Personal Anecdote (Not anywhere near as tragic as many depicted in the video, but still evidence that we need to do something. I hope my sister doesn't mind that I'm using this story without her permission). My sister is an artist who, until very recently, worked for herself. She has been paying her own health insurance over the years, and last year, she wound up in the hospital with a very severe headache. Luckily, it turned out she was only suffering from migraines, but that did not keep her from being stuck with a whopping bill. In order to be able to afford her insurance, she had chosen to have an extremely high deductible, which meant that her insurance did not cover the bill. Stuck with monthly payments on the hospital bill and monthly insurance payments that didn't seem to be doing her much good, and barely able to afford both, she chose to drop her insurance, leaving her uninsured at an age at which no woman should be without affordable healthcare.
(Oh, and I can't help noting that R.E.M., who refused to let Microsoft use them to advertise its product, apparently had no problem with this one.)
5 comments:
Excellent! I have posted this on my blog too.
ZM, thanks so much for taking on the cause.
Thanks for the video and the meme. I'll post something soon! What did you think of Obama's speech? I liked it. The disrespect of the Republicans was shocking though. I hope your sister will be able to get health insurance soon. My husband and I were without for several years in our 20s because we couldn't afford it and I'd pray everyday that nothing bad would happen. We were lucky that nothing did.
I'm not in the U.S. (but Canada), so I don't think I can contribute. But I think this is an important meme and I hope it spreads fast. What I can say is that I had the flu this summer, which became bronchitis, and then pneumonia. And the reason I didn't end up in the hospital is that I had access to universal health care. I went not only to my regular doctor, but a walk-in clinic on the weekend, and 2 other doctors who work in the same medical clinic as my regular doctor while she was away. Plus I saw an after hours doctor there, too. (And please note that I am not much of a doctor goer. I am not fond of it.) As a result, I got all the necessary care at the right time.
I'm not in the US either but in France, so I won't be able to contribute, but health reform is so important for the US population I can't understand why anyone would be against it, especially in the current recession. Relative to other advanced countries, the US are behind in terms of infant mortality and life expectancy. Isn't that shocking? That's because so many people are left behind. So I heartily support Emily's meme.
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