CAN WE DO THE RIGHT THING?

Most Americans agree that we need to do something to change the healthcare situation in our country. But is becoming painfully clear that the operative word, “change” is also the scary word, “change.” Many of us fear change and thus are vulnerable to the variety of scare tactics flooding the airwaves these days. It would seem there are folks who will go to any extreme to defeat needed reform, more to further their political ends than to do the right thing for the citizens they represent. Lobbyists are spending boatloads of money to influence our representatives to kill this movement and I fear that our voices will be unheard over the sound of money changing hands.

I am appalled at the vitriolic attacks that have been launched at some of the Town Hall meetings and on some Radio and TV Talk Shows. When did we forfeit our responsibility to think, America? Why are we listening and being influenced by trouble-makers who want to stir up more hatred and cause reasonable people to lose their reason. Thinking Americans need to pull together and discuss this issue with intelligence and respect and let’s do that before somebody gets so stirred up he or she does something we would all regret for the rest of our lives.

Is there anyone reading this who doesn’t know that certain truths are undeniable? For instance, insurance companies are making decisions for us every day. They tell us what doctor we can see (if we want them to pay) and they tell us what medications to take (if we want them to pay). My daughter recounts her recent experience at the pharmacy where she was told that her insurance company would not pay for the medication prescribed by her doctor until she first tried another medication. WHAT?! The insurance company knows better than her own doctor what she needs to be taking? Ridiculous!

Insurance Premiums are increasing three times faster than our wages, yet we are okay with them refusing to pay for medication that our doctor prescribes? We are okay with them telling us that we can only see certain doctors? We are okay with them refusing to cover pre-existing conditions? We are okay with them cancelling us when we lose our job or change jobs?

Come on, America, it’s time for us to be heard above the money-changers in Washington and above the hysterical rantings of Radio and TV wannabees.

I, like most people past the age of sixty-five, am covered by Medicare and am very thankful to the visionaries who fought hard for this “government run” program for seniors. But I know, and you know, that there is room, and lots of it, for improvement in many areas. The President is right when he says that we need to streamline the record-keeping and eliminate duplications in testing, care and medications. I’ll bet most of us have friends or family members who have been made sicker by being over-medicated or even prescribed medications that work against or undermine the efficacy of other medications they are already taking. This is a problem that should not happen and wouldn’t if we had better record-keeping available to all medical providers. And many repeat hospital stays might be eliminated if we had such state-of-the-art records. There is room for improvement and ways to save significant money without reducing Medicare benefits.

We elected a man to lead our country who promised healthcare reform because we desperately need it and because it’s the right thing to do. This is America - land of the brave, home of the free; not land of the sick and home of the destitute because healthcare has bankrupted us. We cannot continue to accept the status quo which allows our friends and neighbors to be forced to make choices between seeking medical treatment when they need it, or putting food on the table and paying the light bill. SHAME ON US IF WE DO.