Health Care Reform Vote

Ok, so yesterday the House voted for the health care reform bill. It wasn't a landslide obviously but they did get it passed. I feel like I need to address a couple things; first of which is just to re-iterate what has already been said. The opposition to the bill has much more to do with a political battle the republicans are waging versus what is really best for us as the public. All the propaganda that's out there is outrageous and isn't fair to any of us...thanks Fox. But there are a few reasons I personally understand as legitimate reasons why someone would oppose the bill.

First and foremost, there is an opposing political philosophy that drives the debate and that's whether health care is a right or a privilege. For the republicans it's a privilege and if you think health care is that important, then you should find a way to be able to participate such as making more money so you can afford the insurance and co-pays and deductibles or get a job that offers it. Right. How many McDonald's do you know offer a health plan. And how many seasonal jobs can offer it? The hypocrisy here is that the same people that make this argument also blame poor people for not wanting to go to work even though that might mean working for McDonald's where they are actually penalized for working. They won't have insurance and they won't be illegible or assistance. But somebody has to take those jobs. Someone has to cook your burger or wash your car...or row your boat. Personally, I could afford my own premiums but what's the point if I have a $5,000 deductible and 20% co-pay?

For those that think health care should be a right, the bill doesn't go far enough and that's why so many dems opposed it. There are certain things we all pay for and we should because they help protect us and it's better for us as a whole if we have it. National security, public education, our infrastructure, police and fire departments, the justice system and in my opinion, health care are things we all depend on to meet a basic quality of life. These are all things we have little choice in using and we will all benefit from. Even if you think that because you don't have children you shouldn't have to pay for public schools is an error in judgment because if you don't pay for the school, eventually you will pay for the prison that replaces it. These things are all inter-connected and in one way or another, effect us profoundly. When we exclude people from these things based on class or socioeconomic status, eventually the dominoes fall and it comes full circle and the social costs grow exponentially.

The crazy thing is that I understand a person's fear that this is going to cost us too much. I'm not happy to have to pay more taxes either. However, I'm more afraid of the total cost because fewer of us can afford health care. Preventative care is non-existent for many of us. I didn't get a flu shot and I haven't had a physical since high school. I spend all day in the sun and I can only imagine what's happening to my skin that will never be addressed until I would have to go to the emergency room that I wouldn't be able to pay for and by that time, it would be too late.

If we delve further into this concept of preventative care, let me just tell you that it's not only non-existent for those of us that can't afford it, it's also becoming unavailable to those that have insurance because fewer doctors are offering it. They don't make money on it. The insurance companies pay for procedures and a routine office visits don't pay the bills. Family practitioners are a dying breed because they can't afford the overhead. More and more doctors are specializing because that's where the money is and that's what the market dictates. It's this kind of evolution in our health care system that has earned us a world ranking of 36th in overall health care. Thanks free market.

One last argument against the bill that was addressed was that abortions would be paid for. An amendment was made to not include abortions. I think this is a tough one. I understand that people don't want their money going to these procedures because they have a religious responsibility. What immediately comes to mind is the fact that Italy, a predominately catholic country, does pay for abortions, which has resulted in one of the highest abortion rates of any country and a total net loss in birth to death rates. They also have a very low crime rate and poverty is almost non-existent. If we were just looking at costs, abortion is much cheaper than the cost of a child born to a mother that doesn't want it. However, what's probably even cheaper and definitely much more socially accepted is preventing the pregnancy in the first place, which means more access to health care, more education and more money. The problem is, you can't have it both ways but that's what people are fighting for. We recognize the problem with teen pregnancy and single headed households but we aren't willing to put the resources in to address it. We don't want to pay for health care, we don't want to pay for education, and contraception and abortion are against some religious beliefs but we also complain about crime and poverty and want it fixed. (Yes; crime, poverty and unwanted pregnancies are correlated.)

This one issue is so exemplary of the complexity of the greater health care issue. It's difficult to resolve it using political paradigms or religious philosophy. If Kant were still alive he would probably use some ethical equation that would determine what was best for the whole. We all need to recognize that first and foremost, we are all part of a greater whole and that sometimes what is best for me isn't best for everyone else. We have laws that we don't always understand but we follow them and at some point, those laws might change because we determine that's what is best. I hope we can take that attitude and apply it to this issue because I believe there are much needed changes to the system and in the end, we will be better off.