Opinion Forum

Feed Me! Heal Me!

July 8th, 2009

Browsing through the comments section of an MSNBC article titled Congress: The centrist threat?, the subject of government-run health care came up. Many people displayed that “feed me,” “heal me,” “take care of me” attitude that shows how little they respect themselves and how little they care about the people who actually pay for their food, health care, and whatever else. But just about as many expressed their discontent with the prospect of even more “nannycare.” In my view, the following comment by Mr. Charles Morrison of Atlanta, GA provides the most compelling argument against the prospect of our government controlling the health care system:

I keep hearing people talk about how good universal health care is. Why can’t people see what is staring them in the face? Currently the government controls the VA Hospitals. Go ask a Veteran how good that system is working. I got out of the Marines in 2007 with 11 years of service to this fine nation. Needless to say, my military medical record is full of detailed information regarding all service related injuries and ailments, yet the government run VA tells me that the 2 compressed discs in my back are NOT service related when they occurred while I was carrying gear while with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). My shoulder injuries that occurred while in Iraq (for which I had two (2) reconstructive surgeries) also did not happen while in the military in accordance with the VA. Both of these items I have mentioned above are noted in great detail in my medical records. So while I wake up every morning in pain, the government run VA hospital says none of this occurred or is related to my military service. Now if a relatively small government run heath care system like the VA Hospital is being run in this manner, why on Earth would anyone believe for a moment that the government would do a better job on such a grand scale that would be required to run the hospitals for an entire nation?

If you really want to bring the costs of health care down, look at the real cause. Health care costs a lot because doctors and hospital have to pay for liability insurance. Liability insurance costs them so much because if a patient is disgruntled in any way what so ever, they file suit in the hopes of making a buck for free. If we are really serious about bringing health care costs down, we need to look at reforming or putting restrictions on a litigation happy nation.

Thankfully there are still some people like Mr. Morrison who can apply the logic of personal experience to the ridiculous prospect of bureaucrats providing our health care in a manner as inefficiently as they do everything else. In this gentleman’s case, he is in a situation that would cause many people to just give up on the government — but he hasn’t given up, he’s speaking out and even suggesting ways to fix its problems.

For our own survival as a truly free people and for the survival of our nation, we must all speak out, we must get rid of our bloated government and stop electing the kind of dunderheads (in Congress and the Executive Branch) who promote destructive ideas such as national health care when what they should be focusing on are the real reasons health care is so expensive, two of which are the liability litigation mentioned in the quote and the government’s own over-regulation of all medical-related industries.

(This article was also posted at My View from the Center.)

Articles written by Harvey Grund
Tags: medicine, nationalized healthcare, Obama
Categories: Life, News, Politics | Comments (14) | Home

14 Responses to “Feed Me! Heal Me!”

Erik | July 8th, 2009 at 8:18 am

Why is everyone so worried about the government controlling health care? Health care has been controlling the government for years! Any guesses whether the U.S. form of health care or socialized care provides for greater longevity and lower infant mortality rates?

Who has the best health care and best health in the world? Is it the U.S.?

Does socializing our system scare me? Sure. But not nearly as much as “private health care” that uses the Congress and Senate to fleece the public and diminish the citizenry’s overall health and well-being.

How bout we take 1/3 of the money we have spent on killing brown people in the last couple years of our fear response and address the issues facing those without health care?

Tom | July 8th, 2009 at 8:50 am

Erik, I’m pretty much with you until the last paragraph. Health care is way too expensive, and something needs to be done to control cost while at least maintaining and, better yet, improving the quality of care. As far as your “best” this-and-that is concerned, you’re comparing our system with countries that are generally much smaller, much more homogenous, and don’t face the challenges our health care system faces.

About the last paragraph — you sound like one of those know-nothing leftists who sees the U.S. reaction to the 9/11 attack, the worst attack on U.S. soil in history, as fraudulent and unjustified. What’s more, you seem to see our military actions as designed to kill “brown people.” If that’s how you see things, you have a lot of growing and studying to do.

Harvey | July 8th, 2009 at 11:16 am

Erik,

As to health care, the proper function of government is to exercise minimum control over the existing health care system — not to change it or to take it over, just control it. If the government would allow that to happen and, as was mentioned in the post, get some sensible malpractice legislation passed and . . . this is a big one . . . eliminate health care for anyone who is in this country illegally, the cost of health care would come way down, health insurance would get better and people would have more choices.

I totally agree with Tom “About the last paragraph” of your comment. 1) Our country’s defense is not a ‘bargaining chip’ in the health care debate; 2) The “brown people” who attacked us need to be taught a lesson that their course of action was reckless, dangerous to their existence and must never be repeated.

Clarissa | July 8th, 2009 at 3:54 pm

My parents live in Canada. Last summer my father suffered a stroke. The level and the amount of medical care he received was absolutely amazing. As a result, he managed to restore his speech and motor functions 100%. He is still receiving a lot of outpatient care and it’s also great. And all of this has been absolutely free. I don’t think he would have been able to afford anything like this if he lived in the US.

Until this happened to our family, we used to bitch a lot about high taxes in Canada. But not any more.

Brian Bagent | July 8th, 2009 at 4:27 pm

Erik,

“Free” health care is already available for those that cannot afford it. You mention longevity and low infant mortality as successful outcomes of socialized medicine. Those two things could be pared down significantly if the demographic groups that suffer them would actually avail themselves of the health care and education already available. Universal health care is NOT going to change the way these people live, and it is not going to change their level of education or their motivation to stay healthy.

The line of demarcation for those that obtain health care and those that don’t in this country is largely along the lines of level of education. It is not exclusively true, but nearly so.

I’ll relate an anecdote for you. I’m a nurse at a small country hospital, and one of our employees recently had twins. She is employed full-time, and she is not married. She is living with a fellow that apparently has no interest in marrying her (not that that’s of any particular moment), yet she took fertility pills to enhance the probability that she would conceive. She did get pregnant with triplets, lost one of them during pregnancy, and successfully delivered twins. She could buy insurance through the hospital, but chooses not to. Instead, she got Medicaid for the children. She could cover herself and children for about $150 a month. Under this plan (it’s the one I have), if she uses a hospital within our corporate umbrella, her hospital stays are covered at 100%, and the only thing she has to pay for is the doctor, which is covered at 80/20. Many doctors waive or heavily discount services for other health care workers. All doctors will work out payment plans if you cannot afford the whole bill all at once.

Why should I be forced, at the point of a gun, to pay for what she is doing?

Kevin | July 8th, 2009 at 4:58 pm

Erik,

Why are liberals not worried about the government controlling anything? I mean they have done a bang-up jobs with the things they should control. The government should control the border, but it seems they don’t do that well. How about FEMA? Does anyone want the same people running FEMA, running health care? How about the DMV, the model of efficiency? Anyone who believes that a government agency injected into any enterprise is going to make it more cost effective, is bound to buy some beach front property in Arizona. Heck, President Obama doesn’t really believe the words coming out of his mouth…we know his Vice President doesn’t.

Dee | July 10th, 2009 at 4:02 pm

I think we forget the complexities of this so-called “free” system being propped as a defense. It’s true. If you make such little income, you qualify for some services: immunizations, free and reduced lunch subsidies, welfare assistance. But to qualify you have to fall well within a limited income range. The fact is, you can still be plenty poor and fall outside the range. I had a friend lament to me that she couldn’t “afford” more because what little she would make at the job would be eaten up by her toddler’s medical care needs, not to mention gasoline and added child care expense to boot. On top of that, having such limited income negatively impacts the access to preventative services or even healthier lifestyle practices that would combat the problem for real.

People are critical of government intervention. If it’s the wrong kind of intervention, by all means, stay critical. But quit pretending as if the free market has really satisfied its promise of competition and low prices. It’s as if we keep giving big pharmaceutical companies and insurance companies second chances and third chances and fourth chances, expecting them to open up access. The industries make a ton of money off of either overtreating a condition (if you have the money for it) or denying care at the onset.

We get mad at people making some undue choices, like that nurse talked about above. Okay. But hey, I’m a relatively healthy guy with chronic conditions that I flat out can’t treat. No money. No access. That’s the problem!

Tom | July 10th, 2009 at 7:39 pm

Clarissa, I’m glad to hear that your father is receiving excellent care and is doing well. However, any close look at the Canadian health care system reveals a lot of weaknesses, which explains the number of Canadians who come to the U.S. for treatment every year. I’d also submit that it isn’t “free” at all — someone is paying for it.

Dee, I agree with a lot of what you say. Costs have to come down, and adequate health care has to be available. But the direction Obama and the Democrats would take would just make things worse and much more expensive. The Republicans don’t have any better ideas, of course. Seems to me we ought to hold off until we come up with something that’s reasonable and broadly supported, instead of trying to ram partisan legislation throught Congress this year.

Harvey | July 10th, 2009 at 9:53 pm

But Tom, “its an emergency!” At least that the tact that Obama is taking with healthcare and every other program he’s proposed. So far our dumb and dumber Congress has fallen for it every time.

Brian | July 13th, 2009 at 2:26 am

A great example of the shortcomings of Canada’s health care system, and what we’ll have here: rationing. There are more MRI facilities in Houston, Texas, serving a population of about 5 million, than there are in Canada, serving a population of about 30 million. If you need an MRI for a non-emergent condition in Canada, you are going to wait. And wait. And wait…until the point where your condition finally is emergent.

I know I don’t believe that the free market is perfect, and I suspect that our other libertarian author (Harvey) doesn’t either. However, that doesn’t mean I think that a government plan would be any better. In fact, because of the nature of government, it will be decidedly worse for more people than the current system is. The political class will always get dibs on the best perks, including health care. The rest of us, including many that the poor would see as wealthy, are going to get stuck with a nearly worthless MedicAid-style program for health care.

Life is neither fair nor easy. No government program is going to change that, and is much more likely to make it less fair and less easy for the majority of people.

You mention insurance companies and Big Pharma. Those are bad examples of the quality of the free market. They own congressmen – lock, stock, and barrel; so much so that it is a lamentable joke.

Go to the source. The federal government is far too large, far too powerful. Remove its ability to grant perks. Destroy the patronage system that exists now. Free people will innovate. As long as congressmen are for sale, people will offer to buy them. If the congressmen have nothing to sell, there won’t be a line of people at their doors trying to buy.

Clarissa | July 13th, 2009 at 11:22 am

“Life is neither fair nor easy.”

-For some people it’s very very easy, while for others not so much.

“There are more MRI facilities in Houston, Texas, serving a population of about 5 million, than there are in Canada, serving a population of about 30 million. ”

-Have you ever thought that at least part of the reason might be that American doctors make you undergo tons of needless procedures in order to make money? Many MRI facilities might also testify to the fact that people in Houston, Texas are generally less healthy and that’s why they need more MRI facilities.

You are completely wrong about MRIs in Canada, Brian. I don’t know about some other tests, but this particular one is pretty easy to get. And it doesn’t take all that long.

Harvey | July 13th, 2009 at 11:39 pm

Clarissa,

“Many MRI facilities might also testify to the fact that people in Houston, Texas are generally less healthy and that’s why they need more MRI facilities.”

I know you didn’t mean that as a punch line but it’s such a unique take on the subject it made me laugh!

Brian | July 14th, 2009 at 2:09 am

Have you ever thought that at least part of the reason might be that American doctors make you undergo tons of needless procedures in order to make money? Many MRI facilities might also testify to the fact that people in Houston, Texas are generally less healthy and that’s why they need more MRI facilities.

I suspect that you wouldn’t think those procedures “needless” if you were the one that was ill without an obvious reason.

The sad fact is that in Canada, if you don’t have an emergent reason for getting an MRI, you are going to wait. I tore the cartilege in my knee recently. I took me 3 days to get an MRI appointment. I also have arthritis in my hips. Again, just a few days to get an appointment.

The reason American doctors order these tests is because they can. Without MRI, I would have had to undergo exploratory surgery for a definitive diagnosis. MRI is hell and gone cheaper (and far less risky) than exploratory surgery.

Another reason they order them is to ward off potential lawsuits. It has become due diligence to rule out everything that could possibly be at issue.

MedicAid patients have the same opportunity to get them as I do.

Unless a physician actually owns an MRI facility, he doesn’t make any money by referring his patients to one. Otherwise, the only physicians that make money off of MRI are radiologists.

Apparently, you find the idea of physicians making a good living distateful. I don’t. I know what it takes to get into medical school. I know what it takes to get out of medical school. I know what it takes to get accepted into a residency program, and what it takes to make it through one. I know what it takes to establish a medical practice.

In college, when you were out at parties on Thursday or Friday night, or at football or basketball games, the pre-med students were studying. On Saturday, when you were at the gym playing intramural ball, the pre-med students were studying. When you were living it up after college, the medical students were studying. When you were getting married, starting a family, and trying to get promoted, the residents were studying even more than they did in college or med school, and busy working 70 or 80 hours a week.

You probably enjoy 7 or 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Even at the 42 bed hospital where I work on night shift, it isn’t unusual to call doctors into the wee hours of the morning to have them address some urgent issue.

They can be sued for anything, or nothing at all. They can be sued and lose, even when they’ve done everything right and to the very best of their ability.

And I’d submit to you that if you think things are “very, very easy” for anyone but the Kennedys or Paris Hilton, you suffer delusional thinking. Give up your petty jealousies. You’ll feel better.

This is my 3rd career, and I’ve had the good fortune to rub elbows with a great many wealthy people. I can’t think of a single one that didn’t get where they are by anything other than hard work, including the doctors.

Clarissa | July 15th, 2009 at 9:28 am

It’s hard to have a discussion when people impute some weird ideas to you and then proceed to argue with them.

“Apparently, you find the idea of physicians making a good living distateful.”

-What? When did ever suggest anything like that?

“In college, when you were out at parties on Thursday or Friday night, or at football or basketball games, the pre-med students were studying. ”

-If you don’t know me in person, I wonder how you get to have an opinion on what I was doing on Thursday and Friday nights in college? Actually, when I was an undergrad I worked 4 part-time jobs at any given time in order to take care of my little sister.

“When you were living it up after college, the medical students were studying.”

-After college, I was living it up in one of the most demanding grad schools in the country.

“You probably enjoy 7 or 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep. ”

-The only person who knows how much – or little – I sleep is the man who is sleeping next to me. His namee isn’t Brian, though, the last I checked. If you really want to know, I never get to sleep more than 4 hours during the working week.

Maybe you shouldn’t assume so much about people you’ve never met, my friend.

Like you, I’ve had the misfortune to rub elbows with the kids of some very rich people. It took them no work whatsoever to get their trust funds. I feel no envy towards them though, because they don’t have the same drive to succeed as I do.

Feed Me! Heal Me!

14 Responses to “Feed Me! Heal Me!”

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