Greetings everyone, (see
end of post for action requested and trying to stay productive)
I cannot believe I have not thought of this before, yet then
again it is me and thinking about stuff way too late is pretty standard.
Last week I saw an article where President Trump (excuse me
I must throw up while I type these words) met with the CEOs of leading
healthcare companies. So, I got to thinking.
I have never read nor heard anyone in Congress spending time
with people who are consumers of health care to talk about the Affordable Care
Act or any replacements. There has been much discussion from some corners about
repealing the ACA, however, in all the original machinations of the bill and
subsequent conversations about replacing or coming up with something better I
have not heard any serious engagement with us.
Maybe there were some focus groups and I am sure some
demographic studies were done, yet and I may be wrong, has anyone heard about
Congress or the Executive branch of either the current or previous
administration sitting down with large swaths of the American people and
discuss what the word AFFORDABLE health care really means? Or even what health care means? We, the people
and consumers, are most affected by this legislation and yet; what say we.
I just think it is a wonderful idea for Congress to spend
large amount of time talking to people who must pay insurance premiums,
co-pays, deductibles, lab work, prescriptions, over the counter medication, hospital
bills, and the whole host of products we pay to take care of ourselves. Does
the leadership in our country understand we are at the mercy of the health care
providers and them? A person can get the
impression they like it that way. Not me, though.
And what about insurance companies, you would think they
might be hyper vigilant to monitor costs of health care to help us (their customers)
reduce our and their expenses. A person might think this would be a primary
function of their business model. And yet…..Healthcare costs AND healthcare
premiums continue to rise at significant rates above inflation. Why? We pay
more and get less coverage year after year.
Remember back in the 1930’s two significant pieces of
legislation were passed to protect mutual fund customers. The Mutual Fund
companies were charged with a fiduciary duty to protect their customers. Maybe
our Congress can pass a bill similar for insurance companies to be held
accountable to their customers,,,,, oh wait,,,, I forgot Wall Street just lobbied
away consumer protection for customers of Financial Representatives saying they
needed to act in the best interest of their customer. My God that just sounds
wrong doesn’t it, yet lo and behold…… we have a new sheriff in town and he
loves Wall Street no matter what he says.
Oh well, back to healthcare, which is back to square one for
the American Consumer because Congress, Our President, Insurance companies,
AMA, Pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, and all the companies who make a
profit off health care could give a rat’s back end about the one person that
matters the most: US
So, the next time someone talks about the ACA, Obamacare,
repealing it, or replacing it, ask yourself one question. Why am I not beating
the door down in Washington D. C. to get better representation?
Think about it, you know better than anyone how much this is
eating up your budget, your future, your family, your life. What controls do
you have? Now some will say it is our responsibility to take control since this
is our life. I agree which leads me back to why aren’t we more active in
lobbying Congress ourselves for something better that puts us first. Yes, I and maybe you could spend hours of our
day researching every decision we make, yet how many times are we faced with deciding
in the heat of the moment when you or your family member is sick, in pain,
injured, or being told catastrophic health news. Yes these are the exact
moments when we have to make these decisions, not on a cloudy Saturday
afternoon when we are running errands, cleaning the house, yardwork, chasing
the kids around, running from one event to the next kid’s birthday party, trying
to cook or run into a fast food restaurant to feed everyone, yeah, I can
squeeze in a few hours for a few weeks to maybe figure out which lab companies
are in my insurance network because if I don’t my lab bill is hundreds
more.
Yes, it is my responsibility to take care of myself, but it
is not Congress’ responsibility to take care of big business especially when
there is a conflict between our interests and theirs. It is Congress
responsibility to write legislation that balances the needs of the whole
country and represent us the people.
The Affordable Care Act was mislabeled from the start and
never should have been passed in the first place, yet no one in Congress has
come up with anything better and all the while listening to the medical
industry’s lobby groups on what should be done. I am glad the current replacement is in a secret
room and hopefully it stays there.
I hope that somehow some way Congress really decides to talk
to us, to sit down with many of us and really go through our medical bills one
by one for a whole year or more, looking at what we are being charged for the
bill, what is being charged, do they think we need this much care, our
deductibles, what our insurance companies are doing for us since we pay them
for their services, see what happens to our families when someone is diagnosed
with Cancer or dementia, how much is long term care insurance, and sit with us
when we make decisions for something there is no control. Yeah, tell a loved
one, this is just life and there is nothing we can do. Come on Congress come
sit and talk to us, not in a focus group, but when we are struggling to pay
bills and buy glasses so we can see or come up with another $1000 to pay for
dental work or sit with us while our child is in so much agony you can’t think
straight. Yep sit with us then and then go back and write health care laws.
So here are the links to write your Representative or
Senator:
Of course, when you click on their link they want you to
sign up for their newsletter, yet you have to do a couple of clicks to find how
to contact them. So, check out their webpage if so inclined and write them an
email or send them a real letter and let them know how you feel. If unsure what
to say, please see the paragraph below to give you an idea or tweak it a bit
for your benefit. And the link below is some resource information for writing
your own letter or email. Cheers all
“The best letters are courteous, to the point, and include
specific supporting examples”
Example:
Your name and address (especially if you want a response)
Insert your salutation and Congressperson’s name
I am writing you to express my concern over healthcare
legislation. My understanding is you are working on either replacing or
repealing the Affordable Care Act. This action will affect many of your
constituents including myself. I hope you consider my concerns.
Healthcare is continually consuming more of my time, energy,
budget, and unfortunately negatively affects my overall health. It is hard as a
consumer to navigate the amount of material to make informed healthcare
decisions. Too often I find myself having to make healthcare decisions at
inopportune times such as in the emergency room or when I am in pain or with a
very sick child. Unfortunately, I find myself at the mercy of the situation and
then come home to face medical bills I am not prepared to pay or eat up much of
my savings instantly. And I have noticed the costs to me are increasing year
over year while my insurance premiums continue to increase and provide me less
benefits.
I look to you to represent me and your other constituents in
these matters. Too often I hear that the medical profession is heavily involved
in the discussions and I hear very little what is being done to include the
most important part of healthcare and that is people like myself, the consumers
and patients, of healthcare. At this
point I see no bill that best represents my interest so until you see
legislation that makes the consumer come first I urge you not to vote for any
new proposals. I also urge you when you are in our district that you seek out
many consumers and have deep discussions with the people you represent so you
have a better understanding of what we need.
Sincerely,
(and of course, your signature here)
And in the last sentence, change district to state when
writing your senator. Also, please share this with your family, friends, coworkers
etc so they either create their own letter or send a version of this one so we
can make a difference in this very important part of our lives.
And people say lead by example, I can say to you, I wrote my
representative and both state senators.
Cheers all and have a great evening
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