Matthew 25:35-40
35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’
I am a socialist...if it were up to me we would have single payer healthcare. I work for an HMO and my job depends on it’s survival. As an RN my priority is the welfare of my patients. To some this might seem conflicted at best, but I’m at peace with it. In the words of Mick Jagger, “You can’t always get what you want but if you try you might get what you need”
Some of you are going to the polls tomorrow hoping that your vote will make health care reform go away because it is “socialized medicine” Please trust me when I say that it is not. Some of you think that it will cost us too much money but war and killing people in foreign countries cost us more. The tax cuts for the top 1% of americans add more to the deficit than health care reform. Folks I hate to break it to you but none of you are in the top 1% and never will be.
On March 23rd, the president signed the health care reform bill and with many other progressives I was complaining that it wasn’t enough, but on September 23 several things happened as a result of that health care bill.
First my now 19 year old daughter will be covered under my policy until she is 26. If she wasn’t she would be uninsurable because as an infant she had so many ear infections her ears are scarred and her eardrums perforate every time she gets on an airplane. Second your child who might have asthma or have been born with a minor cardiac defect can no longer be dropped from your insurance plan. Third, if you have a catastrophic medical problem your insurance company can’t say, “Oops you’ve exceeded your limit.”
In addition there won’t be co-pays for preventive services. Things like mammograms, cervical cancer screening, bone density studies, colorectal cancer screening, immunizations and some blood work will not incur a copay. You will be saving money.
Some of the insurance companies want you to think that this is going to drive costs up. I don’t think it will. I was privileged to listen to the president of the HMO I work for speak recently. We aren’t worried because we are forerunners in preventive health care; our patients will continue to come first, and we will remain a “not for profit” HMO.
I am writing this tonight because I know some of you have been given incorrect information about health reform. Certain candidates are telling you that they will fight to repeal health care reform. What they are telling you is not in your best interest. These people are masters at manipulating and inciting fear in people. Some of you I know who are against health care reform have your kids on Medi-Cal. I don’t condemn you for using government funded health care but think about that when you vote. Think about the kids who will be denied health care while yours are covered.
I started this post with words from the gospel of Matthew; “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” Meditate on these words as you fill out your ballots and follow your heart. Vote for who you feel is the best person for the job.
Peace
