The evils of capitalism.
Jul. 11th, 2007 11:42 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
starzkiThe weather today couldn't be more beautiful. I've gotten used to walking the dog in the morning in as little clothing as possible while still remaining decent. Today, I almost felt chilly doing so. It was mid-70's, no humidity, and a nice crisp wind from the east. Gorgeous. So it got me thinking on how great I felt.
People who are profit-minded should not be able to overrule the opinion of someone (doctors) who are trying to make the sick and dying healthy again. Money should not dictate treatment. It makes me sick. It's a good thing that I have insurance.
This made me think of how bad my brother was feeling a couple of months ago. Which made me think of the new documentary Sicko that I might try to catch in a couple of weeks. It's hilariously ironic that my brother, as conservative/Republican and a person can be, would think that anything Michael Moore said had any validity. But, you see, my brother is $200,000 in debt because he was without health insurance and he has had surgery and multiple overnight hospital visits in the last 9 months. He was unlucky enough to get sick six months after my parents' insurance stopped covering him and didn't have a job with health benefits. But he had a job, and was therefore not indigent.
It's a case of really bad timing. I don't think the punishment for that should be a lifetime of debt.
I don't understand how insurance companies are allowed to play with people's health (and ultimately their lives) in order to turn a profit. We don't have people pay for police or fire department services or public schooling because all of these things help individual communities, areas, and society as a whole. I believe health care should and does fall under this same category.
I know I'm biased because of my brother. But I also spent a summer working as an intern for a lawyer who made it his business to sue insurance companies for refusing coverage. When I was there, we were dealing with a case of a man who was severely depressed and required hospitalization. Despite doctors' opinions that the man was still a danger to himself, an insurance executive decided he was better and refused further money for treatment. His family couldn't pay, so he went home and promptly committed suicide. Now, I wonder if that executive thinks it would have been more cost effective to shell out a couple thousand more dollars versus the multi-million dollar settlement the insurance company eventually paid to that poor man's family. Bastard.
It's a case of really bad timing. I don't think the punishment for that should be a lifetime of debt.
I don't understand how insurance companies are allowed to play with people's health (and ultimately their lives) in order to turn a profit. We don't have people pay for police or fire department services or public schooling because all of these things help individual communities, areas, and society as a whole. I believe health care should and does fall under this same category.
I know I'm biased because of my brother. But I also spent a summer working as an intern for a lawyer who made it his business to sue insurance companies for refusing coverage. When I was there, we were dealing with a case of a man who was severely depressed and required hospitalization. Despite doctors' opinions that the man was still a danger to himself, an insurance executive decided he was better and refused further money for treatment. His family couldn't pay, so he went home and promptly committed suicide. Now, I wonder if that executive thinks it would have been more cost effective to shell out a couple thousand more dollars versus the multi-million dollar settlement the insurance company eventually paid to that poor man's family. Bastard.
People who are profit-minded should not be able to overrule the opinion of someone (doctors) who are trying to make the sick and dying healthy again. Money should not dictate treatment. It makes me sick. It's a good thing that I have insurance.
