9
Dec
As someone who knows people in crisis with their health, and as a person working in a major medical institution, I am shocked. Republicans are the ones I expect to screw the little guy, not Democrats… Now, it’s hard to tell them apart. I know a family with four kids, one part time income, and the father (the only one working) is a type 1 diabetic. They have no supplies for him right now and no cash. They are waiting for paperwork to go through for medicare. Make no mistake, a type 1 diabetic without his insulin is a walking dead man. Right now, the only thing keeping him alive is a family friend who gave him some of their insulin. This is not an isolated thing. Many people in our country have to choose between feeding their families and having the life saving medication they need. I know a type 2 diabetic who is having to not buy medicine so she can avoid losing her home and becoming homeless. She’s not able to get medicare until next fall.
It makes me ill to realize that we, the richest country in the world, can not care for our sick. We send millions of dollars in aid to other countries in both government and private money, but we fail the people who live on our own streets. Evil corporations move every job they can to India, Mexico, and China to avoid paying enough for people to live on. Other companies hire people who have entered the country so that they can work them like animals and treat them like slaves. Just the money that legal employees would feed into our system by paying taxes would pay for a large portion of any “public option”.
All the people who have no insurance become a burden on our emergency care systems and clinics as well. ER’s can’t turn you away for be uninsured… If the type 1 diabetic I mentioned dies, the government will foot the bill not only for his burial, but also for the continued care and feeding of the family he leaves behind. Over the next 17+ years that will add up…
I say we all watch for who votes down the “public Option” and we make sure NOT to vote for them when they run again. Remember, in the end, WE are the bosses. WE should fire politicians who are not doing the best job for us.
19
Aug
Let’s face some basic facts. Our president wants to make it so that Americans can get health care. Republicans have moved heaven and earth to stop him. Why? It’s quite simple. Between medical and pharma corporations, the cost of medical care in this country has gone up by leaps and bounds every year for decades. Medicines that cost pennies in other countries cost thousands here. Lately, even insurance companies have started sending patients to other countries to get treatment. Doctors and nurses are not making the price go up. Corporations are raising the costs. Can you guess who contributes big money to republican electoral runs? Who pays for the army of lobbyists (other than the tobacco industry)? The Republicans are bad mouthing a provision for a public health care system of any kind. Why? After all, every country in the world that has such a system has lower death rates, lower infant mortality rates, and less of their per capita as well as GNP spent on health care. Too bad the Republican’s buddies (who contribute to their elections) make their money on the inflated costs charged to the consumer for basic health care.
26
Mar
There was an email that went out today from a major medical teaching and treatment center. I have removed certain information that they may consider private to them. Please read it and take action.
Subject: New York State Budget Negotiations – Impact on Hospitals
WE NEED YOUR HELP: The New York State Legislature and the Governor’s Office are now in negotiations regarding the State Budget. While negotiations are on-going, under the current proposals the Medical Center stands to lose significant resources. Other medical centers would also experience significant losses. Cuts of this magnitude will seriously jeopardize our ability to meet the needs of some of the patients who come through our doors each year by forcing cuts in essential healthcare services, as well as limit our ability to invest in the latest medical technologies and make much-needed improvements to our infrastructure.
I urge you to send an email from your personal computer and personal email address to Governor Paterson and key Members of the New York State Legislature, opposing the proposed cuts to Graduate Medical Education (GME) funds to our Medical Center and the gross receipts tax (a tax on our total revenues). The email can simply say:
“Please oppose cuts to Graduate Medical Education and the imposition of a gross receipts tax, as proposed in the New York State Budget discussions.”
Please send your email in opposition as soon as possible to:
Governor David Paterson- www.ny.gov/governor/index.html and go to the bottom of the page and click on “Contact the Governor”.
Speaker Sheldon Silver- Speaker@assembly.state.ny.us
Assembly Health Chair, Richard Gottfried- gottfrr@assembly.state.ny.us
Assembly Member Jonathan Bing- bingj@assembly.state.ny.us
Assembly Member Brian Kavanagh- kavanaghb@assembly.state.ny.us
Senate Health Chair, Tom Duane- duane@senate.state.ny.us
Senator Liz Krueger: lizkrueger@gmail.com
You may also want to email your own Assembly Member and Senator about these proposed cuts and ask them to oppose the cuts too. To find your Assembly Member and Senator you can go to the website of the Healthcare Association of New York State at http://capwiz.com/hanys/state/main/?state=NY and put in your zip code.
Your support on this issue can make a big difference in the outcome of the budget negotiations. Thank you for taking the time to voice your views on these important issues.
