Disagree

by Faye Daughterson

Created on: October 26, 2007

I agree with Patrick Plaskett's point of view in which he stated quite eloquently what the problem is. Money rules and because it rules just as he said it will be difficult to make any constructive changes. That being said I believe we must at least try. Americans view anything "social" with suspicion. If we followed Canada or Brittan with social medicine no matter how positive it was there would be an uproar about cost and government control. And as Mr. Plaskett said many jobs would be lost. Therefore I believe HillaryCare is a well thought out plan of action that would correct some of the worst problems of the health care industry.

I lived in Scotland for eight years and during that time I experienced the excellent socialized medicine that Scotland offered me - even though I was a citizen of the United States. When I became pregnant I got excellent prenatal care and after my baby was born I received post natal care - the clinic was available at all times. I might add that in the early seventies the prenatal care I received in Scotland was far more advanced than what I would have received in America. My friends in America did not receive birthing classes teaching them how to breath and control their pain. The halls of the maternity units in America were "alive and well with the sound of screaming" husband in the waiting room helpless. I was as comfortable as could be expected and "my" husband was at my side. Not only did I receive prenatal care; it was mandatory. Why, because the British know that if you make sure each child gets the best care possible from day one they will have less problems in the future and cost the system less money. During the post natal period they gave me extra support because they knew I was alone - no mother or sister to help me. Not one time did I feel the care I received was inferior or less than I needed.

In Britain dental care is also free. I had my children's teeth coated so cavities were not an issue. Why, again it costs the system less money.

I hear people say this system is bad because you may have to go on a waiting list for a year to get a hip replacement but I say to you it is better to be on a waiting list and receive the procedure than to be without insurance and not get the procedure at all because you cannot afford it and you are not old enough for Medicare.

I was in the health insurance business when Hilary Clinton tried to reform health insurance. They were running scared with standby options in-case she succeeded. I saw first hand the devastation caused by insurance companies that refused to accept people with pre-existing conditions. Hillary's actions did force the insurance companies to make some changes for the better but as it stands today insurance is still a nightmare. The secret of insurance is that we are put into pools and when people start getting ill the cost goes up. The bigger the pool the more stable the cost. The self employed before Hillary's attempt to reform were paying a small fortune and if they got sick the cost went up with no where to go due to their now pre-existing condition. I am happy to say the self-employed market has been improved but they still pay more for less because of the smaller pools. Buying insurance through associations helps reduce their cost and today there are better options for individual people seeking insurance. Individual insurance is now available because there are so many working people not self-employed who are uninsured. I would also like to point out that HMOs and PPOs are not insurance. HMOs are hospital based and PPO's are doctor based thus complicating attempts to standardize the industry. HillaryCare does address pools, age discrimination, and pre-existing conditions. Through all this chaos perhaps something really creative can happen.

I myself am currently uninsured and that is after paying insurance for more than thirty years. Why if I have paid all that money and never had a major problem am I now out in the cold. What makes my life less valuable in the United States of America than someone whose employer is able to provide full coverage insurance or someone who can afford to pay seven hundred dollars a month for their insurance. Why should I have to sell my home to get treatment and my neighbor does not? Why should I pay seven hundred dollars a month and my neighbor pay fifty? Sure there are cheaper plans out there but I know that with insurance each dollar you cut you are loosing coverage. I have seen plans so poor you may as well have nothing.

There are many ways to solve our insurance problem in America. We do not need to make it the sole responsibility of the employer, by doing so we have encouraged employers to get rid of older employees because they cost so much to insure. A young man or woman of twenty will cost $100 and a man or woman of fifty will cost $600 dollars. Most employers today hire with hours just below full time so they do not have to have pay insurance for these employees.

We do need a reform and it can not be too soon. I believe that if every person paid a small amount toward their insurance (perhaps a tax) we could all have excellent treatment - but that "ain't gonna happen" therefore I feel it is better to develop what we have into something that works for us. Hillary's plan at least gets the ball rolling, and she already has many years of experience with insurance companies and maybe this time around she can break the downward spiral of health care in American.

Patty Musgrove pointed out that we should copy Canada's version of a health care system but if Bush had not dumped hundreds of billions of dollars into the war in Iraq we might have had the money to build a sensible health care system like Canada. Bush vetoed a bill that went one step in that direction because it cost to much money so how do you expect a system like Canada to be accepted or paid for? And as for Hillary being "the last to know" her husband was cheating on her, as stated my Ms. Musgrove, I believe it is not nearly as bad, as being the "last to know" there were "no weapons of mass destruction" in Iraq.

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