Friday, August 17, 2007

Our Medical System Needs a Remedy

My series of "Sicko" inspired, health care related posts continues. This blog is from one of the best, more unheralded bloggers on the Internet, KDLiz and the Contemplation of Preponderance.


Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Our Medical System Needs a Remedy

I have found myself in a situation that I would have never guessed I'd be in. I've spent three weeks, night and day, at a hospital bedside. And you know, it stinks. Everything about it stinks. Let me qualify my viewpoint with the fact that I simply do not have any faith in doctors or the medical system. I place my faith in G-D, but that is not the order of the day, here in America. I don't have a TV at home, but I've seen plenty of television the past three weeks, and I had no idea that just about every other advertisement is for a medication. I have come to realize the programming of our nation appears to be highly effective. Through the news, it's heart and ulcer medications. Through the political programs, the advertisements are for cialis and viagra. Late night, we see medications for restless leg syndrome and sleep disorders. But that doesn't begin to scratch the surface of the American medical system. I've had the privilege of dealing with HIPPA, which is just stupid. HIPPA has so many loopholes for the system, and the patient can get lost or caught in every one of them. I also found out, nurses are exempt from the HIPPA rules. My husband's cousin is married to a nurse and to quote him, she "tracked him down" and found out which hospital he was in. For all of you that think HIPPA is there for your privacy and protection, think again! And hospitals have crossed the line from mercy, compassion, and charity to big, very big business. There are now charge cards that allow so much time to pay, interest free, for visits to a doctor, a dentist, or even a vet. Then the card has the same regulations and charges as any credit card, because many hospitals no longer carry accounts past thirty days, even with their disproportionately outrageous costs. Tell your insurance company to be quick or you'll find yourself dealing with collection agencies or attorneys. I read an article today, about a woman that has battled cancer, paid the cobra insurance premiums between employment, still had to file bankruptcy over the co-pay of her medical bills, and now she is busy working, so she can pay insurance premiums costing over $600.00 a month. Ah, the compassion of the big business that medicine truly is! I'm wondering when the price of medical care is going to be figured in to the "quality of life" equation. Which now brings me to the candidates and their ideas. I haven't heard that any of the GOP candidates have made health care an issue, with the exception of Tommy Thompson, who has now dropped out of the campaign, but he's on the board of VeriChip, the chip that is implanted for medical information and now endorsed by the AMA. Hillary seems to want socialized medicine. Obama proposes some gradual insurance coverage plan. You know, for a guy that is supposed to be a fresh face, a splash of political freshness; considering as instantly as he rose to political stardom, he certainly can't make any promises with such immediate results to "we the people." John Edwards wants to make health insurance mandatory like auto insurance. As I have observed, first hand, and listened to the candidates, I'm truly leaning toward socialized medicine. America ranks close to 40th in medical care world wide and past 40th in life expectancy. Apparently, what America is doing isn't really working so well, anyway. So, how can it be improved? I don't agree with John Edwards. I don't use hospitalization or doctors, so I shouldn't be forced to carry insurance. I have no idea what Obama is really even saying. He's got such "GQ" style, but this gradual stuff just doesn't keep me hanging on his every word. Hillary's socialized medicine, if that's really the plan, seems to be the best. I'm already paying taxes that are funding all sorts of things I don't believe in, so why not medical treatment as well? Then, people can actually make a choice. A hard working single mom that really puts her faith in medicine can afford treatment, and a person like myself, who doesn't choose to seek treatment is simply paying taxes. I'm not sure what we'll do with all the unemployed insurance salesmen and handlers, but socialized medicine will finally bring everyone to the place of knowing what they believe and where they place their trust. I know my mother-in-law and sister-in-law share the same faith. I've heard them both speak of life in the hands of a doctor, as if life were truly in the power of educated man. I'm thankful my loved one has survived this treatment, but I'll be very glad to leave this "temple of healing" and take him home to seek The Healer.
And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the YHVH thy G-d, and wilt do that which is right in His sight, and wilt give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the YHVH that healeth thee.
I am the YHVH: that is My name: and My glory will I not give to another, neither My praise to graven images. Holy Scripture

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