rising health care costs.
Britt, my point with the $1,000,000 cancer cure example is that part of the current problem is a sense of entitlement that we, the people, feel to receive any and all available medical care. Should there be any limit to that? As cold as it may sound, is there a point at which we decide that we’ve spent too much on one person?
The fundamental principle that allows any kind of insurance to function is that the cost of the insurance per person is higher than the expected benefit per person. But people often expect buying health insurance to save them money versus their expected health care costs. This is untenable.
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I have some tears eeking out with this post because right now, I am relating pretty hard core with it.
I’m too overwhelmed to get into it but I totally want to say thanks for writing it and make out with you right now.
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