How Far We’ve Come – NOT!

Most of the time I don’t try to take this blog anywhere near the political arena but this week I fear I must. After A.J.’s portrait last week of the incompetent police in her area and then seeing Michael Moore’s SICKO, I really knew I had to say something.

Health care is not just the privilege of the wealthy but seeing the state of health care in the US would make one think so. The American Medical Association, the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies have such as strangle hold on we the people, it’s horrible. Just how horrible can be seen by a look at the news recently and you’ll know.

In this country today, there are people divorcing each other because one has a debilitating illness and the only way they can get health care insurance is to be apart. There are families right now deciding whether to put food on their tables or pay a health care insurance premium because they have a sick child. There are credit agencies who are suing people out of house, home and everything they own because of an illness that put them so far under, there is no other way to pay the bills except to lose everything. I guess the message here is you just can’t afford to get sick.

And folks, that is sick in itself. It’s a sick way to live and it’s morally wrong for every person in this country to be under this dark cloud. Good health care is a right that every American is entitled to no matter what. People need to be encouraged to go into the health care professions because they truly love people and want to help them. No other reason. But in today’s climate, people feel they can make money and lots of it by preying on the ills of others quite literally.

I mean, I knew it was bad but just how bad I didn’t understand until I watched SICKO. Michael Moore talks with people all around the world about their health care and he brought out some pretty astounding statistics when it came right down to it. If you haven’t seen this film, I truly believe it is the one film of his you definitely need to see.

In it, he talks to Canadians, English and ex-pats in France to hear about their opinions on the health care systems there. He goes to the health care system in Cuba to try and get some really well deserving people the health care they needed.

It amazed me just how warm people were about the medical systems in England, Canada and France. Now I can really understand the lure of a system where you walk in to see your doctor, have your visit with nothing going out of your pocket. What amazed me even more was that there are Americans sneaking over the border, going to Canada to get in on the system there. Some are going as far as marriage to a Canuck just so they can be cared for during big illnesses. Michael himself has relatives in Canada who said right on camera that they felt sorry for us.

What?!? Sorry for an American? Well, they have it right because what we’re not getting is that the cost it would take to give everyone universal health care is what we’re paying anyway every year. Yeah, the uninsured costs us that much per year. Yet all those mentioned above, the American Medical Association, the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies all want you to think that isn’t so. Oh, what a selfish group they are. But back to where I was.

Michael talked to all manner of people in Canada, rich, poor and even an American sneaking across the border and all of them said, the world was a better place when everyone had health care. Do you think they know something we don’t?

In England, he didn’t talk to patients as much as he talked to the medical staff. He followed one young general physician throughout the day, talked to his patients as well as visited his home. His last stop in England was to a pharmacy. Of the patients he asked each of them when they expected to see a bill. Most were confused but when they finally got it most flat out said that he must be an American because they knew in America nothing is free. Ouch. Most of them said they wouldn’t be caught dead in our country because it would cost them so very much to get any treatment or put in a casket to be sent home. The last part was my interpretation of what had been said not anything Michael had said.

Now the English doctor was absolutely lovely, had a great family and makes about $200-250K a year which is comparable to what an American doctor makes in the general field. He also said he felt sorry for Americans as our medical professions worshiped the almighty dollar not helping people. Sad perception of our medicine.

The story on France was wonderful as it followed a group of ex-pats who talked about how privileged and cared for they felt in that country as there were things like paid maternity leave, paid child sick days, preventive health maintenance days and on and on concerning the positive aspects of their system. The really sad part was where all of them said that they will probably remain in France because it seems as if the country really cares for them there whereas in America people are being thrown to the wolves every day.

The last story was so poignant that I cried through the whole thing. I was a little angry at first that the man made us relive the 911 tragedy but that was only the beginning. Michael explained just who these people he was talking to and it became clear right away that these people were those who deserved health care as they were 911 rescue workers. He talked to more but it’s these three I want to zoom in on for the moment.

One of the issues he brought out was the fact there was only one place on US soil where the medical care was one hundred percent free. And that was at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. It seems that the prisoners there get better treatment than the ones who worked for days in crappy air just trying to find pieces parts. And that does include some military bases as there are now minimal charges even there.

So he did the only thing he felt reasonable and tried to take these people to the base at Guantanamo. They eventually gave up as they were afraid they would get shot at so they tried a different tact. They decided to walk right into the closest Cuban city and ask where the nearest hospital was. Then he did go off on a little tirade about how the perception of Cuba wasn’t anything like what the people were like but quickly he was brought back to reality the moment they hit the door for the hospital. Only three little bits of information was needed before they could treat the 911 people, their first and last name and their date of birth.

All of them were then whisk away for a battery of tests and some of the most caring doctors I have even seen in my life. And these people supposedly hate us. Still, after a few days of tests each and every one of these American citizens left a communist country in much better medical shape than when they went in. Do you all see something wrong with this picture?

The other thing I found amazing in all three stories was the cost of drugs. In Cuba, even the most expensive drugs only cost around $2. In England, the cost for any amount was six pounds, twenty-five pence or roughly about $12 per prescription. So it was good to stock up and many Americans really did.

What hurt me the most was that almost every other civilized country in the world has better medical care than we do in the US. What the heck is wrong with us? Why are we so gullible that we allow these entities to run over us like Mac trucks? These people work for us, all of them in the medical profession as well as those in the government, and they should hear the will of the people and it’s FREE health care no matter what.

Every American deserves to have health care at no cost to themselves. It seems the rest of the world understands that we are all connected but there is no we in the American health care system, just a series of I’s that only care for themselves and how much they can earn.

When will we say enough is enough and quit denying basic things to those who don’t have it? When will we realize it is costing us a fortune every year anyway? With a little restructuring, the cost will be minimal to what we’re paying now. At what point do we say that every human life is worth it, who cares what it costs?

I am very adamant about health care reform. It is desperately needed in this country. Just walk through a county hospital and you will see them turning people away because they can’t pay...and they’re the ones getting government money to treat these same people. Look at the hospitals like the ones in the Kaiser group which just dumps the patients out on the street when they feel that their treatment is too costly or their benefit has run out. How much longer will the human suffering in American go on because it costs too much? When will we just open our arms and realize every American is worth it?

I guess the really sad thing for me is in a lot of cases, we treat animals better than we do human beings. And in my opinion, in may ways we are still in the Dark Ages in regards to health care. Then, they may not have had the most knowledge but they truly cared for each other.

I’d be interested in seeing what you all think about the broken health care system here in America. Tell me what side of the fence you’re on and you’ll be entered for a free eBook. Last week’s winner is SiNn and orelukjp0!

Thanks and hope to see you next week!

Lynn