MartyHEALTHCARE FOR THE PEOPLE?
September 24th 2009 14:28
WHO GETS HEALTHCARE? WHO DESERVES TO GET HEALTHCARE?
From a philosophical point of view the answer to this question is very simple: EVERYONE. EVERYONE GETS HEALTHCARE.
From a pragmatic and political point of view the answer to this question is also very simple: THOSE WHO CAN AFFORD IT.
The congress and senate are on the receiving end of perhaps the best health benefits in this country. If the senators and the congressman are elected by the public to serve the public, then the thought does occur, why then do the people not have the same access to the same quality of healthcare.
In this week's readings, one article after another provides a broad and comprehensive history of healthcare in this country. It seems that 1960 was a 'good period' of time for healthcare and the American citizens. With the advent of Medicaid and Medicare, seemingly the country was on target to providing healthcare to the citizens and to minimizing the out-of-pocket expenses to the elderly for healthcare in their senior years.
Times have changed, transitions have occurred, politicians are worry free and all of their family members, the well-to-do are safer then 'regular people', who by many definitions are now the 'working poor' are abandoned.
The working poor does not necessarily refer to 'only people' without income or resources, by today's standards, the 'working poor' are in fact middle income families with marginal income who do not have the additional financial resources to pay for their own health insurance.
The 'grey area' in which many individuals and families fall is a huge vat of quick sand, where hard working people fall just outside the edge of acceptable 'minimal income standards' that prevent them from accessing Medicaid and other state programs. In order to access Medicaid, humility and pride must go by the way-side, as personal family and income information is required that is often felt to be 'private'...not so in the world of Medicaid and state programs.
The state health programs for Children are a little more 'human friendly'...perhaps as they should be because no child should ever be without insurance. Expand that thought a little, perhaps we should be saying no 'citizen' should ever be without health insurance, yet millions of us are.
From the 1960's to 2009, healthcare and medical care has transitioned from a 'patient focused' service to a 'client centered business', where-in premiums, contracts and agreements found in business deals, have become the norm.
The current administration has clearly targeted this healthcare crisis as a priority. However, one does not remain hopeful when the very individuals who are in the position to make the right vote or sway others in a pro-citizen position are frequently in the back pockets of the insurance companies who are clearly business driven.
Where is the voice of the people? The answer to the question ‘who gets healthcare’ should be 'everyone'...but somehow in this country the people have become the silent majority. Somewhere along the line we allowed this country to become '$' driven, which by its very nature minimizes and diminishes the human condition and the needs of the people.
Even the most educated among us can recognize that if a family member of a senator, congress person or political person were refused healthcare because of a lack of health insurance or the lack of 'adequate' health insurance, the phones would be ringing off the hook...but this is not the real world for the average working family.
In the final analysis, money talks. Unfortunately, the ears that listen belong to the upper echelon of our society and what they hear is not what the people need. Somewhere along the line, our culture has reverted to Russian history, during the time of the proletarians and the bourgeoisie....welcome to America.
From a philosophical point of view the answer to this question is very simple: EVERYONE. EVERYONE GETS HEALTHCARE.
From a pragmatic and political point of view the answer to this question is also very simple: THOSE WHO CAN AFFORD IT.
The congress and senate are on the receiving end of perhaps the best health benefits in this country. If the senators and the congressman are elected by the public to serve the public, then the thought does occur, why then do the people not have the same access to the same quality of healthcare.
In this week's readings, one article after another provides a broad and comprehensive history of healthcare in this country. It seems that 1960 was a 'good period' of time for healthcare and the American citizens. With the advent of Medicaid and Medicare, seemingly the country was on target to providing healthcare to the citizens and to minimizing the out-of-pocket expenses to the elderly for healthcare in their senior years.
Times have changed, transitions have occurred, politicians are worry free and all of their family members, the well-to-do are safer then 'regular people', who by many definitions are now the 'working poor' are abandoned.
The working poor does not necessarily refer to 'only people' without income or resources, by today's standards, the 'working poor' are in fact middle income families with marginal income who do not have the additional financial resources to pay for their own health insurance.
The 'grey area' in which many individuals and families fall is a huge vat of quick sand, where hard working people fall just outside the edge of acceptable 'minimal income standards' that prevent them from accessing Medicaid and other state programs. In order to access Medicaid, humility and pride must go by the way-side, as personal family and income information is required that is often felt to be 'private'...not so in the world of Medicaid and state programs.
The state health programs for Children are a little more 'human friendly'...perhaps as they should be because no child should ever be without insurance. Expand that thought a little, perhaps we should be saying no 'citizen' should ever be without health insurance, yet millions of us are.
From the 1960's to 2009, healthcare and medical care has transitioned from a 'patient focused' service to a 'client centered business', where-in premiums, contracts and agreements found in business deals, have become the norm.
The current administration has clearly targeted this healthcare crisis as a priority. However, one does not remain hopeful when the very individuals who are in the position to make the right vote or sway others in a pro-citizen position are frequently in the back pockets of the insurance companies who are clearly business driven.
Where is the voice of the people? The answer to the question ‘who gets healthcare’ should be 'everyone'...but somehow in this country the people have become the silent majority. Somewhere along the line we allowed this country to become '$' driven, which by its very nature minimizes and diminishes the human condition and the needs of the people.
Even the most educated among us can recognize that if a family member of a senator, congress person or political person were refused healthcare because of a lack of health insurance or the lack of 'adequate' health insurance, the phones would be ringing off the hook...but this is not the real world for the average working family.
In the final analysis, money talks. Unfortunately, the ears that listen belong to the upper echelon of our society and what they hear is not what the people need. Somewhere along the line, our culture has reverted to Russian history, during the time of the proletarians and the bourgeoisie....welcome to America.
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