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Murphy’s Law, written by Barbara Murphy, appears monthly in The Golden Times. The column represents the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the opinion of the publisher.
‘Let’em Die?’ — Health Insurance Reform Fight Creates Ugly America
“Let’em die!”
According to news reports that was the cry from voices in a crowd gathered on the U.S. Supreme Court steps to heckle a speaker lauding the benefits of Obamacare.
The speaker reminded the crowd that if the U.S. Supreme Court kills the new health insurance reform law, we’ll be stuck with our present system that has left millions of Americans uninsured, scores of whom have died because they could not get the medical care they needed.
That these deaths do not bother some Americans and that there are actually Americans who cry out “Let’em die!” breaks my heart and scares me to death.
What has happened to my country? Some years back, Americans were horrified by news reports that Americans were turning away sick, uninsured people, in effect condemning some of them to death. The public outcry against the hospitals was so great that Congress immediately passed a law, still on the books (Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1986), requiring hospitals to treat anyone who walks into their emergency rooms, insured or uninsured.
What has happened to us since that compassionate law was passed? Millions of Americans now oppose a law that would save countless American lives and some of our people even shout “Let’em die!”
I have no skin in this game. I’m covered by government-sponsored, tax-supported Medicare. So presumably, I will never be denied hospital care — unless fanatics on the far right succeed in their goal to eliminate both Social Security and Medicare. In that event, I would die on the streets, as would most of you. But I only have a few years left to live and I expect Medicare and Social Security to be around as long as I am. I’m not afraid for myself. I’m afraid for people younger than I am. I know quite a few folks between 50 and 65 who have lost their jobs and as a result their health insurance. Many of these people have chronic health problems that are now not being treated. Unless these unfortunate people can get work and health insurance soon, their medical problems will worsen and they will die.
Let them?
We can’t do that and call ourselves a civilized people. Those of us who claim to be Christians have an extra obligation to support Obamacare — which by the way is no longer the derisive term President Obama’s opponents meant it to be when they coined the term to describe the Patient Protection and Affordable Healthcare Act. Supporters of the Act were wearing “I Love Obamacare” T-shirts when they rallied in front of the Supreme Court during the recent three-day series of arguments on the constitutionality of the law.
I bring up the Christianity issue because I, as a Christian, was infuriated by a woman interviewed by a radio reporter in front of the Supreme Court. The woman said, “I’m a pastor, and as a pastor, I feel I must support the Christian values of Rick Santorum.” Mr. Santorum, a Republican presidential hopeful, has made repeal of Obamacare a major issue in his campaign. He personally joined opponents of Obamacare who rallied against it in front of the Supreme Court.
Since when do “Christian values” include denying medical care for those too poor to buy health insurance? What bible does that “pastor” read?
The Jesus in my bible spent most of his ministry healing the sick. He also urged us to love our neighbor as our self and never to withhold help from those in need. He called on His followers to be like the Good Samaritan, who gave his personal help and money to save the life of a man beaten up by robbers and left on the road to die.
Another group of Obamacare opponents who make my blood boil are the old people who shout “don’t let the government mess with my Medicare.” I thought the word had finally gotten through to these numbskulls that Medicare is run by the federal government and paid for by the taxpayers. But apparently there are still cretins who don’t know that Medicare comes from the federal government because some of them were at the Supreme Court rally spouting the same old nonsense.
Painful as it is to say it, I am convinced at this point that the Supreme Court will kill Obamacare because the court is controlled by conservatives and conservatives loathe the law even though it was conservatives who originally dreamed up the “individual mandate,” the most contentious part of Obamacare. This provision requires people who do not have health insurance to purchase it, with federal financial help if they need it.
During the arguments before the Supreme Court, Justice Samuel Alito, a conservative, asked whether the mandate was really a disguised subsidy of sick people by healthy people. Of course it is, Sam, you dope. What’s involved here is called risk-spreading. It’s the principle behind all insurance. Insured drivers who don’t have accidents pay for people who do. Insured homeowners whose houses that don’t burn down pay for those that do. Any healthy people with health insurance pay for the care of those who get sick.
One thing that is wrong with the otherwise admiral earlier-mentioned law requiring hospitals to treat the uninsured was that no funding mechanism was provided. That’s why your hospital bill may include $20 for an aspirin. Hospitals, of necessity, hike the care of the cost for the insured to make up the hospital’s enormous losses on care of the uninsured. Obamacare would help remedy this injustice.
The saddest aspect of this whole fight is that the people who passed Obamacare — Congressional Democrats — did little to explain its provisions and benefits to the public. Neither did the President or the Democratic party. They dropped the ball, and as a result a lot of misinformation was pumped out that frightened or angered the American public.
For instance, many Americans believe Obamacare will eradicate the insurance that they already have through their insurers or some other source and require them to buy new insurance through insurance exchanges.
Wrong.
Obamacare requires that you “have” insurance. If you have it, nothing changes. You don’t lose that insurance and you don’t have to go out and buy new insurance. Obamacare only requires the uninsured to buy insurance.
The new law is not perfect by a long shot. It lacks, for instance, an opportunity for people to purchase insurance directly from the government (a public option) and it does little to reduce to medical costs. But it’s a big step in the right direction, providing health insurance for the millions of Americans who don’t have it and new protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions.
The real solution is Medicare For All. Healthcare is a right, not a privilege. Americans who realize that should keep fighting until every single one of us has cradle to grave health coverage through Medicare For All.
If that means higher taxes, so be it. It also means no insurance premiums unless you opt for something like a Medi-gap policy.
As the sage said, “taxes are the price we pay for civilization.” Jesus, you remember, had little patience with people who squawked about taxes. He told them to “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s.”
*
Barbara Murphy, 79, writes about controversial issues each month.
“Let’em die!”
According to news reports that was the cry from voices in a crowd gathered on the U.S. Supreme Court steps to heckle a speaker lauding the benefits of Obamacare.
The speaker reminded the crowd that if the U.S. Supreme Court kills the new health insurance reform law, we’ll be stuck with our present system that has left millions of Americans uninsured, scores of whom have died because they could not get the medical care they needed.
That these deaths do not bother some Americans and that there are actually Americans who cry out “Let’em die!” breaks my heart and scares me to death.
What has happened to my country? Some years back, Americans were horrified by news reports that Americans were turning away sick, uninsured people, in effect condemning some of them to death. The public outcry against the hospitals was so great that Congress immediately passed a law, still on the books (Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1986), requiring hospitals to treat anyone who walks into their emergency rooms, insured or uninsured.
What has happened to us since that compassionate law was passed? Millions of Americans now oppose a law that would save countless American lives and some of our people even shout “Let’em die!”
I have no skin in this game. I’m covered by government-sponsored, tax-supported Medicare. So presumably, I will never be denied hospital care — unless fanatics on the far right succeed in their goal to eliminate both Social Security and Medicare. In that event, I would die on the streets, as would most of you. But I only have a few years left to live and I expect Medicare and Social Security to be around as long as I am. I’m not afraid for myself. I’m afraid for people younger than I am. I know quite a few folks between 50 and 65 who have lost their jobs and as a result their health insurance. Many of these people have chronic health problems that are now not being treated. Unless these unfortunate people can get work and health insurance soon, their medical problems will worsen and they will die.
Let them?
We can’t do that and call ourselves a civilized people. Those of us who claim to be Christians have an extra obligation to support Obamacare — which by the way is no longer the derisive term President Obama’s opponents meant it to be when they coined the term to describe the Patient Protection and Affordable Healthcare Act. Supporters of the Act were wearing “I Love Obamacare” T-shirts when they rallied in front of the Supreme Court during the recent three-day series of arguments on the constitutionality of the law.
I bring up the Christianity issue because I, as a Christian, was infuriated by a woman interviewed by a radio reporter in front of the Supreme Court. The woman said, “I’m a pastor, and as a pastor, I feel I must support the Christian values of Rick Santorum.” Mr. Santorum, a Republican presidential hopeful, has made repeal of Obamacare a major issue in his campaign. He personally joined opponents of Obamacare who rallied against it in front of the Supreme Court.
Since when do “Christian values” include denying medical care for those too poor to buy health insurance? What bible does that “pastor” read?
The Jesus in my bible spent most of his ministry healing the sick. He also urged us to love our neighbor as our self and never to withhold help from those in need. He called on His followers to be like the Good Samaritan, who gave his personal help and money to save the life of a man beaten up by robbers and left on the road to die.
Another group of Obamacare opponents who make my blood boil are the old people who shout “don’t let the government mess with my Medicare.” I thought the word had finally gotten through to these numbskulls that Medicare is run by the federal government and paid for by the taxpayers. But apparently there are still cretins who don’t know that Medicare comes from the federal government because some of them were at the Supreme Court rally spouting the same old nonsense.
Painful as it is to say it, I am convinced at this point that the Supreme Court will kill Obamacare because the court is controlled by conservatives and conservatives loathe the law even though it was conservatives who originally dreamed up the “individual mandate,” the most contentious part of Obamacare. This provision requires people who do not have health insurance to purchase it, with federal financial help if they need it.
During the arguments before the Supreme Court, Justice Samuel Alito, a conservative, asked whether the mandate was really a disguised subsidy of sick people by healthy people. Of course it is, Sam, you dope. What’s involved here is called risk-spreading. It’s the principle behind all insurance. Insured drivers who don’t have accidents pay for people who do. Insured homeowners whose houses that don’t burn down pay for those that do. Any healthy people with health insurance pay for the care of those who get sick.
One thing that is wrong with the otherwise admiral earlier-mentioned law requiring hospitals to treat the uninsured was that no funding mechanism was provided. That’s why your hospital bill may include $20 for an aspirin. Hospitals, of necessity, hike the care of the cost for the insured to make up the hospital’s enormous losses on care of the uninsured. Obamacare would help remedy this injustice.
The saddest aspect of this whole fight is that the people who passed Obamacare — Congressional Democrats — did little to explain its provisions and benefits to the public. Neither did the President or the Democratic party. They dropped the ball, and as a result a lot of misinformation was pumped out that frightened or angered the American public.
For instance, many Americans believe Obamacare will eradicate the insurance that they already have through their insurers or some other source and require them to buy new insurance through insurance exchanges.
Wrong.
Obamacare requires that you “have” insurance. If you have it, nothing changes. You don’t lose that insurance and you don’t have to go out and buy new insurance. Obamacare only requires the uninsured to buy insurance.
The new law is not perfect by a long shot. It lacks, for instance, an opportunity for people to purchase insurance directly from the government (a public option) and it does little to reduce to medical costs. But it’s a big step in the right direction, providing health insurance for the millions of Americans who don’t have it and new protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions.
The real solution is Medicare For All. Healthcare is a right, not a privilege. Americans who realize that should keep fighting until every single one of us has cradle to grave health coverage through Medicare For All.
If that means higher taxes, so be it. It also means no insurance premiums unless you opt for something like a Medi-gap policy.
As the sage said, “taxes are the price we pay for civilization.” Jesus, you remember, had little patience with people who squawked about taxes. He told them to “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s.”
*
Barbara Murphy, 79, writes about controversial issues each month.