Ethiopian Review

Tonight, the ninth of September 2009, President Barack Obama addressed a joint session of Congress to make, what is perhaps, his last big pitch for health-care reform.

Over the past few months there has been a lot of misinformation regarding the details of health-care reform with some even wondering if now is the time to address such a large undertaking. After all, we are still reeling from last September’s massive bank failures and the inability of
the country to have significantly recovered from the recession.

Among some of the most contended issues of health-care reform include the so-called public option and tort reform. Many conservatives think that tort reform (revamping the ability to sue for malpractice) could be the deciding factor in the passage of health-care reform, while others are trying to understand the public option.

President Obama has been all over the country rallying support for health-care reform and there have been hundreds of very heated town hall meetings on the subject. Many hope that the President will be able to clear up some issues with tonight’s speech.

Tonight’s speech begins with a declaration that he will be the last President to undertake health-care reform. The President touches on major issues such as the rising cost of health care, the increasing cost to those who do have insurance, and the fatalities as a result of misbehaving insurance companies who seem to put the bottom line before the health of an individual.

As a part-time employee, the company I worked for offered health insurance for all employees with payroll deductions. Taking all possible options, my cost, because I have no dependants, was $69 bi-weekly (including vision, dental, life, and hospital indemnity). Now that job only paid
minimum wage and I got tips as a part of my job, so it wasn’t the highest paying job in the world. But this was also the first time since my military service that I had health insurance. A 5 year gap. My decision to participate in the employer’s health care plan was the result of an emergency room visit that was ultimately declared not to be covered by worker’s compensation. By the time that decision was made, however, 3 months had passed since the emergency room visit and bills were overdue. Eight months after the time of service, the bills were still overdue.

So what does all that mean in terms of what the President wants to do? Let me tell you another experience. I went searching for a Health Savings Account. That’s where you pay a high deductible (such as $5000) and then the insurance company picks up the rest after that. The great thing about the HSA is that if you don’t use the deductible, then you can use that money towards retirement. So, I went ahead and applied for the highest HSA deductible possible. I figured that since I have all of my health care at the local VA hospital that I would be okay. Well, the insurance company decided that my BMI was 3 points too high and, on that basis, I couldn’t even get the HSA. It had nothing to do with pre-existing conditions or medications I was on, it was just about a number that doesn’t even represent my overall health. That’s frustrating.

In tonight’s speech the President said that no one should go broke because they get sick. I agree. That’s a horrible thing. He also said that this reform would not allow you to be denied insurance because of pre-existing conditions. Sounds good too. I’m not sure about making basic coverage mandatory (like the way auto insurance is) is a good idea. However, I do believe that we should be able to purchase insurance from companies across state lines, just like we can with auto insurance.

I believe that reform is necessary and probably overdue. Can it be done without creating more of a deficit? I don’t know the answer to that. What I do know is that when health-care is reformed, in whatever form it takes, will not please everyone. That’s an impossible task. What most people want out of health care is the ability to afford it and not to be bullied by the insurance companies. They are the ones consumers fear the most – not the government. Make the insurance companies behave and perhaps the average American can have a chance.

The President has an ambitious plan and I wish him the best of luck in reforming health care. What I have to worry about is keeping myself insured to make up for anything the VA doesn’t cover. We all have different insurance needs and it is best to be able to keep our options open to
get the coverage we need from the most cost-effective source.

Health-care reform is a complex topic, but, hopefully, over time our elected official can come to a consensus in order to provide better options for consumers in the long run.

(by Wendy Stewart | AC)