My sister & her family lost their health coverage today...A Rant.

[debbierlus]

And, she looked into her payments for a health care policy -

1,200 bucks a month minimum with high copays and deductibles.

Catastrophic coverage - a possibility but then, if anyone in the family uses it, it is still 30% copay on the ENTIRE bill. One serious episode, let alone illness of any of the three in her family, and they would be bankrupt with that type of co-pay.

They are in health care no man's land. They make too much to qualify for any assistance. They make too little to afford the cost of it.

The 1,200 is from a health care pool number, btw, a program where uninsured families can suppossedly buy 'affordable' insurance. This is in Massachusetts. We have mandatory health insurance here. The program will be financially insolvent in two years, and everyone has different coverage with many people severely underinsured. This unsustainable, failing system is what Congress will push off as reform.

They have a six month old baby. My sister has problems with Asthma, mitral valve prolapse, and back problems from a serious car accident.

This is going to break them. Two incredibly hard working professionals who busted their ass putting themselves through college and trying to repay the student loans that already are too much burden to bear. Worked for everything. Always did the right thing. Pay their bills. This is just one straw too many. They simply can't work enough hours and take care of the baby at the same time to be able to juggle it all.

I was on the phone with her for over an hour trying to talk it through with her but what the hell can I say. This has got to end. It has to end now.

People are DYING because of the health care leeches are allowed to profit off our sickness. People are losing EVERYTHING they own because the health care leeches are allowed to take our entire livelihoods as collateral. We are blackmailed into taking on back breaking debt in exchange for care when we are most vulnerable and neediest, and we don't even get a gurantee that for our submission, we will even BE cared for when the time comes! WHY DO WE ALLOW THIS & WHY DO WE NOT DEMAND THAT IT END? If I hear one person say that this is 'all' that is politically possible, I am going to scream. NO, it fucking isn't. Not if we showed up to our Congress people's offices in droves and informed them they would be out of a job, if they didn't give us single payer NOW.

I am ramping up my involvement (it has been some, but not nearly, nearly enough and I ashamed of myself, there is no excuse on an issue that truly is life and death for many Americans) and I hope everyone who reads this will do so as well because we are fighting for our LIVES and our fellow citizens LIVES and we will not be told that we have to accept anything other then SINGLE PAYER. NO PROFIT OFF HUMAN SICKNESS AND SUFFERING. PERIOD.

If we can't be motivated to action when all around us (or within our own homes) face denial of care or financial ruin If we can't stand up and ROAR back at these people over our very lives, then we, as America, what will we fight for? How much can they steal? How many lives must they take?

It is extremely sick and extremely cruel that we allow this happen to each other.

ANY politican who fights for the insurance companies profits over the health of America's citizens does NOT represent me or the rest of the people they would sacrifice for their own power & greed.

Any politican who seeks to act as a protector of profits over basic medical needs of people...

They stand against us.

Why on earth do we allow this? WHY do grant them such total immunity - as if they are gods to favor us at their whim instead of public servants to do OUR bidding?

I am so angry. But, more so, I am very sad.

[msongs]

1. sorry to hear that. bipartisanship and placating the health uncare industry are more important to

the democratic party Inc than you and your family.

Don't you wish that control of congress and the white house resulted in a more citizen friendly health care process.

Msongs

[debbierlus]

3. Bipartisanship is smokescreen for noone being accountable for the wrongs they commit

It is the very heart of the one party system.

A pretend game of good cop, bad cop. And, all the while, they stand for the same damn thing.

[waiting for hope]

2. K&R - sadly your sister's story is the

story of millions out there.... I wish your sister and her family all the best. :hug:

[debbierlus]

4. It could be the story of any one of us - none of us are really protected

[cabluedem]

23. The insurance co's can deny coverage at any time. This system sucks. nt

[Laelth]

5. Personally, I am again considering Canada for me and my family.

I love my country, but my wife and I (both college educated) lack insurance, and we have little prospect of ever being able to get health care here.

Can your friend and her family escape? Chronic medical conditions might make that difficult. :(

:dem:

-Laelth

[Oregone]

6. Go, I recommend it

You wont get any real coverage in the States any time soon in the next few decades, whereas there is amazing coverage available north. Anything it costs in fees, you will make up in a year in health premiums (if not quicker). Do the application yourself.

[Laelth]

12. We're healthy now.

We figure we'd better get out before we get sick. The clock on this option is running out for us.

:dem:

-Laelth

[Oregone]

17. Same here.

But we still made good because we just got thousands in service when we had our baby.

Healthy or not, an accident is all it takes to go bankrupt

[debbierlus]

8. How hard is it to get Candian citizenship?

[Laelth]

9. Here's what I remember from when I looked in '06.

Canada was (and probably still is) actively seeking immigrants. You need $10K in the bank. It's best to have a Canadian attorney manage the immigration for you. It helps if you're younger. It helps if you're not sick. It helps to be well-educated. It helps if you speak French (and mercifully I do, a little). They have a point-scoring system that includes lots of factors, but, iirc, it was easy to find their criteria online.

:dem:

-Laelth

[debbierlus]

10. French Canadian descent. I wonder if that would help...

[Laelth]

11. I don't recall. Perhaps. n/t

:dem:

-Laelth

[PassingFair]

50. If your mother had Canadian citizenship, you might BE Canadian...

My husband became a Canadian in February.

He was born in 1964, in the U.S., but his
mother was still a Canadian citizen at the
time...

My MOTHER also became a Canadian citizen,
because HER mother was a Canadian citizen
at the time of HER birth in the U.S.

Me...sorry Charlie, I'm second generation
diaspora....I'd need to be sponsored by my
husband!

[kath]

13. self-delete

[Oregone]

16. You don't need an attorney

I did it myself. Just be organized.

If you have two bachelors in a family or a masters, and are not old, you are in. They recently lowered the standards too. It goes on points. Look on the Skilled Workers Immigration site.

Once you get permanent residency, 3 years later you can apply for citizenship

britishexpats.com is a good site for help too

[Laelth]

21. That's useful. Thanks.

We have two bachelors and a J.D. We're 41 and 36. We have a good chance, for the time being.

:dem:

-Laelth

[Honeycombe8]

18. You have to be a "worker," I think. I looked into it...it had ceased accepting people

who were going there to retire or retire in a few years.

U.S. citizens were moving there when older to get free healthcare, w/o having paid the taxes to pay into the system. So Canada stopped accepting the older immigrants.

They know how to protect their country. Imagine what would've eventually happened to their healthcare system with millions of people moving there and receiving free healthcare w/o having paid into the system? It would collapse. Sort of like ours is collapsing.

[debbierlus]

26. That's true. It is sad that many feel so desperate, they feel they HAVE to leave their county

[Sentath]

25. Last time I looked I'd have to get my masters and learn French

to conversational or better to have enough points. But, that was a couple years ago.

[lindisfarne]

29. They've recently changed the rules - made it easier for people whose grandparents were

Canadian, even if those grandparents renounced Canadian citizenship.

[quiller4]

47. You don't need to be citizens to receive health care. It is

sufficient to become landed immigrants. My niece and her family moved from CA to Vancouver BC several years ago. Both have MFAs. They remain US citizens but they own a house on Vancouver Island and her spouse is an artist in residence at the University. They and their two children are covered by national health.

[proud patriot]

7. I'm really sorry to hear that

:(

[truedelphi]

14. In solidarity with your family. It really sucks.

Your last few sentences resonate:
WHY do we grant them such total immunity - as if they are gods to favor us at their whim instead of public servants to do OUR bidding?

I am so angry. But, more so, I am very sad.


I am angry/sad too. Every time someone says we have to work hard or the people in Congress and at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue won't get it, I get confounded and a bit out of whack.

Why is it necessary for us to tell, ask, plead, cajole and cry for them to understand that "middle class" experience they were out bragging about having lived through and indulged in (during their childhoods and during their election campaigns.) More importantly - why are they there? Are they our gods whom we must implore on an hourly basis or are they our elected officials?

[Wednesdays]

15. K&R

:kick:

[Honeycombe8]

19. That shouldn't happen to a dog. Something MUST be done! (But I can only wonder...

why did they lose their health care?

[Kablooie]

20. I wish Americans had the guts that the Iranians do.

[cabluedem]

22. Greed by the rethugs is why we wont get single payer. nt

[vaberella]

51. No...it's Greed by Democrats and Rethugs in the Senate is why we don't have ANY health reform. n/t

[Raster]

24. Rant on! Rant loudly! Managed healthcare by insurance companies means

how can they manage to NOT pay for your healthcare!

Obama and the other pnwned politicians are scrambling to come up with the healthcare scheme where their insurance butt buddies can still make their ungodly and immoral profits and keep their fingers in our nation's healthcare pie. I guarantee this month alone, the managed healthcare lobbyists have spent a fortune bribing Congress to keep themselves in the gravy train.

Make no mistake, people have and are losing EVERYTHING they have because of the healthcare parasites.

People have died and are dying EVERY DAY because of the healthcare parasites.

Implementing single payer healthcare in this country would cost less and cover all persons. The only problem is that the extremely rich and powerful healthcare insurance companies would be cut out of the equation. And they are fighting tooth and nail to be able to suck you dry.

[lindisfarne]

27. Is she eligible for COBRA? The gov't is subsidizing 65% of the cost. n/t

[lindisfarne]

28. If you say "single payer or nothing", you're going to get nothing. That won't help the

uninsured & underinsured. Politically, single payer has no chance - and many feel that the public option is as good or better than single payer.

(Like public option, single payer isn't a single entity; it can be implemented in many ways with different coverege & different degrees of universal coverage).

[Soylent Brice]

30. email this to sanders.

[Vinca]

31. I just posted about a $1200 fee on another thread and I don't

think the OP believed me. It's hell trying to buy anything in the private market. Even lousy insurance is unaffordable. Your post is especially frightening because it's Massachusetts and I get the impression that's what the plan in the works is based on. It's hard to imagine in the so-called greatest country in the world so many are left in peril. Republicans are quick to respond that everyone has health care because they can go to an emergency room. Last time I checked, they didn't treat cancer in ERs. It makes me furious.

[PatSeg]

34. A few weeks ago I read about a couple in MA

who shopped around for health care coverage and the cheapest they could find was $1800 a month. They both were self-employed with two children and could not afford the premiums. The wife had to give up her profession and find a job with insurance coverage.

[Vinca]

37. I've posted a couple of times about the Massachusetts woman

I met whose husband sells health insurance and they can't afford to buy it. She was stewing about how they were going to pay their fine. It's amazing.

[PatSeg]

43. Oh my god!

Can you imagine what it's like to try and sell insurance that you can't afford?

[Dr Fate]

32. Maybe she can go fishing with Max Bauccus this weekend and tell him all about it.

If she has $2,500 bucks, that is.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x8484013

[Jakes Progress]

33. Evil

walks among us. It runs for office and sells us insurance policies.

This is an industry that would prefer several babies die and fathers die of cancer before they would put one thin dime of their excess profits at risk. That is not an exaggeration. In Texas our hair-instead-of-brains and republican-loyalty-pin-instead-of-a-soul refused to accept bail out money that would help insure more poor children. Can there be a clearer example of the devil's disciple that that? Only a little lower in the rank of Satan's minions would be the politicians who chink away at already watered down insurance legislation. Compromising on the welfare of our citizenry should be grounds for impeachment.

I am too old to emigrate, but my suggestion to both of my children is that they move to Canada. I've had health care there and here. Any suggestion that it is worse there is a lie.

Nothing would be better for the people and for the economy of this country than universal health care. It is a right that other countries demand. Here we beg and are rebuffed by our corporate political structure.

It is a shame that so many are atheists because it would mean that you can't at least rely on the comforting image of these politicians and insurance executives burning in hell.

[PatSeg]

35. This is outrageous,

but unfortunately all too common. I would send your sister's story to the White House and your senator. We need to keep these stories in the forefront.

[yy4me]

36. I feel so badly for your family. The cost of health insurance in MA

is a colossal joke. Having Health Insurance is mandatory. Your figure is correct but there is nothing about it that is affordable. I fail to see how the legislators who came up with this bill could call it affordable with a straight face.

I have posted comments about Massachusetts healthcare and how I hope it is not used as a model.

People, do not fall for it, it is not affordable. I have friends who have faced the same thing. It is also going to be insolvent shortly. The state is flat broke. We here have the biggest bunch of double dipping, do nothing politico's than you could imagine.

My husband and I closed our business years ago because our individual BCBS insurance was jumping to just under a thousand dollars a month for the two of us. This is in 1994 dollars. Between the rent and insurances, it became too much. Call the Boston organization "Health Care For All". They were pioneers in the field of work with the uninsured. They may have ideas for your sister and her family. We too could not qualify for any assistance but could not afford insurance.

The old rock and hard place.

[CubicleGuy]

38. We can't afford national health care...

... because we have to be able, at a moment's (or a President's) whim, to send a bazillion troops into some far off country to rain down bombs upon unsuspecting civilian populations.

I mean, them bombs is expensive.

Such is the price of being the world's policeman.

Surely your sister and her family, patriots that they surely are, understand this, and are willing to make the big sacrifices.

[inna]

39. i cannot, CANNOT believe that we somehow allowed them to get away with this monstrous crap.

we are the only industrialized country that doesn't have universal healthcare - in large part, because we're brainwashed by corporate propaganda into being scared of the "socialism" boogyman.

when, in reality, what we have is "socialism for the ultra-rich", i.e. absolutely rapacious, obscene plutocracy.

this pic says it all:

[Uncle Joe]

40. Thanks for sharing, debbierlus.

I wish your family well.

[dgibby]

41. This is so very sad. Words fail.

My best to you and your sister.:hug:

[Pacifist Patriot]

42. We're one pink slip away from no health coverage.

There is not a snowball's chance in hell we'd be able to afford even moderately decent health care coverage if my husband were to lose his job.

All of this is just so wrong on a fundamental level.

[Dora]

44. I think it's time for the DOCTORS to DO SOMETHING.

Are there doctors who will provide care for a reasonable out of pocket cost?

Are there doctors whose missions are to heal, not to profit?

Why do doctors deal with insurance companies at all? Are the doctors the victims, enablers, or abettors?

[JenniferJuniper]

45. The Massachusetts plan is just ghastly

And I think many people outside of the state don't know this. We must understand that Universal "Health Coverage" is not the same thing as Universal "Health Care".

[HCE SuiGeneris]

46. Please send this to your Congress Critter

and here are some more venues to get this info into the right hands http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=8473420

[midnight armadillo]

48. I just looked at the MA plans. HOLY SHIT THEY SUCK.

If anyone is interested, you can shop at:
http://www.mahealthconnector.org/portal/site/connector/

"Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
HMO Blue Basic Value"
A family of 4, for $1024/month, includes such generous benefits as: $500 per plan year deductible before there's any coverage, $25 per doctor's visit, Prescriptions are: $15 / 50% co-insurance after Rx deductible, ER visits are: $150, and hospital stays are: 35% co-insurance after deductible.

Holy shit!! 35% of a hospital stay? Just getting put into a hospital bed runs several thousands of $.

They have other plans with better coverage but the monthly premiums are over $2000/month!!!!!!!!!

Damn, I'm a MA resident and never looked at these plans. These are fucking NUTS. NUTS! My shitty health insurance plan thru work cost us $8,000 out of pocket last year, but under the vastly worse BCBS plan here I would have paid 3-4x more.

debbierlus, I am very sorry to hear of your sister's problems with insurance. I had no idea it was this bad. MA should have just implemented its own single payer system and then invited the rest of NE to join.

[Aloha Spirit]

49. Hi, you might be interested in joining this project

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/p/eyes-ears-registration.html