Back in 2008, I was rooting for Hilary Clinton to win the Primary and eventually the Presidential Election. I liked Barack Obama and thought he showed promise, but he didn't strike me as being totally ready for the job. The ideal scenario was that he would become VP, learn the job for four to eight years and then run himself, which would've given the Democrats a possible 16 years of time in office (I'm an Independent, but the Republicans are getting increasingly childish and ridiculous and tend to cater more to the rich folk). But with all the bad blood at the end of Primary season, I knew there was no way they could co-exist in the White House. And that was probably the beginning of the mess we find ourselves in now. I voted for Obama in both 2008 and 2012, both because I believed in him and because the alternatives were scary as fuck. His first term had a steep learning curve but was decent enough to keep him in office. His second term has been a disaster. And the epicenter of that disaster is the Healthcare Reform Bill.
Here's what we were promised when we all went to the polls to vote on this thing; accessible healthcare for all and not just in an emergency situation. Supposedly companies would not be allowed to get away with providing super cheap or pick and choose insurance to their employees, and the unemployed would be able to get in to see doctors when they needed to. Sounded like a great idea at the time, and it is a great idea in theory. But it was botched by the White House and the caveats included in the bill did little to help. Religious-based companies went to court to sue so they wouldn't have to provide birth control to their female employees (yet Viagra is still covered). Major corporations filed for a one year delay that allowed them to hold off on providing better insurance coverage and, in the meantime, slashed their full-time employees hours so they will not have to offer them insurance when the delay expires. Cancer patients had their coverage changed, despite being told that would not happen, and it no longer covered their chemotherapy treatments. Those who had to use the website to sign up for coverage either couldn't get to it or couldn't figure out what coverage they needed. It was a mess and nobody in the White House seemed to be able to figure out how to fix it. Even once they did and the law officially went into effect, it still wasn't even close to being what we were all led to believe it was.
Here's what the reality of this law has been for most of the people I know; nothing's changed for the better. My mom's company had pretty good insurance when she began there a few years ago, but under the new law they were able to drop that company and go with cheaper healthcare that barely covers anything. She pays out of pocket for all of her doctor's visits and medications, and was unable to get a much needed cardiac test earlier this year because it required her to pay out of pocket as well (to the tune of $1,500). Her previous insurance would have covered all of this. My brother-in-law was put on Medicaid after the law change and they sent him countless brochures about behavioral healthcare and where to get it, but very little about basic healthcare. And everything they did send him about doctors was very vague and 'figure it out yourself'. He got a letter telling him he needed to call his local clinic, choose a primary doctor and get put into their system as a patient. He waited on hold for two hours before giving up and calling back the next day, only to wait on hold for one more hour before someone hurriedly took down his information. He confirmed that this meant he would be able to call and see a doctor there in the future and the woman said that was correct. Two weeks ago, the need to see that doctor arose and he called to schedule and appointment. They told him there was no record of him in their system and that his only choice was to come in and fill out paperwork and then, in about three weeks, they may be able to get him an appointment. He ended up going to the ER last week. None of this was supposed to happen under this bill, it was supposed to be for the people. But nothing's really for the people anymore when it comes to government. And it's not just the government that's to blame for this fiasco. The reason nobody could afford healthcare in the first place is because doctors and tests cost too damn much. My mother is still locked in a battle over money with the doctor who treated her in the ER over a year ago. She has a $4,000 bill for tests that she's paying down a little at a time and another $600 bill from the doctor. The hospital told her that often times the doctor will cut that fee in half or forget it altogether in cases where the person can't pay, so she attempted to do this and the dude refused to knock one cent off of it. If everybody were a little less greedy, that would be a huge step in fixing healthcare in this country.
Medicine is supposed to be about helping people in their time of need, not milking them for every last cent so you can line your own pockets. Until that changes, nothing else will because it's a domino effect. And things are no different than they were before the "reform"; it's still all about money, you still can't get to a doctor when you need to and the kicker is that if you realize this and refuse to be covered, you have to pay them even more. It's just another demonstration of how power corrupts. You can go in with the best of intentions, waving your "Yes We Can" flag, but things don't always work out the way you plan. Do I think Obama has been a good President? For the most part, yes. There have been things that have gotten done that would not have if a Republican won the White House. But I have to admit much of what's gone on the last year and a half is not what I signed up for. I don't believe the Republicans version of the bill was the way to go either, but some sort of compromise would've worked best. That's the problem though, this version of government are like spoiled children who pick up their ball and go home when they don't get their way. And I know a part of the reason for the combativeness is race, though they all deny it. No President has faced so much upheaval in getting shit done. He could put forth a bill to change what kind of candy bar is in the vending machines of government buildings and it would STILL take six months to pass it, just for the hell of it. All those folks should be ashamed of themselves. They're not doing any good for their country, they're helping run it into the ground.
