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For Young Americans, Health Care Is Our Fight

Posted by: Erica Williams 8/6/2009 | 612 Views

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CNN's poll released yesterday shows a striking generational divide over support of Obama's health care plan, with the reform being significantly more popular among young people than among adults over the age of 50. Nevertheless, every day I try new responses to those that ignorantly assume I don't care about health care reform because I'm under 30 and supposedly invincible.

I could tell them that health care reform is my fight because my partner, 25 years old, is an entrepreneur, consultant, and all around brilliant guy who cares more about professional fulfillment than financial gain and has thus been without insurance for 3 years. I've cried myself to sleep many a night over his lack of coverage, terrified that at any moment, an illness or accident could push us into financial ruin in the beginning stages of our life together.

I could tell them that health care reform is my fight because 60% of my friends (yes, I did the math...) have lost their jobs in the past 6 months and don't go to the doctor. Or that my godmother died of cancer with health insurance that wouldn't cover her treatment.

I could say that a young friend of mine is afraid to get a test that would tell whether or not he has a congenital heart disease because he is worried that he will forevermore have a pre-existing condition.

I could also tell you that in addition to being young, I'm a woman of color and that for my demographic in particular, health care is a life or death issue.

And all of those reasons would be true. But for my generation, health care reform is more than a personal story or experience: it is a moral and humanitarian mandate.

Surprisingly enough, the generation that many believe to be the most egotistical and narcissistic, is actually one of the few voices in the health care debate willing to talk about reform as a justice issue and one that impacts us all as Americans. It was our cry that a public option be an essential part of any plan not because we were unaware of political realities or because it was a catchy campaign buzzword, but because we refuse to leave anyone behind or compromise on progress.

We use general terms like affordability, access, and quality of care rather than haggle over the nuances of co-ops not because we're ignorant of the debate or haven't read the latest Ezra Klein post, but because we think it important that someone remind America of the principles on which reform must be based so that in the end, our values aren't lost in the sea of watered down and overly negotiated technicalities.

No one would ever assume that because the homeless aren't rallying and protesting in every congressional district that they don't care about affordable housing. Instead, we realize the challenges of building political power in a base that is historically difficult to organize. The same is true for young Americans, who make up 1/3 of the uninsured population. Our new methods of organizing are gaining momentum - we are now, politically coming of age, after an election that galvanized millions of voters new to the world of politics and learning to translate that energy and passion into post-election, issue-based, offline power. And that transition will take time.

But never let it be said that our generation "doesn't care." Millenials aren't classified as a unique demographic because of our age. While we happen to be young for the time being, our identity isn't based on trite youthful cliché's and coming of age milestones. It is based on a worldview shaped by war, Bush, and decades of selfish, elitist policy that has left us a nation of startling disparities and inequalities. This is the legacy that we were handed by our parents - and the health care debate is one of our first opportunities to turn that around. Health care reform isn't just my fight, it's our fight, and young people are on the front lines.

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18 comments

This will be the most important issue of this generation. We cannot miss our opportunity to make change.

Ginger 8/10/2009 | reply
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Health Care is everyone's fight, either we address it now or when we cross the path of sickness or terminal illness personally. Believe it or not we are all paying the price of the un/underinsured through various costs such as; RX costs, clinic visits and diagnostic tests. If we are able reform health care and reduce the effects of "out of control rising costs", then I'm all for reform. (It can't get any worse than what we've already been transformed into ie.,(Reaganomics).

Mojolove (Monica Jo Love) 8/9/2009 | reply
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And let's not forget the private practices owned by doctors where they talk you into getting unnecessary and expensive procedures, just to make a buck...

8/8/2009 | reply
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According to the scoring of CBO on the prevention & wellness program, all fitness centers around the world should close down immediately and all media have to end reporting health tips about prevention.

Immune System & Levee System :

All of the excellent health systems seem to have one thing in common, a expansive, systematic preventative program requiring immense investments. I think a prevention system works as a 'levee' built against flood by the government, similarly, it also needs non-profit investments from the government 'on a large scale'.

This might offer us the clue of why all of the free states have public insurance policy in place.

It won't be easy to draw some specific numbers on the economic effect of the 'levee' , but the flood measure lacking a stable 'levee' would be a house on sand, as the too high level of 'preventable' chronic diseases in America shows.

At present, about 75 percent of each health dollar goes to treating chronic conditions.

When tests reveal patients are at risk of a chronic disease, physicians have no benefit to help them make necessary changes to stay healthy. Rather, the system today is designed around treating patients once they become sick.

If current health care system could shift a small percentage of total spending into programs that help prevent people from getting sick in the first place, in combination with the KEY 'pay for OUTCOME' reimbursement reform based on IT SYSTEM, it would dramatically reduce the overall cost of care.

Thankfully, the health care reform bill currently before Congress makes several key investments in preventive care, and those pieces of the PUBLIC OPTION must be maintained.

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.", said Benjamin Franklin , and 'Early Detection' goes beyond monetary value as we see the recent case.

hsr0601 8/8/2009 | reply
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-Scare tactics from verbal to physical-

1. 'Takeover and Rationing Cliche' lost ground, as this spoiled menu did the opposite for too long.

Like freedom of press, Public Well-being as a right, a nation took root in every free nation as a natural part of life.

The debate about it is most likely to puzzle people all around the free states. And with so many people uninsured

or underinsured, the humanitarian foreign aid ahead will confuse them, too.

2. Arbitrary Market Theory, Not Fair Market Theory, should not apply to a fundamental human right.

This last spring, due to the demand decrease, the peak fuel price came down below $40 per barrel, though, the

'Similar' insurance premiums keep on rising, accordingly the inaction could bankrupt family, business, and

government 'BEYOND this recession' , as all across the spectrum agree.

Basically, as demand diminish, the price tends to reflect it, nonetheless, the insurers that formed a cartel through

consolidation have replenished the loss by exercising inhumane malpractices involving denying, capping, rapid

premium increase and the like. And this runaway premium ended up in the collapse of middle

class ranging from finance to mental health, alongside the peak fuel price and fast-growing mortgage rate, as all of

us know.

They could be cited as an objective for anti-trust or anti-corruption.

3. The Deficit-sensitive groups have a distinctive common ground, they all have a Deficit-driven background out of

question. Therefore, I'd say they have nothing to say about deficit unless they come up with a legitimate plan.

hsr0601 8/8/2009 | reply
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Obama's gonna kill Grandma?

See:

http://notionscapital.wordpress.com/2009/08/07/obama-wants-to-kill-your-grandma/

Mike Licht 8/7/2009 | reply
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Feel free to get me on errors, I literally typed this up after reading this post. Some details are missing (more than likely). 'Preciate you opening the table for discussion as always EW.

8/7/2009 | reply
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Part 1

I'm all for reform but based on the crap they've tried to pass thus far, they may end up making things worse rather than better. By no means am I advocating that healthcare is a human right. I believe that everyone, who is able, should be responsible for the choices they’ve made especially regarding their well-being. That being said I’m going to attempt to explain how health insurance works before tackling the Public and Private solutions (Took me all day to write this up. It is a bit long, so bear with me….):

We know the basics of what insurance is. Whether it is for your car/home/health/etc. it is coverage “in case” something bad happens. Obtaining coverage, you must go through a screening in order for the insurance investor (lets be real, they are investing that nothing will happen to you while you are paying them, that’s how businesses make money). Your rate is determined by “pre-existing” factors. For cars: your driving history, tickets, accidents, etc. For homes: environmental factors (flood, earthquakes, etc), condition of home, etc. For health: lifestyle habits (smoking, eating, drinking), family history, etc. Let’s be clear, you can be denied access to coverage for any type of insurance if you present that you will cost the investor. You can be denied auto insurance. You can be denied home insurance.

8/7/2009 | reply
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- Ridiculous! Even if you make the "Right" choice's & are responsible as you say...None of us live in a Bubble ....As the population get's Poorer infectious Disease WILL Spread hence more need for preventive Medicine and routine Medical visits....Believe me Folks we are all 1 Illness from FINANCiAL Ruin! Especially those of us with Jobs & INSURANCE!
  
  MywayNYC 8/10/2009 | reply
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- You obviously didn't read all parts....sigh.
  
  That's why its called insurance. It's for "just in case" situations. Unexpected things happen. Injuries, illness, etc.
  
  What do you think car insurance's for?! When something bad happens to your car, they come in to take care of you by offering rentals, covering damage, etc. But only when something happens.
  
  That's what it was intended for...
  
  8/10/2009 | reply
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- True it is But....Have you ever had to file a claim? HAVE YOU EVER HAD TO GET TREATMENT FOR A SICK FAMILY MEMBER? I CAN ASSURE you a very sad reality check ! THE MAJOR CAUSE FOR MOST BANKRUPTCIES in America is due health care cost...FROM INSURED Individuals!
  
  MywayNYC 8/11/2009 | reply
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Part 2

You can be denied life insurance. You can be denied health insurance. That being said if you ARE covered, you are essentially in a pool with other individuals being covered. The cost you pay for covered is based on the information you’ve given plus the cost of the goods and services required for keeping you healthy. When someone in your pool becomes sick, the cost for covering that person is spread amongst the other members of the pool. There are ways to drive costs down, and all it takes is volunteering to adjust your lifestyle by living healthier. That means: exercise, eating habits, smoking, drinking, sexual habits, etc would have to lean towards improving your personal health. If we each take a little more care in how we take care of OURSELVES and instill those habits into our children, prices are more than likely to drop. There are other factors (prescription costs, inflation, etc), but I’ll try to cover them ahead.

We do have a public (Government) plan in place. Medicare and Medicaid. "The Truth" hit it on the head. Medicaid and Medicare have its shortcomings. There are cases of the government rationing benefits in order to save money but at the cost of your health. It should not be that way. Imagine cases like this on a national scale and you can see why the opponents to the Healthcare Bill are worried. (Hint: it isn’t about color of the skin of our President) For this government system to work, EVERYONE who works and collects a paycheck has to pay into the system (which you already do for Medicaid, Medicare & Social Security by the way and are set to increase for everyone for the program to work. No taxes on the middle class my ass…). Similar to how the insurance system works, everyone is a part of the pool.

8/7/2009 | reply
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Part 3

This program should work as a “safety net” for the public. It should cover those people who could not be covered by the private system, which it does, but it LIMITS COVERAGE to keep costs down. The more people in the pool needing coverage, the more costly it is to cover them, which means the more money will be needed to cover the people needing help. A board looks at your case and determines if you should have that operation. They don’t care if you pay them back, but they care if this operation will affect the national deficit. Another credible reason why opposition to the Government plan fears it: increasing the deficit. Ways to keep the costs down are similar to the private option. Changing your personal lifestyle is the first step. The difference is, the Government can “force” you to change your habits by influencing you. The cigarette and sugar taxes aren’t just for revenue people. It is just the beginning of controlling lifestyle habits through taxation. Also, it is one of the ways that the middle and poor classes will be affected. The second, of which we covered earlier, is by limiting coverage. (You should wonder why some hospitals don’t accept Medicaid as a form of coverage: it doesn’t cover costly procedures)

The private plans are your “evil” insurance companies. Let’s get this straight; businesses are in it for making profit. Similar to the Government plan, the private companies are trying to save money anyway they can by rationing coverage (yes, we already have a system where coverage is rationed…lets be real Republicans). A board looks at your case and determines if you should have that operation. They look at the type of career you have and determine if you have the ability to pay them back if the procedure has been approved.

8/7/2009 | reply
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- I Actually agree with you here for the most part, however being Middle class as well my household income will not Qualify for either so say God forbid someone in my family has a longterm illness we cannot simply opt into Medicaid or Medicare so the qualifier must change or we should be given the option to use the government plan which may provide better coverage in most cases ,Yes with private coverage we can SEEK better coverage but should you receive treatment and the insurance company Deny your claim Financial ruin awaits !
  
  MywayNYC 8/11/2009 | reply
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Part 4

(I’m going to get chewed out for this next one) The business has a right to deny coverage because they are investing in you NOT to get sick. The empathic part of me understands the anger towards the private market because a lot of the problems stem from greed, plain and simple. The bad kind. (There is such thing as good greed) This is where decisions are made to make the company profit, but at the cost the service it supplies to its customers. Companies should follow suit as we should as individuals, stated in our Bill of Rights and our Constitution: you have the freedom to do whatever you like, with the exception that it does not infringe upon the welfare of others.

Washington has recently pulled the public option from their draft of the Healthcare Bill. The Democrats control all three branches of government and have removed the public option the day before our President said he’d sign what ever they bring him a week ago. The Republicans were not responsible for the defeat of the Healthcare Bill back in 1994, despite what the President said last night. The people in this country read the bill the Democrats (they ran ALL three branches of Government in 1994) attempted to pass then and called to demand that it doesn’t pass and you should know what’s in the bill right here and right now in 2009. Democratic Senators have said in the last few weeks that they don’t even know what’s in this bill because it’s too confusing. You think this is about helping you? You aren’t worried of the future implications?

We need real discussion before passage of ANY bill of this magnitude. Plowing forward and making “bold” moves can shackle future generations to a possible mistake that we know NOTHING about because our leaders know less about it than we do.

8/7/2009 | reply
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- Quit Naive, In America we have the legislature which has the responsibilty and right to vote on any and all necessary changes. How much Steele and his boys @ the insurance company paying you to monitor sites like this & write that non sense?
  
  MywayNYC 8/11/2009 | reply
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I support this if u get sick with a preexisting condition they wont cover u. Especially with illness like cancer. My bf has terminal cancer. She is only 30... and sometimes I feel like its all about money, the way they treat u when u on medicad and not encouraging you to do more intense follow up tests after surgery and chemo in an effort to reduce their costs.You really have to be so proactive.

Its a hell to be poor and to be sick. And if u were rich before the illness that changes significantly when a loved one has a long-term illness your family ends up in so much debt.

The Truth 8/7/2009 | reply
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- Exactly my point to Gilber Joseph, They WILL find a way to NOT cover it...Just Ask President Obama they did it to his mother!
  
  MywayNYC 8/11/2009 | reply
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