Two years ago the company that my husband worked for went out of business. Prior to that I never thought much about the 'health care debate'. I just figured we would always be in a place to afford insurance, or at the very least be healthy enough not to need it. We switched our children to the state health care available but my husband and I did not qualify.
Since then we have just been coasting, so to speak. We live day to day knowing that any illness, calamity, or accident would take us off the map. We don't have any way to comprehend the financial ramifications might since we are both in school seeking degrees and have no savings to speak of.
The healthcare issue came flying to the forefront of our lives in July of '08 when my daughter was hospitalized with complications arising from E. Coli. (not to mention, the state of our nations food supply, but I'll save that for another blog). We had taken her to our regular pediatrician when she was running a fever and boycotting food. The short version is that we told them both on the phone, in person and each of the five times we took her in, that our whole family had been exposed to recalled beef (thank you, Nebraska Beef! Folks, don't buy beef from them). Each time, they took her temperature, listened to her with a stethascope and sent us on our merry way, assuring us that it was nothing more than a stomach bug. I kept wondering why they were not givng her a blood test to at least rule out the possibility of E.Coli. Finally, we saught a second opinion and took her to the E.R.
We told the E.R. doctors the same story. The first thing they did was draw blood to check her electrolytes. Turns out her kidneys were in failure. We later found out that her pancreas and liver were also shutting down. Another 24 hours and it would have been too late.
Upon reflection we realized that several months earlier, we had taken her in with similar symptoms. That time she received enough tests to take up three pages in her medical records, including blood tests, a urinalysis and a stool test. That time it did turn out to be merely a stomach bug. What was the difference? That time we still had insurance.
When this situation occured our whole view point shifted regarding our nations medical system. I questioned why my daughter recieved substandard care. I have developed several theories.
Theory #1: The clinic would receive a higher kickback if they did not perform a blood test.
Theory #2: The coverage did not cover blood tests or needle sticks. (This theory has since been dissproven as we looked into the coverage,)
Theory #3: The clinic genuinely thought my daughter had a stomach bug.
I also wondered why we were not even offered the option of paying out of pocket for any testing that might have been needed.
What this blog is setting out to do is really as of yet undefined. My hope is to clarify our situation, and most importantly put a face on the state of our health care system. I represent one of many. In starting this project I also hope to come accross other blogs, articles and sources which further humanizes the health care crisis.
So who else is out there, America?
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My job provides excellent health care coverage. Six years ago my son was diagnosed with cancer. Three years he fought it before he died. Without that insurance, he would have died about a month after being diagnosed.
ReplyDeleteI cannot defend how much my son cost "everyone else," except to say that to a 7 year old, being given 3 years is being given a lifetime.
I don't know how to fix the current problems with our system, but I cannot look another parent in the face and say that their child can't have a lifetime.