I have read a good portion of the Obama health care reform bill. Here are some of the ways the health care plan would've helped my family and I over the years. Please feel free to add ways in which you or your family would've been assisted.
-------------------------------------------------
* Prevention education would show the real dangers of smoking so my father may have quit and I may not have started.* My father would've had a disease control plan rather than being tossed from doctor to doctor with no strategy.
* My father could have purchased medications from overseas at a far lower cost (cancer medicines are some of the most expensive in the world) rather than hoarding medicine in a cabinet for his worst pain and episodes, or rejecting treatment altogether, making his last moments more painful than ever.
* My father would not have racked up tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills due to rejected coverage based on clauses, technicalities, and "preexisting conditions."
* My mother would not still be trying to pay off my father's medical bills and her own (she is now declaring bankruptcy after 9 years of paying).
* My family would know whether we were entitled to more insurance money (we will never know since we had no end-of-life discussion).
* My father would have had a will (none was found).
* We wouldn't have had to break into my father's office to search for insurance documents since end-of-life counseling would've provided him with necessary services to organize such documentation and prevent us from being taken advantage of.
* I would probably not have been hurriedly misdiagnosed with cancer and scheduled for chemotherapy, and informed the day before chemo that they screwed up.
* I would not have had a surgeon trying to force me to do a surgery that the Mayo Clinic (second opinion) said was unnecessary, dangerous, and expensive.
* My credit would not be ruined from being unable to pay medical bills for the cases above (including the Mayo second opinion).
* I would potentially have a doctor, one day, treat me with respect, or call to see how I am doing, since there would be accountability.
* My legitimate complaints and concerns would be noted and examined, rather than used against me.
* My doctor wouldn't have been rewarded equally - or received MORE money - for misdiagnosing me with cancer.
* My doctor wouldn't have asked me to lie to get me in the hospital so he could perform an unneeded surgery.
* I would've had a doctor give me some sort of prevention or treatment plan concerning my chronic kidney stones. The best I've ever gotten is, "I ordered you a bunch of tests. Take these pills. If you feel worse, go to the hospital."
* My mother, my brother, and I (and practically everyone I know) wouldn't be prescribed powerful antibiotics if we have the flu.
* My mother would be able to afford insurance today (since she is older, has high blood pressure, and had a recent surgery for a tumor, the cost of real insurance for her would be around $600 a month. She is currently uninsured).
* My mother could get a treatment plan for her high blood pressure and afford medication, rather than skipping doses so she can save the medicine for bad episodes.
* My mother could afford a doctor and treatment plan, rather than going to fly-by-night medical clinics when she has an episode.
* My brother, who smokes, could afford a smoking cessation plan and receive professional help for his addiction.
* My brother would have insurance and be able to seek treatment when he is ill and would be covered in the case of a catastrophic accident or ailment (he is currently uninsured as a independent contractor and cannot afford insurance nor get insured from a reputable company).
* My uncle could have afforded to get treatment for his cancer (he could not and he died at 51).
* My grandfather could have afforded regular treatment for his high blood pressure (he died of a heart attack at 64).
* My other uncle could have grown up with his family, rather than being raised in a state mental institution due to the expense of his medications.
* Yet another uncle could still be alive had he been able to afford alcohol cessation treatment or a mental evaluation (riddled with mental health and alcohol problems, he died in a motorcycle accident when he ran into the back of another vehicle and flew through its back windshield).
