Editor’s note: This op-ed is by Bob Stannard, a lobbyist and author. This piece first appeared in the Bennington Banner.
Joe: “Tellin’ ya wut, boiy-da-Jeezus, I don’t want the gub’ment gettin’ involved in my health care. They screw up just ‘bout everything else they do. I ain’t leavin’ it to a bunch of no-good politicians to be tellin’ me which doctor I can see and wut I can be gettin’ for care.”
Stanley: “Yeah, I’m with, Joe. That whole idea of gub’ment health care don’t set right with me. Hey, sorry to hear about your dad passin’ away. I heard he went. That’s rough.”
Joe: “Sur-ah did. Fought hard but didn’t make it. It was tough, but we got through it using hospice. You heard’a them, right?”
Stanley: “Sorta. Not sure wut they do, though.”
Joe: “They come in with a bunch of people and basically help you out in your final days. Real dedicated bunch. They were with us the whole time. Helped explain the process. Dealt with the medication and keepin’ him comfortable. Couldn’t’a done it without them. They were great.”
Stanley: “Boy, musta cost you a bundle, Joe.”
Joe: “Nope, not a dime. Not sure just who did pay for it. By the way, how’s your uncle doin’? He’s in the V.A. hospital, right? How’s that goin’?”
Stanley: “Oh, that’s goin’ great. He’s getting great care and he’s in a place with old veterans just like him. His spirits have picked and it ain’t costin’ a dime.”
• • •
“Obamacare is bad policy, bad law” – Mitt Romney, June 28, 2012
There is some sort of mysterious disconnect happening in America today. Many Americans have been heavily marketed and told that any kind of government run health care is going to be bad for them. They are told that they won’t have a say in who they can choose for a doctor and there will be “death panels” rationing health care.
The fact is that here in the United States of America we have many federally run and/or subsidized programs that deliver superb health care services at the lowest cost possible to tens of millions of Americans each and every year.
For some reason these same people haven’t figured out that this propaganda is being spoon fed to them by the big pharmaceutical and insurance companies. What is really baffling is that the faux conversation described above is being heard all across the nation, while simultaneously millions of people are benefiting every day from a government-run health care programs.
In 2010, 47.5 million people utilized and benefited from Medicare. There are approximately 70 million people who qualify for Veterans Affairs benefits, of which 26 million participate. The VA does much more than simply reimburse health care costs. They provide loans for education or for housing.
In 2010, 1.58 million people used services provided by Hospice; a federally funded program. The fact is that here in the United States of America we have many federally run and/or subsidized programs that deliver superb health care services at the lowest cost possible to tens of millions of Americans each and every year. These programs work and work well. You don’t hear presidential candidate Mitt Romney advocating for the elimination of VA hospitals and hospice services; at least not yet, but why not? If we have some sort aversion to socialized medicine then these programs should be the first to go.
Saying he will repeal “Obamacare” on day one makes for great rhetoric, but don’t kid yourself in thinking that he’s going to follow through with this threat/promise. There are already components of the law that are in place that are working just fine and eliminating them would make him mighty unpopular.
It’s time this nation came to grips with the fact that our health care is determined by corporations who are answerable to stockholders. Your care is already either rationed and made so expensive that only the very wealthy can get good care, while the rest of us are at the mercy of corporate “death panels.”
Similar ridiculous arguments could be heard in Manchester regarding whether or not to do the new roundabouts in the middle of town. You could hear some people question whether or not they would work, when in reality all they had to do was to drive south about a quarter-mile to see how well the one we’ve had for years working.
People are too quick to believe the ads and the hype from those who want to hide the reality, which is that government-run health care programs not only work, but they work well. They provide great service and do so at much less cost than the private sector. But when corporations and candidates tell us over and over again that “Obamacare” is bad and corporately run health care is good, people, for some reason, believe it.
Do they notice that they now have deductibles that they can’t pay if they needed to use their insurance? Do they notice that when the bill comes due it’s the corporation’s job is to find ways to not pay claims, because doing so impacts the stockholders’ benefits.
There’s a disconnect, indeed, and it’s been imposed on Americans by the industry. Those who stand to lose are working overtime trying to convince you that something that is working just fine for millions of Americans can’t possibly work for you. Look around and you’ll see that your neighbors are benefitting from public health care every day. Why shouldn’t we all?
