"Dear Republican Party:
Just get out of the Obama's way and let him do his work. BECAUSE, as the old joke goes:
-a liberal is a conservative who has lost his job
-a liberal is a conservative who has lost his health insurance
-a liberal is a conservative who has lost the health insurance and is SICK
-a liberal is a conservative who has lost his house
And one last thing: you people are lucky he won, because he is gonna do some good for EVERYBODY, even grumpy Republicans
Have a nice day! :)
Spike"
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15 comments:
i've had two consecutive years of having to choose whether to go to the doctor and see if something serious is happening to me or whether to weather the storm because i cannot afford to go to the doctor. i've told more than one that my deductible is so high that i will have to pay for everything they order (tests), they nod in agreement and then order away anyway. the system is not working and maybe i will be a casualty of all the shenanigans up there in lala land... oh, i mean washington
The original joke, of course, is that:
-a liberal is a conservative who has been arrested
but then I get thinking and say:
-a liberal is a conservative whose 17 year old daughter has an unplanned pregnanacy
or
-a liberal is a conservative who has suddenly remembered that America is a better place when citizens have food on their plate, a good school, a safe neighborhood, and health care too.
We are a wealthy country. If we can try to rebuild Iraq, we can try to serve our citizens better too.
Obama is doing fine. Could he be better? We all could. If we all went to the polls again today he would win again. Maybe even bigger than he did last Nov.
What most people forget is that the republicans in congress don't want to make the health care plan better or more affordable or anything like that. They don't want a health care plan at all. They like things the way the currently are.
I can't afford much of anything with the cost of my premiums let alone the high deductible. But the cost of this type of healthcare will be long lines to get medical care (if you can even get in) and astronomical taxes for both liberals and conservatives particularly the ones who aren't making a living wage in the first place - more taxes will literally put many under the (homeless) bridge - cause we know the rich aren't going to pay. My husband's employer (who already cut Gary's wages and hours this year) said anything he has to pay for healthcare will be passed down to the employees in wage cuts.
I sure hope health care works out for my neighbours to the south. I can't imagine not having the level of care that we do here regardless of income or lack of income.
The tax question is, I think a moot point: it is MORE expensive to have for profit health care, and for others to have none and then become sick for lack of preventitive health care. NOW THAT is expensive.
republicans are obstructionists. whatever good obama will try to do they will oppose it no matter what. remember, they want him to fail.
the republican party also feed the wingnuts i.e. the 'birther' movement.
What I want to know is who does this secret muslim president of ours think he is? Answering questions in complete sentences and explaining things. SHAME ON YOU, NOBAMA! And where is your birth certificate?!
Does the bible say we all deserve healthcare? I don't think so. Suck it, un-insureds!
i agree with gary... i would rather shift what i pay for insurance premiums to an increased tax so that everyone can have health insurance! healthcare shouldn't be a for profit enterprise.
I think Spike is a remarkable typist ;-)
Those who don't have healthcare insurance now don't pay and don't do without care, they get it for free - if they are sick they go to the hospital and are cared for - for free, they can't be turned away. If they don't pay their bills the hospitals write it off because when they try to collect money from those without insurance or money, they can't because they don't have any money and nothing of value to attach. Those who have insurance are paying for them now. Those with insurance have to pay their bills (the rest of what they bill us beyond our two insurances and copays and deductibles) otherwise they can take our house, our car, attach our wages, or anything else of value, because we have something to lose. With government healthcare they will force those who are barely making it at all to pay even more than they already are paying. If the working class pays more than they are right now, I'm telling you honestly they will be dead broke, will lose their homes and everything else and won't be able to pay anything. Then who will pay?
There are examples of failed national healthcare in other countries like New Zealand, Australia, England, Canada, those aren't working so I don't see how what they are now proposing for here is any different. It can't be pushed through, it has to be well thought out.
I'm for change, and idealism is great, but it is just that - idealism. Reality is the majority of Americans can't afford to literally pay a penny more, particularly at this stage of the economy. Shifting healthcare premiums to national healthcare will not get everyone healthcare, it will only get those at the front of the line care, preventative care will be gone. Over time it might work because the sick will die off and there will only be the healthy left - I guess that would work. This may seem extreme, but I know many folks with national healthcare in many countries and the only way they can be seen by a doctor in a reasonable amount of time is to have a supplemental insurance besides the national healthcare - if they can afford it - only those with higher incomes can afford it.
If folks want a national healthcare implement a system like Kaiser - that seems to work and is actually somewhat affordable.
Putting the government in control of literally every part of our lives isn't what this country was founded on and really isn't in our best interest, in the long run time will show this to be so very true.
Whether or not there is single-payer coverage in the US, there will never be one standard of care. Some people will always get better care and more attention, others far less.
Poor people DO pay for health care, just not with cash. The poor pay by giving new practitioners experience. Without cash, they are forced to accept whatever is available to them because they have fewer options. They may be treated by a doctor who is 1 minute out of med school and has never treated a similar case before. A doctor I know was an intern when a woman with no money came into the ER with a broken leg. He'd never set a broken bone before and told the chief so. The chief told him to go ahead and set her leg, saying "This is how she pays."
As for people with money, they can demand better options and more experienced practitioners. There was a scandal a few years back at Mt. Sinai hospital. Privately insured mothers-to-be were instructed to ask for a private room when they came in to have their babies. The women on Medicaid were not told this and were given only semi-private rooms. There will always be a "you get what you pay for" factor in health care in the US.
I support universal coverage not because I believe it ever will be equally fair to all people, but because sooner or later, we will all need it. I don't think people should go broke and lose all their assets trying to pay for basic care when they get sick, have an accident, or develop a chronic condition.
I don't know why you think those national health care programs are failures, citizens in those countries show overall support for gov't care. Keep in mind also that the US spends twice as much money on healthcare as Canada, simply because private insurers make a profit on customers, a ridiculous idea--making a profit on patients.
Back to point number one: nothing is scarier than not having health insurance, and it is NOT true that the poor can simply get care when they need it, maybe only when their situation is dire.
America can afford it. If we can afford to waste money trying to rebuild Iraq then....
Finally---where is our pride as a country??? America is supposed to be the BEST. Aren't we supposed to look at our gov't, our healthcare, our space program, our (everything) is supposed to be the best--and what we have is shameful.
not a complete truth that you will get care if you dont have health insurance!!!! my s.o. died of cancer last year...his wonderfully, compassionate local doctor traded pottery for his intitial surgery (jz was also a potter) when he needed aggressive treatment he was referred to dana farber in boston - they CANCELLED his appointment when they found out he was uninsured!they said come back when you can either get medicaid or find a way to pay. it took weeks and weeks to muddle through redtape to start treatment. i often wonder if he would be with me today if it werent for the lag in treatment. on another note...he had been trying to get an individual health insurance policy before the cancer diagnosis but was DENIED because of a pre-existing condition. also...bills dont get written off the easily...jz's estate (of which there was only a subaru!) is in probate and it has $145,000 worth of medical bills filed against it.
after living through a year of worrying about bills, treatments, hospice, watching the one i love get weaker everyday and now 7 months of sadness and grief i will get on this soapbox with very little prompting.
...and yeah..i'm a little bit angry.
I second Michele's comments. My husband died because he was fobbed off by doctors from getting proper treatment. And he had Medicare! But, he didn't have private insurance.
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