The health care reform debate is reaching a fever pitch this month. Half of us want to kill little ol’ ladies and fetuses while the other half wants to kill the unemployed and homeless. Seems to me that no matter which side prevails, rich white guys win. Ironically, they’re the ones making the loudest and most crass arguments on both sides.
I’ve only had one experience dealing with our medical system in my adult life. A few years back, I awoke to find myself so disoriented, I couldn’t walk to the bathroom to get water. My roommate called the hospital and I was taken to the emergency room. I waited in a bed for 6 hours in a state of delirium before someone saw me. It wasn’t a doctor. It wasn’t a nurse. It was someone from HR who gave me a $25 gift card to Giant as an apology for the long wait. Two hours later, a nurse finally put me on a saline drip and gave me something for the nausea. Soon afterwards, a doctor finally saw me, drew some blood, put me through and MRI, told me the couldn’t find anything wrong, and sent me home to sleep it off. By this time (which was about 12 hours after I arrived) I had thrown up twice. Well, more like dry heaved, since they didn’t have anything for me to eat.
Despite having insurance through work, the ordeal nearly bankrupted me. I received a bill for the ambulance ride, the hospital room, the nausea drugs, the MRI scan, and the blood work. My insurance covered about a third of the expenses. It didn’t help that my place of business shut down the very next day after I left the hospital.
So, am I for health care reform? Yes I am. I think the system should be reformed so it reflects the treatment I received to EVERYONE. Especially those who are going to these town halls, screaming their heads off, and chanting nonsense.
