To Your Health

 

So, I have attempted to stay out of the health care debate, but that is proving more difficult by the day. My libertarian feelings about small government are clashing with my sense of right and wrong. And the same delusional nutjobs that feel that President Obama is a Muslim sleeper agent keep finding new and varied ways to keep us entertained. Just the quote “The government needs to keep their hands off my Medicare” is worth the price of admissions.

So, what about government mandated insurance? You can’t drive a car without minimum third-party coverage. Sure, you can own a home and take the risk yourself, but the banking industry won’t give you a mortgage on said house without homeowners’ insurance.

I have heard the argument made about “pre-existing conditions” not being covered likened to calling the insurance company to insure your house already on fire. However, one can have health insurance for 20 years, find it suddenly cancelled for so many reasons, and not have those pre-existing conditions covered. That is more like the insurance calling YOU to cancel your policy because the house is on fire.

Seriously, death panels? Spiraling costs? Doctors being told how to do their jobs? If President Obama was really on top of his game, all he would have to do when the Right Wing RINOs point out these “claims” of what the public option would wrought upon us, is reply to his critics that we have all of those, and more, already. The health insurance industry has already created all of these fun issues.

As for the public option, we already have public insurance. Just ask any resident of Florida or California that wants hurricane or earthquake insurance where they get their coverage. The insurance companies won’t cover them because their losses have been to great. But those beach houses in Malibu and the Gold Coast aren’t going without coverage.

As for the recently departed Sen Ted Kennedy, say what you want about him, but the only health insurance option he would accept is the very same end-of-life coverage he had. Pointing out that Kennedy would never be able to reasonably give that to everyone would never have stopped him from trying.

 

This was never going to be an easy debate. But it’s not even a fair debate at this point. Too many people in a position of power don’t even see the system as broken, let alone have the wherewithal to try to fix it. And if only one side will admit the problem, only one side is going to offer a viable solution. I can’t speak for you, but I know I don’t want decisions being made for me because too many people are playing with their guns to worry about the rights of the rest of us.