All Posts Tagged With: "health insurance"
I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand the opposition to government health care
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Thu, Nov 05 2009 | 3 Comments
Alright, I am a supporter of a public option for government sponsored health insurance. This may make me a “bad guy” to the conservatives of the country but I truly don’t understand what is wrong with wanting an option to have government sponsored health insurance that I PAY for.
Currently, I can’t afford car insurance, my mortgage payment, my student loan payments, AND health insurance so something has to go. Sure, I had a bout of bad luck when I had to have my gallbladder removed a few months ago, but other than that I have not had any troubles with my health.
I would really like to have some form of health insurance and I honestly don’t think that those who have insurance through their employer really understand how much it can cost for the rest of us. Even without a preexisting condition, the cost per month can be $150 with a $5,000 – $10,000 deductible. That is outrageous considering car insurance costs me $80 per month for FULL coverage with a $500 deductible AND I’ve had a car accident that was deemed my fault in the last 3 years.
I wish I did not have to pay that much for health insurance. Over the course of a year, if I did not have to pay over $1,200 for health related costs then I would be ahead over paying for health insurance (if I were paying $100 per month for insurance). Then again, if something disastrous were to happen, then I would be up “that” creek without a paddle (if you know what I mean). I hate the fact that I rely on hospital charity for serious conditions, but paying for health insurance simply is not worth it in my opinion. And in the opinion of the charity workers of the hospital, I do not make enough money to have to pay for health care.
I just do not understand why people argue so much about something as simple as a universal health care OPTION (this is not even something that is forced on you, it’s just an option). I wish, more than anything, that I could afford health care for not only myself, but my husband also. I feel as though we pay too much for health care we never use. I get dirty looks when I visit the doctor and tell them I don’t have health insurance, and even though I can pay for my visit, they still give me the look of someone who has stolen something.
This has gotten absolutely ridiculous. I have nurse friends who agree with me. I wish that I could encourage everyone to support some kind of health care for everyone, but I don’t think that will happen because some will “stick to their guns”. I just wish that those people could see the problem from my point of view or have the same issues I have. Then, perhaps, they would be willing to change their minds.
Related posts:Perhaps I don’t understand the frustration…
The Pitch – What are your opinions about health reform?
Tags: mortgage payment, insurance, full coverage
This Poll Was Not Taken In My Part of the Country
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Thu, Oct 08 2009 | 0 Comments
Quinnipiac University, in Hamden, Connecticut, recently released a survey that says 64% of voters disapprove of Republicans in Congress and the job that they are doing and only 25% actually approve. The same poll said that 53% have an “unfavorable opinion” of the Republican party in general.
The poll was conducted to see how potential votes feel about the very crucial health care debate. It found that 61% of those polled are in favor of a government-run option that would directly compete with private insurance. Right now, this is the exact thing that those very vocal Republicans and their followers are up in arms about.
One thing that continues to irk me about watching the national news and watching (very obvious) Republican voters go to these town hall meetings to protest and yell is that they don’t listen. They will only listen to the side of the story they want to hear and will NOT have it any other way. A lot of times, the most extreme conservative followers only listen to those who are on the fringes of the party anyway…and they’re the ones who seem to be the loudest and, in most cases, they are wrong (this is where the whole “death panel” thing came from).
I continue not to be able to understand exactly why people do not support a government run option for health care. Is it because it will cause health costs to increase? That’s unlikely because, if anything, it will cause premiums on private insurance to decrease. It could mean that hospitals won’t be able to charge thousands of dollars for band-aids anymore. Hospitals RIGHT NOW have to charge that much because of all the people who go in without health insurance. They have to make up the money they are going to lose on people who will not pay their bill. That is what causes your health care costs to rise.
There are some that disagree with the way the way that illegal immigrants are being handled in the bill. Well, in order to sign up for the health care plan that is run by the government, it would be easy for them to make a person produce documents to prove they they were not only born in the United States (or a citizen) but also actually check social security numbers. Many illegal immigrants get away with faking documents because no one ever actually runs the social security numbers.
I think that if people would calm down and listen, there is a lot of good stuff in there for everyone. Then again, there are some people (and I know people like this personally) who, no matter what, will always oppose ANYTHING the democrats support. With these people, if the democrats supported “go pet a puppy day” they would protest and complain and be as vocal as possible. These are the kinds of people that I un-friend on Facebook (haha).
Source (for the poll numbers)
Related posts:Perhaps I don’t understand the frustration…
I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand the opposition to government health care
Tags: republicans, thousands of dollars, health care costs
Perhaps I don’t understand the frustration…
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Mon, Sep 21 2009 | 0 Comments
Alright, I am a supporter of a public option for government sponsored health insurance. This may make me a “bad guy” to the conservatives of the country but I truly don’t understand what is wrong with wanting an option to have government sponsored health insurance that I PAY for.
Currently, I can’t afford car insurance, my mortgage payment, my student loan payments, AND health insurance so something has to go. Sure, I had a bout of bad luck when I had to have my gallbladder removed a few months ago, but other than that I have not had any troubles with my health.
I would really like to have some form of health insurance and I honestly don’t think that those who have insurance through their employer really understand how much it can cost for the rest of us. Even without a preexisting condition, the cost per month can be $150 with a $5,000 – $10,000 deductible. That is outrageous considering car insurance costs me $80 per month for FULL coverage with a $500 deductible AND I’ve had a car accident that was deemed my fault in the last 3 years.
I wish I did not have to pay that much for health insurance. Over the course of a year, if I did not have to pay over $1,200 for health related costs then I would be ahead over paying for health insurance (if I were paying $100 per month for insurance). Then again, if something disastrous were to happen, then I would be up “that” creek without a paddle (if you know what I mean). I hate the fact that I rely on hospital charity for serious conditions, but paying for health insurance simply is not worth it in my opinion. And in the opinion of the charity workers of the hospital, I do not make enough money to have to pay for health care.
I just do not understand why people argue so much about something as simple as a universal health care OPTION (this is not even something that is forced on you, it’s just an option). I wish, more than anything, that I could afford health care for not only myself, but my husband also. I feel as though we pay too much for health care we never use. I get dirty looks when I visit the doctor and tell them I don’t have health insurance, and even though I can pay for my visit, they still give me the look of someone who has stolen something.
This has gotten absolutely ridiculous. I have nurse friends who agree with me. I wish that I could encourage everyone to support some kind of health care for everyone, but I don’t think that will happen because some will “stick to their guns”. I just wish that those people could see the problem from my point of view or have the same issues I have. Then, perhaps, they would be willing to change their minds.
Related posts:I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand the opposition to government health care
This Poll Was Not Taken In My Part of the Country
Tags: health insurance, mortgage payment, government
The government’s health care “bill”
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Mon, Aug 17 2009 | 1 Comment
Recently, there has been a lot of uproar about the United States’ government’s plan to create a public option for citizens to have health insurance. This would help the millions that don’t have health insurance and can’t afford health care.
There are so many people in the United States that simply don’t get health care because it is far too expensive for most people to afford if they don’t have health insurance. I recently had my gallbladder taken out and the surgery, excluding surgeon fees but including anesthesiologist fees was around $12,000. That was a pretty minor surgery that took less than 45 minutes to perform and I was out of the hospital that day.
I support the government’s plan to create a public option for health care because not only is health care outrageous as far as cost is concerned and health insurance can cost hundreds a month and you’ll still have a high deductible and no prescription coverage. A public option means that families could afford health insurance and food all in the same month.
However, the plan has been getting a lot of opposition due to some of the clauses in the “bill” (I put it in quotations because there isn’t a bill yet). The least popular part of the bill is the end of life counseling which some are calling pro-euthanasia for the terminally ill. However, it seems like the end of life counseling is more like letting people know what their options are and how their quality of life will be affected. There are several thousand people who end up very ill in hospitals for a long time and are uncomfortable, that could spend the last few months of their lives comfortable in their homes and pass away peacefully. Some people would prefer that instead of being hooked to machines in a hospital. I believe that is what the end of life counseling is.
I don’t know if the bill will pass through due to the uproar that it has caused. There are so many people who are so against the bill and I just don’t understand why. If the government were to pass the bill, it is not forcing these people to sign up for its health plan, but it would cause the cost of other plans to come down. I guess I can’t ever understand why people get so angry when they can simply opt-out.
Related posts:I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand the opposition to government health care
Perhaps I don’t understand the frustration…
The Pitch – What are your opinions about health reform?
Tags: several thousand, prescription coverage, health insurance
Pfizer to offer free medications
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Thu, May 14 2009 | 1 Comment
Pfizer will begin offering prescription drugs to unemployed people for reduced costs or free. The company will provide 70 of its most popular drugs in the program. The program is targeted at people who have not only lost their job, but also their health insurance.
Right now, there is a huge push in the government circling around health care costs. There are a lot of health care issues, including the high cost to families who are not covered through their jobs or schools.
With the current economic situation, Pfizer is banking on the fact that everyone knows someone who has lost their job or is going without the prescriptions they need because of lack of health insurance and prescription drug coverage.
Pfizer’s plan is likely to gain market share by gaining brand loyalty. Often, people are more welcoming to a company who is doing good things while times are tough.
The 70 drugs that Pfizer will be offering include diabetes drugs as well as some of the company’s top money makers. Lipitor, Celebrex, Lyrica and even Viagra will be covered in the plan. Other types of drugs that are covered are popular drugs like antibiotics, antidepressants, antifungal medications, heart medications, contraceptives and some cheaper generic versions of the drugs.
Pfizer did have a program that ran fun 2004 to 2008 that helped 5.1 million consumers get 51 million Pfizer prescriptions at a reduced cost, or sometimes even for free. The company estimates that they saved families $4.8 billion.
It is nice to see a big pharmaceutical company trying to help out where they see fit. Even though they stand to benefit greatly by implementing this program, it is still going to be very helpful to many families who may be going without the drugs they need to help control some of their illnesses.
I actually don’t have prescription drug coverage, and today I had to make a trip to the doctor following my gallbladder removal surgery and some pain I am having. The doctor prescribed me some sort of drug that helps get rid of bile, but I was unable to buy it today. I am trying another method before I spend the money on the prescription. I hate that I have to decide whether to pay my cell phone bill or have a drug that alleviate my pain symptoms. I actually commend Pfizer for their attempt to start this program.
Related posts:Perhaps I don’t understand the frustration…
Tags: health insurance, types of drugs, generic versions

