Thoughts on Health Care Reform

This is excerpted form a letter I sent to my elected representatives in Washington. Try writing to them. You'll probably get back some interesting letters that explain their points of view. It is educational. Much more so than listening to campaign talks!

It's also interesting to see how these officials, or the aides, sometimes totally miss a point I was trying to make. I then try to be more succinct in the future.

My new medical insurance company (we get a new one at least every two years) sent out an addendum changing their policy based on the recent health care reform act. Here are some of the things they said had to be changed in their policy:

• There are no longer lifetime limits on coverage.
• The insurance company can no longer deny coverage because of preexisting conditions.
• Coverage cannot be canceled at the whim of the company, but must have a basis in fraud or intentional misrepresentation.
• Dependents can be covered on a parent's policy for a longer time than was previously allowed.
• Annual limits to coverage no longer apply.
• Children can be covered even though they are diabetic or have other chronic conditions.
• Preventive care has no deductible or copay.
• Emergency room benefits while I am traveling are covered as "in network".

Republicans say they want to repeal all of these benefits, and all the other health care reform act provisions. Republicans must be strongly in favor of a free market controlled by businesses that are too big to fail, and whose morality and conscience does not go beyond their own bottom lines. I see nothing in these changes, or any of the others that have been newsworthy, that I want repealed.

Some Republicans have already proclaimed defeat of this repeal effort, but press on with the vote all the same. They claim "symbolic value". We promised it, so we have to do it. No: they promised to repeal health care reform, not just vote on it. There were some candidates for whom I did not vote simply because they promised that repeal. I remembered in November. Now I am taking notes for next November and every little election in between.

I am on salary, but I still have to account for 40 hours of work each week. Being on salary allows me the privilege to work more hours without messing up my company's bookkeeping. It works for us.

In spite of all the fringe benefits of insurance, retirement, office space, staff, travel, housing, and so forth, I guess our Nation's representatives are still on "salary" so to speak. As your employer, I think spending the time of 535 elected representatives on something "symbolic" that does not actually fulfill campaign promises is a waste of my money. I'll be sure to put it into the personnel files of any Republicans who should be representing me.

At minimum wage, and say 20 hours of debates and votes, that's only $63,075. Divide that by 300 million people and we won't even notice the expense, even if you add in the staff, publication, storage, and maintenance of the Record, and even media time wasted on a futile "symbolic" vote, and the cost is minimal. Just make sure you don't try to count those 20 hours as a part of your base required time on the job. Keep the symbolic gestures to your own time.

It's also been said that Republicans, knowing that a complete repeal of health care reform would not pass a full vote, will now try to cut away and refuse funding for whatever they can get away with. So, would you vote to allow my medical insurance company to deny coverage to my daughter who has Spina Bifida because even on the day she was born, that was a "preexisting condition"?

Would you prefer to allow insurance companies to "pull the plug" on Grandma because her expenses reached some arbitrary limit? Or would you consider it reasonable to allow her to pre-plan end of life by using medical powers of attorney and advanced directives, or leave it to the will of insurance and plan limits? I hope you lighten up the laws on bankruptcy due to medical expenses!

I expect you to make decisions based on what you feel is best for America. You are supposed to see "the big picture" better than the rest of us. In order to see that big picture a little better, make it a priority to get rid of the retirement and medical plans you now have as an elected official, and buy into the plan my employer has. Try Social Security on for size, and try living for 30 years on a 401(k).