A good time was had by all...

Last week a good time was had by all at a cousin's wedding. (Even getting there was proof that not all of southern Maryland has been gobbled up by developers, probably the one good thing about the economic downturn. The scene above is across from the reception hall, which was surrounded by farms.)

Anyhoo, with the family harmony and all, the only sour note was the food, as the caterer, like too many others, try to appease the "no sodium" crowd. It's a fraud, I tell you, tempting looking parsley potatoes with no salt, then needing to pour salt upon them to attempt to remedy this foul--doesn't quite work. Strangely enough, there's no "no sugar" edict, as folks might riot if there were no wedding cake. This can't be about cutting costs, either, as there were (tall glass) salt and pepper shakers on each table. Concern about health at a wedding (which is only one meal) always seems suspicious to me...

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I finally got the seasonal flu shot from a local MinuteClinic at a 24-hour CVS, which was quick and convenient enough. As good as such a clinic is for small concerns, like flu shots, their existence cannot be summoned as a good way to provide health care access for everyone, because of the inherent shortcomings of stand-alone clinics. People who want to deflect attention away from health care reform and onto such places as the way to cut health care costs, to paraphrase John McEnroe, cannot be serious.

For instance, I was asked by the nurse practitioner if I were allergic to eggs or chicken, which I am not. I then asked whether people who are allergic to iodine (seafood allergy) can take the shot without problems, and she said that it would be no problem. So far, so good.

However, if you haven't consistently had access to health care, you might not know that you've developed an allergy because you'd have to be tested (mo' money!) if allergy is suspected. And how is allergy confirmed without being previously seen by a medical professional about possible symptoms? What about continuity in health care, is that too much to ask? Continuity is impossible if affordable health care is not available to all Americans.

Sadly, Rep. Alan Grayson's recent quip about the Republican health care "plan," is on point--namely, don't get sick; if you get sick, die off quick. (The ungrammatical ending is mine.)

Sad but true...

What appears to be a group of trees over a hill in the great distance is just a few trees on the other side of a mound--not so substantial after all. Even less substantial is the so-called health insurance that most Americans have, which led to this week's detailed lament on The Baseline Scenario site, You Do Not Have Health Insurance. That's right, unless you're over 65, you do not have health insurance, for any number of reasons, based on the fact that it's employer based and the health insurance market is not regulated enough. The money quote, ..."you can't count on your health insurer being there when you need it."

Michael Hiltzik's recent article in the LA Times, What's so great about private health insurance?" and Matt Miller's op-ed in the Financial Times (!!!), America's healthcare should no longer be tied to jobs," (based on the models of Holland and Switzerland) are additional wake-up calls regarding the state of health care in America; anytime a major financial publication, which are not known for their liberal ideas, is in favor of universal healthcare, it's time for even Republicans to get the memo (or e-mail).

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The truth is that there's been a limited form of universal healthcare in the U.S. for decades, and it's been a raging success. (I'm not speaking of Medicare, thought that has also been a success, for the most part.) It's rare to hear of an American child falling ill to any of the former "childhood diseases," because almost all American children are inoculated against them. That's because regardless of family income, vaccinations are available and are in fact mandatory before entering public school. Thus, while there are regrettably other forms of infant and childhood death and illness that occur (often because of a lack of prenatal care), the diseases that formerly ravaged children (measles, rubella, mumps) before the age of five are no longer a scourge, because we, as a society, decided that everyone was to be protected from these diseases, and expense was to be no object in providing such protection.

Summer, and the living is easy? Summer madness...

It's summertime, and summer weather decided to make a comeback...which may not be so good, as it makes me feel like doing this...



Nonetheless, a relative has to interact with the health-industrial complex tomorrow, so along I go. I only hope I can tune out the incessant noise from cable channels, to avoid nausea from hearing their negative spin on healthcare reform while in the waiting room, with their sudden concern about the budget deficit, an invisible concern during the Bush years.

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Former CIGNA public relations person, now health insurance industry whistleblower, Wendell Potter, who recently testified before Congress, is sharing his views on the reforms needed now. As he relates,

..."remember this: whenever you hear a politician or pundit use the term "government-run health care" and warn that the creation of a public health insurance option that would compete with private insurers (or heaven forbid, a single payer system like the one Canada has) will "lead us down the path to socialism," know that the original source of the soundbite most likely was some flak like I used to be."

Ouch.

In case you wonder how other industrialized nations have universal healthcare coverage to their citizens and residents, and why, the website of Germany's Ministry of Health and Social Matters mentions this basic reality as a motivation..."a health care system is not a "normal" market." Think about that fact anytime someone raves/lies/spins about the Democratic healthcare reform proposal as taking away choice (as though the insurance company bureaucrats aren't already doing that).

Once more to Potter--he's none too fond of one type of health care insurance "plan" dear to conservatives' hearts, Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). He mentioned that while employed at CIGNA, the company forced employees to switch from HMOs and PPOs and into high-deductible plans (euphemistically called "consumer-driven plans"), and that other companies are following this awful trend of forcing employees into these plans (almost rhymes with "scams").

Lastly, all the people smugly crowing about how wonderful their current health insurance plans are should know about all the other folk, who previously also believed that they had solid health insurance before they decided to use it, who unfortunately found out about the nasty practice of "rescission," when an insurance company decides, retroactively, that you are no longer covered for treatment! (Info from the Baseline Scenario site).

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Just thinking about this stupidity makes me upset. Time to chill out to the ultimate summer classic from Kool and the Gang, aptly named Summer Madness.

Watershed moment?

I thought I might faint while participating in the Sunday morning pastime of watching the public affairs programs, Meet the Press and such, after seeing an ad from the SEIU in favor of promoting healthcare reform which was co-sponsored by such diverse organizations as PhRMA and the AMA. Apparently, President Obama's not the only one demonstrating a willingness to reach across the aisle to get things done.

The ad, To Help the Economy, Fix Health Care.



Wonders never cease!