Since the Roosevelt administration (Teddy, that is), the US federal government has periodically engaged in the debate over how to make the health care system work better for the American people. Meanwhile, under the supervision of the “invisible hand” of the free market, the US health care system has led to 45,000 Americans dying every year simply because they do not have health insurance. Every time health care reform comes up in Congress, the monied interests in the health care system – hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, and health insurance companies – have succeeded in blocking reform. At the same time, we have watched as every other industrialized nation ensures that all of their citizens have access to quality, affordable health care. In the company of the industrialized world, the US alone still considers health care a privilege for the wealthy rather than a right for every citizen.
The US House of Representatives made history this month by being the first branch of congress to pass a comprehensive health reform bill. With last night’s release of the Senate’s combined Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (pdf), America is one step closer to achieving the goal of quality, affordable health care for every citizen.
There are positive and negative features of the Senate bill as compared to the House bill. On the positive side, the House’s Stupak-Pitts amendment is not present in the Senate bill. Stupak-Pitts would make it illegal for any health insurance plan that takes part in the proposed health insurance exchanges to offer coverage for abortion. By leaving this language out, the Senate bill will hopefully maintain the status quo for access to what has been a legal medical procedure in America for 36 years.
As for the mixed news, the Senate bill still retains the public option with a state opt-out provision, in contrast to the House bill, which contains an opt-out-free public option. The public option is crucial for real reform because it can provide competition to private insurance companies, which often have near-monopolies in their markets. Both bills contain new regulations on insurance companies, but without competition from the public option, there would be nothing to stop the industry from passing the entire cost of new regulations onto consumers through even higher premiums and deductibles.
The problem with the opt-out provision is that, in order to reduce the price tag of the Senate bill to appease “fiscal conservatives,” almost none of the reform provisions, such as the public option, Medicaid expansion, and the insurance exchanges, will take effect until 2014. At the same time, state legislatures can opt out of the public option immediately, which many red states likely will, thus reducing the scope of the already-weakened public option and its ability to rein in the lethal excesses of the for-profit health insurance industry.
Amazingly, the fight for meaningful health reform still has a very long way to go. Will the Senate bill even be brought up for debate, let alone voted on? If the resulting bill is weak enough, will Senate Majority Leader Reid work through budget reconciliation, which only requires 50 votes instead of 60, to get legislation that may actually fix American health care? Only time will tell, but when another American dies every 12 minutes because they don’t have insurance, time is of the essence.
11.19.2009
Healthcare Insurance
This afternoon wasn’t extraordinary for a Laramie winter day. The air, on inhale, seemed to freeze the walls of my lungs. On exhale, it emerged a grainy white mist. My eyes squeezed themselves halfway shut for the reflection of sky on snow. The downtown streets were bare—3:30 on a Wednesday, go figure. It was like walking through the set of a quaint Christmas-themed snow globe. As I rounded the corner onto 2nd Street, I noticed a crowd up ahead. There were perhaps ten or twelve folks huddled in an undulating circle, each person’s arms folded across themselves to keep the heat in. I recalled that Slackerz had moved to the block sometime ago, but it seemed improbable that the Laramie comic book scene had so exploded that people had to wait outside just to buy their new copy of Justice League of America or whatever. Chagrinned, I remembered that the Downtown Clinic happened to be on the 600 block and these were most likely patients waiting to get in. I don’t know how long they had been standing there, but I do know that the clinic doesn’t open until 4pm. I also know that the clinic closes at 8pm and that Wednesday happens to be the only day that it’s open. The clinic sees almost 40 patients a week…that’s ten patients per hour.
A couple of interesting facts about the Downtown Clinic…a) the medical staff—all volunteers; b) 1600 patients have graced its doors since its inception five years ago; c) in order to access the clinic’s services, you must live at or below 185% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines without any form of health insurance. That’s $30,900 or less annually for a family of four or just over $15,200 a year for a single adult. That is a scant amount of dollars, my friends, especially if you’re trying to raise a couple of kids. I lived on a bit less than that amount five or six years back albeit in an affluent community (I was an AmeriCorps member). I lived in a shed without water or electricity in a friend’s backyard. I am thankful that I didn’t see winter there.
Let’s talk for a second about health insurance. According to the Wyoming Department of Health, in 2008, over 21% of Wyoming residents were uninsured or underinsured. That’s just over one in five folks who can’t go to the doctor when they think they should because of the cost. I happen to have acute Achilles tendonitis right now. It hurts; I can’t walk very well. I saw my doctor, got a referral for physical therapy, and as we speak, someone somewhere is cobbling together my personal orthotics based on the casts they took of my feet last week. I’m going to be fine. How? Because I have excellent health insurance. Period. I don’t know what to make of this, people. Our legislators have said that they will not, WILL NOT vote for health insurance reform. And so, one in five of their constituents suffers. One in five of us, here in this little square we call Wyoming suffers. I ask you, is that okay?
Once upon a time, in The Brothers Karamasov, Ivan asked Alyosha the following:
“Tell me straight out, I call on you—answer me: imagine that you yourself are building the edifice of human destiny with the object of making people happy in the finale, of giving them peace and rest at last, but for that you must inevitably and unavoidably torture just one tiny creature, that same child who was beating her chest with her little fist, and raise your edifice on the foundation of her unrequited tears—would you agree to be the architect on such conditions? Tell me the truth.”
Tell me the truth…It seems to me that our legislators have already spoken. What do you say?
A couple of interesting facts about the Downtown Clinic…a) the medical staff—all volunteers; b) 1600 patients have graced its doors since its inception five years ago; c) in order to access the clinic’s services, you must live at or below 185% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines without any form of health insurance. That’s $30,900 or less annually for a family of four or just over $15,200 a year for a single adult. That is a scant amount of dollars, my friends, especially if you’re trying to raise a couple of kids. I lived on a bit less than that amount five or six years back albeit in an affluent community (I was an AmeriCorps member). I lived in a shed without water or electricity in a friend’s backyard. I am thankful that I didn’t see winter there.
Let’s talk for a second about health insurance. According to the Wyoming Department of Health, in 2008, over 21% of Wyoming residents were uninsured or underinsured. That’s just over one in five folks who can’t go to the doctor when they think they should because of the cost. I happen to have acute Achilles tendonitis right now. It hurts; I can’t walk very well. I saw my doctor, got a referral for physical therapy, and as we speak, someone somewhere is cobbling together my personal orthotics based on the casts they took of my feet last week. I’m going to be fine. How? Because I have excellent health insurance. Period. I don’t know what to make of this, people. Our legislators have said that they will not, WILL NOT vote for health insurance reform. And so, one in five of their constituents suffers. One in five of us, here in this little square we call Wyoming suffers. I ask you, is that okay?
Once upon a time, in The Brothers Karamasov, Ivan asked Alyosha the following:
“Tell me straight out, I call on you—answer me: imagine that you yourself are building the edifice of human destiny with the object of making people happy in the finale, of giving them peace and rest at last, but for that you must inevitably and unavoidably torture just one tiny creature, that same child who was beating her chest with her little fist, and raise your edifice on the foundation of her unrequited tears—would you agree to be the architect on such conditions? Tell me the truth.”
Tell me the truth…It seems to me that our legislators have already spoken. What do you say?
11.16.2009
The Mule and Myself- by: Aida
At UW, I discovered my passion; I realized I wanted to be an advocate for international human rights. I was immediately drawn to a US-based NGO called “Invisible Children,” (IC) which calls attention to the very serious issue of child soldiers in northern Uganda. Along with some friends, I decided to start an RSO on campus to help raise awareness for IC’s cause.
Two years of volunteering with IC later, I graduated, and then managed to place for one of IC’s internships on the ground in Gulu, Uganda and spent 5 months working in their Public Relations office. Not only was I able to see for myself where all of the money my group helped fundraise went, I was able to get valuable NGO experience – literally, a dream come true for me. My experiences volunteering on campus also helped me get accepted into a Masters program for an MA in Human Rights at the University of Sussex in Brighton, England – a program I’d be hoping to get into since my freshman year at UW.
How does all this relate to The Good Mule? The Good Mule will make finding leadership roles and other volunteer experiences like my own, so much easier for students. And it’s these experiences TGM promotes that ultimately matter most– they help showcase your true passions.
Two years of volunteering with IC later, I graduated, and then managed to place for one of IC’s internships on the ground in Gulu, Uganda and spent 5 months working in their Public Relations office. Not only was I able to see for myself where all of the money my group helped fundraise went, I was able to get valuable NGO experience – literally, a dream come true for me. My experiences volunteering on campus also helped me get accepted into a Masters program for an MA in Human Rights at the University of Sussex in Brighton, England – a program I’d be hoping to get into since my freshman year at UW.
How does all this relate to The Good Mule? The Good Mule will make finding leadership roles and other volunteer experiences like my own, so much easier for students. And it’s these experiences TGM promotes that ultimately matter most– they help showcase your true passions.
11.10.2009
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