Expectations
I've been thinking lately about what it is I (we) deserve when it comes to having diabetes. What is it that we can reasonably expect of the world?
I received a response from one of my Senators regarding my concerns about s1955. To summarize, he might be undecided. Or he might not be. Who can tell, he used politspeak. Anyway, he starts off his letter with a comment about the need to expand the health care benefit that employers voluntarily choose to offer their employees.
Basically, he starts off by saying health insurance is a privilege. And, basically, he's right. Employer-provided health insurance is a benefit, designed to attract workers. Job A offers a health care plan that covers everything and costs less? Job A it is then! It's a carrot, a motivator, a perk.
Except that it is an absolutely essential perk, and even the good Senator acknowledges this, as the focus of his letter is about how to extend this voluntary offering to as many people as possible. The whole point of health insurance (at least since the industrial revolution) is to guard against the illnesses (temporary or chronic) and injuries that can disable us. Stay well, and society benefits. Stay healthy, and society won't have to bear the burden of the cost of your care. Stay ahead of the game, and continue to be a 'productive member' of this village of ours.
The question becomes, I think, where do you draw the line? What can we expect to be included under reasonable costs that should be covered by health insurance?
Diabetes education and supplies, to me, fall clearly under the 'should be covered' heading. Pay a little now, avoid paying much, much more (in money and suffering) later. And why should those with functioning pancreas' contribute to the greater good of those with bad beta cells? Because my illness will cost them more if it goes undertreated.
The counter argument, I think, is that less effective health insurance spread out over a larger population could have the same net effect as decent insurance that is not fully accessible.
My response is to challenge the powers that be to strive for health care that is accessible to as many people as possible. Don't undo the hard work done by 46 states, all of whom came to understand that the whole point of health insurance is to help cover people who aren't 100% healthy.
There. That's what I expect.
Oppose s1955.
posted by Kassie @ 10:11 AM
1 comments
1 Comments:
Right now, healthcare is a privilege and I believe that is wrong. Affordable basic healthcare should be as much of a right for all people as is education. My belief is the only rational thing to do is to socialize medicine. A lot of people are upset when this is brought up but it's the only thing that makes sense to me. There are some good models out there. Canada's system seems to be working very well. Australia has options for purchasing private insurance that gives you additional perks if you can afford it. I think it will be a very hard transition for this country but I don't see how it can not eventually happen.
I think that part of the current problem is that, based on the numbers I can find easily today (CDC), 75% of the healthcare costs in this country come from 30% of the population - or those with chronic diseases. That leaves 70% of the population that may not want to fund us. They may not understand the need or how the costs impact us. They may not feel that it's fair they have to pay so much for medical care or insurance when they don't use it. Medical savings accounts sound great to them. But that takes them out of the pool and increases the ratio of the cost of chronic disease on the rest of the pool. This is another reason that socialization is the only thing that makes sense, to me.
This was, of course, only my opinion.
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