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by Mona Shaw
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I am
sincerely happy for those who can now have cheaper insurance through the
Affordable Care Act (ACA/Obamacare). I am
happy for those younger-than-26 adults who are now covered on their
parents’ insurance. I am happiest for
those who now qualify for Medicaid who had nothing before.
But I cannot
celebrate this bill. It still leaves too
many without affordable care. Obamacare (or
the ACA) has a cynical and, for many, a cruel name. The ACA does NOT provide affordable care. It doesn’t provide care at all. It only provides (and only for some)
affordable insurance. It does not
guarantee care for anyone. Care is still
dependent on how much insurance someone can afford and how much they can pay
out of pocket before they reach very high deductibles. People who cannot afford it will still be
denied care.
People will
still avoid going to the doctor to avoid the high cost of a doctor’s
visit. People will still use Emergency
Rooms when they become seriously ill because they could not afford that visit
or any preventative or well care. (While
insurance companies are now required to OFFER coverage for these. Only the very affluent can afford the
policies that include this coverage.)
Also, if a
patient has an outstanding bill or can’t afford the co-payment, patients can
still be refused treatment, even if they have insurance. I.e. a patient can still be denied chemo by a
hospital if they can’t pay an outstanding bill not covered by insurance.
Hundreds,
probably thousands, will die this coming year still because they can’t afford
care. To tell these people “Obamacare is
a start” will be cold comfort to those planning a loved one’s funeral. The people who will die matter. It is immoral and heinous to regard them as
collateral damage in a system that still only works for some. They matter as human beings as much as the
more affluent who won’t die. Most of
them will be low-income people who work hard for a living.
I can’t
celebrate until I live in a nation where not ONE person is denied the
healthcare they need to survive. I don’t
know how anyone can. Demand Single Payer.
