| The problem of having or not having insurance has a really strong connection to Eben’s comments about sectors of our society living in constant fear over job security. That is to say, there are too many in this country who live in a constant state of worry because they have no health insurance or have an HMO that is so crappy, they might as well be without health insurance. The result is hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths. I had someone close to me pass away far sooner than he should have because he was underinsured. In keeping with our country’s mantra of being “just the poor,” my poor friend had health insurance, but it was so restrictive that he was given no choice in how to have his disease treated. I accompanied him on several visits to his primary care physician’s office, which operated more like an over packed emergency room. It was typical to see 10 to 15 people with all kinds of ailments waiting to see the doctor. After about an hour’s worth of waiting, we’d finally go in to see the doctor, and each time we’d be on our way after 15 minutes with a different prescription for a painkiller or ointment. When his disease became life threatening, my friend continued to battle against the insurance co. because certain treatments he required were “too experimental” and outside the scope of his coverage. To your point, Austin, it is incredibly frustrating to be in the shoes of a witness essentially someone’s death sentence. I get upset just thinking about the things that I could’ve and should’ve done to help out my friend had I not been so young and naïve at the time to think that this kind of medical care was typical.
Upon reflection, I’d argue that our society’s un- and underinsured represented the Bartleby ghost to the extent that these people are an isolated bunch, who have been stripped of fundamental choices and freedoms and whose problems entail such divisive issues (e.g., our healthcare system as a whole, health care for LGBTs, poor, illegal immigrants) that we’d rather not face them. I recognize that there plenty of political debates about our current health care crisis, but I question whether individual citizens doing enough to demand better health care. I say that because I am often reminded of how high our employment rate is from the news and blogs, but I know the same can’t be said about our country’s uninsured rate. I don’t even know how high the rate is. Job security is always at the top of the list for every political candidate. “Job creation” is what Americans are worried about. But how much security can a job with poor or no medical benefits offer? My friend had job security, but it wasn’t nearly enough to save him.
-- LizzieGomez - 02 Apr 2012 |