This whole health care debate seems to come down to doing anything is an intrusion of big government versus doing something before everybody goes broke on health care and dies.
Proponents of the second cite the 40-some million without health insurance and act as if each and every one of the 40-some million is facing a dire health crisis and will die without federal government intervention. Never mind that some of 40-some million think they are healthy enough or are rich enough that they don't want to pay for health insurance.
Some proponents are pushing the argument that federal health insurance is not needed if only people would be responsible and lead healthy lives. This argument is so simplistic that it borders on the irresponsible.
Granted, there are far too many people that make irresponsible choices from smoking to eating far too many junk foods. However, many people also draw a short straw on health through situations beyond their control.
Let's start with the personal. My wife and I try to eat sensibly, exercise frequently, and get regular dental and medical checkups. Ah, dental checkups! Guess what we both have in our mouths. Amalgam!
A mix of mercury and silver. Mercury is a poisonous metal. But amalgam was the filling of choice by dentists for decades. Even those of us who brushed our teeth regularly before the widespread use of fluoridated water still got cavities.
How much of that mercury from our teeth is leaching out into our bodies and causing who knows what problems? Maybe none, maybe lots! We don't really know what the personal result will be.
My wife has had cancer twice. This particular cancer has no known cause from personal life choices. My wife suspects that it was caused by chemicals in the environment - air borne chemicals, chemicals leaching from packaging, or contaminants in tap water. We don't know and we have little control over what large corporations or even local companies spew into the air and water or use in their processes. Many people can tolerate these contaminants; others have severe health consequences long after the exposure to these contaminants.
I have a heart murmur. For the most part this is inconsequential. I can do many physical activities without problem.
This is a good point to make an aside on our dependence on fallible human beings for our health care. One year a doctor is concerned about my heart murmur; the next he says I have the heart of an athlete. I think it might have been related to my use of stairs or elevator to reach his office. I now make sure I take the elevator for doctor visits.
I have had the heart murmur for over thirty years. Four times I have had symptoms that indicate I have serious problems. Once a doctor gave me an ultrasound check; once a doctor insisted on sending me to the emergency room; once we called for an ambulance; and once my wife drove me to the emergency room. In none of these was there any indication of damage to my heart. In retrospect, I think they were the result of overexertion that seemed OK at the time, probably resulting in sore chest muscles and hypoglycemia with nausea and sweating. In the last three cases, the costs would have made a serious dent in our savings and even future earnings.
Maybe I could have avoided these problems if I had traded in my parents. After all, they were the ones who gave me the genes that caused the heart murmur.
Fortunately, we've had employer-provided health insurance or Medicare with supplemental that paid for all these incidents with no or little out-of-pocket expenses.
Unfortunately, not everybody has generous employers or can afford more than basic Medicare in retirement.
But I too am relying on anecdotal evidence for my case. Are some really tragic cases as reported in some newspapers the norm? Or are they the exception? Whichever the case, we really need to be careful in collecting data to bolster our position. Unfortunately, emotion is used more than reason, no matter the position.
