i do not pretend to be completely educated on the following subject. i admit that i could be wrong. however, that being said, i do strongly believe that my thoughts are not far off from what i've come to learn and know of Jesus.
i recently watched "sicko", the documentary on healthcare in america by michael moore. now, i'm sure some of you might be tempted to stop reading at the mention of his name. i know that he definitely has an agenda in his films, he tends to go over the top, and presents one side of the story, but i also believe that there is truth in what he says. being pregnant myself and having a 2 year old, healthcare is an important issue to me. so, as i watched how pregnant women in france get a MINIMUM of 6 months PAID maternity leave, no matter their jobs, i was slightly jealous. and after seeing how the french government issues people to come over postpartum to help you with whatever you need help with...twice a week...and yes, it's free...i was ready to pack our bags!! (i can see some people now saying..."it's not really free, you pay for it in taxes"...i'll get to that later.) so, obviously, that was very appealing to me. but what affected me even more was hearing the stories of americans who have been bitten by the healthcare system...those who were "fortunate" enough to only go bankrupt trying to fight off sickness, and those who couldn't pay at all and ended up dying because they had no treatment available to them. i didn't understand, after watching the film, how we could possibly think that national healthcare would be a bad idea. i'm not completely naive. i know that there are problems with such a system. nothing works as smoothly as we'd like to believe. however, if national healthcare has worked in countries like england and france for so many years, and worked so well that there would be a revolution in england were the prime minister to take it away, why are we afraid of trying it america?
i think the answer comes down to the fact that we are an individualistic society. it's every "man" for himself in america. it's the land of opportunity, but only if you, the individual, have the drive, determination, and often times, the right color skin and economic status, to make something of yourself. and if you've had the privilege of accomplishing your goals, you don't want anyone to take that away from you. you worked for it...you earned it...it's yours. somehow, christianity has become tangled up in this web of "the american way of life"...so much so that it's hard to distinguish between the two.
so obviously we're afraid of an idea (a SOCIALIST idea) that means we aren't the ones in charge of what we get. those of us who can "afford" to pay an outrageous amount of money every month for healthcare don't want to give up the "privileges" that lends us. we can even fall into the trap of thinking, "i have healthcare. i have options. the healthcare problem doesn't affect me." and yet it does. not because they tell us in the media that even those with healthcare don't have all they think they have. it affects us because it affects the poor among us. we are all God's children and when there are those among us who cannot afford what we can, how can we think that's not our problem? it is our problem, especially those of us who claim to be christian. we cannot separate ourselves from the hurting, the poor, the disenfranchised, the widows, the sick, the dying. if we think that we can, we are sorely mistaken. the gospel of Christ isn't an individualistic gospel. (which, i think, opens a whole other can of worms.) if there is a chance for the government that we are a part of to "give equality to all" in terms of healthcare...one of the most basic needs of life...shouldn't we take it? shouldn't we support it? sure, it might mean that we pay more taxes (and it might not). it might mean that we have to wait a little bit longer at the doctor's office (and it might not). it might mean that we don't get to choose what doctor we see or what hospital we go to (and it might not!). but isn't all of that worth it to be able to give the same options to those who have nothing? why do we think we should have "the best"? especially when others have nothing?
i'm still trying to muddle through all of the frustrations and irritations that have built up in my mind. it's a little difficult to even begin to talk about this because i have so much flying around in there. i guess you could technically call my a socialist, but what's so wrong with that? didn't the church in acts share EVERYTHING? and didn't those who refused to live that way fall down dead? was that just a cultural thing? i don't think so. i'm no bible scholar, but i don't think so. i think it was the way that they cared for one another. could we do that today? would we be willing to do that today? as a member of the body of Christ, i sure hope so.
well, i am slightly a pessimist, so i'd have to say that, honestly, i don't know that national healthcare will ever happen in america...unfortunately. there's way too much politics and money (and i would like to insert "greed" and "evil") wrapped up in the health insurance companies today. but that doesn't deter me from fighting for change. i don't think that should deter any of us from petitioning the government of the country we live in to have the most elementary thoughts about humanity. i mean, for crying out loud, public education is free! not to devalue education because i think it is extremely important, but come on...what the government is saying to us is that educating people is more important than actually keeping them alive. and yet, education in america isn't a sign of socialism for some reason. i just don't get it.
i'd love to hear your thoughts on this. i think it is an important thing we should be thinking and deliberating over. i think a lot of us know someone who has been directly affected by the healthcare system...someone who has gone bankrupt trying to pay for the debt they've accrued simply by being sick. and even if we don't personally know someone, i think we should still be shocked into rethinking by the simple hearing of such stories.
i'll end with this question...would you be willing to give up some of the things you have grown accustomed to believe are "luxuries" so that someone else could have their basic needs of life met? it's not an easy question but i think it's a necessary one.
7 comments:
Well said. It's a point I've been trying to make for a while. Unfortunately I often am only met with a ridiculous fear of "America becoming socialist." Thanks for sharing.
I've always had a one-sided view because I have a friend from Canada who was screwed by the national healthcare system. He had stories of people who needed life-saving MRIs and were put on 18-month waiting lists, etc - they didn't have the OPTION of bankruptcy for immediate care - they had to wait, no matter how dire their health conditions. That's all I can think about when I hear of "national health care."
I like the points you've made here - thanks for making me think about the other side. Very well-written.
I think there are good points on both sides, however, working in healthcare I see mainly one side. I see families come TO America from Canada/England for treatment after being placed on waiting lists. I think it is outrageous that people die waiting for treatment and have to wait months for surgery to have cancer removed. Would you want to wait months knowing you had cancer in your body? So, yes, I suppose I am looking out for my family when I say that I want to choose my doctor and facility to be treated in. I also believe that with national healthcare there will be government regulated procedures and that will really affect the care we get and will prevent us from deciding, along with our physician, what care is best for us.
I know that there are problems with our healthcare now, and you do make really good points, but like you said, there are problems with both.
In response to comments by 'anonymous', if the current system is not working, don't you think it's time we tried something different? We'll never know how things could be better if we never try. I work in the healthcare field as well, and see numerous patients who cannot afford their medications or who quit seeking treatment because they no longer have health insurance.
No, I wouldn't want to wait months to find out that I have cancer, but there are people now who do have to wait. Christ has called us to live a life of sacrifice, to take up the cross and follow Him.
Somehow I don't think that Christ would look at the sick and dying who have no help and say, "Sorry. Wish I could help." and walk away.
Stephanie
I am proud of you for clearly expressing your feeling about this issue. Remember that they are feelings and big decisions must not be based on feelings alone. Find out more about this issue and become better informed. If you would like to get an idea about government run health care, look at veterans health care.
Of course I am allows proud of you.
Your Dad
I also was shocked by that film. I do think we need reform and I do think we can learn a lot from other systems. We dont have to mimic them completely and honestly we cant. this is a big change and it is going to take time to get it right. But as someone who works for government health care. What the government is offering as far as primary health is good (at least here in Wyandotte County Kansas. I believe that taking preventitive measures by screening patients and giving free immunizations has helped many poor people and even non citizens of the US!
I get sad when we have to refer someone and there is little we can offer as far as programs to assist with finaces and such, but those cases have been rare; in my limited field. MOst of the time we can refer someone to a low cost option or to a program that will help pay for expenses.
I hope that the government can take control from the insurance companies and drug companies to reform hospitals and clinics across america. KEEP FIGHTING Steph!
Okay, time for new post. Although I can't talk, I guess. :)
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