As many Americans turn on their TVs to their local news channels, and pull up home pages on their computers, and read their daily newspapers, it is very hard too miss the debate on the health care reform. Everyone seems to be tuned into politics lately. Whether it’s expanding the Bush tax cuts, the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy, or most importantly, the Health Care Reform Act, everyone seems to have an opinion.
Lately, I have seriously been questioning our representatives and senators. I am quite aware that as a result of the November elections, Republicans control the House of Representatives, while Democrats have a reduced majority in the Senate. Still ,I would just like to know, whose bright idea was it to repeal the Health Care Reform Act?
If that is not one of the most ignorant things I have ever heard of, then I don’t know what is. Although the Republican-controlled House passed the bill to repeal, thankfully the Senate is not expected to follow suit.
Of course, I am a Democrat, and quite proud of it. And yes, I have heard both sides of the issue from a Republican’s standpoint (my mother), and a Democrat’s standpoint (my father). From either side of the aisle, the HCR is a great policy.
Many are unaware of what the HCR really is and what it does for the American people. Yet, some people still feel the need to voice their opinions even when they don’t know how much the legislation benefits the American people.
The HCR allows young adults to remain on their parents insurance until they are 26-years-old. I don’t know about you, but I can’t afford insurance now or even in two years when I graduate. I had a surgical biopsy this winter and my hospital bill was $6,000. I don’t know what you have, but I do not have $6,000 to pay for my health; thank God I have insurance. However, what about the 50.7 million Americans who don’t?
This bill also allows individuals with pre-existing conditions to receive health care and not be denied coverage. HCR also allows individuals with life threatening illnesses like cancer, leukemia and many other serious conditions to remain on their insurance or still receive insurance.
In the past few years, if an individual had pre-existing conditions or life threatening illnesses, insurance companies were allowed to go back and review these individuals’ insurance policies for error. And if an error was found they were allowed to cancel their current insurance or deny them future insurance coverage. This bill makes such actions by insurance companies illegal.
If I had cancer, I wouldn’t want a representative from the insurance company calling me saying, “Hey, umm five years ago we made an error on your insurance policy so sorry, we are going to have to cancel your insurance coverage because we made an error but mostly because you have cancer.”
HCR also allows small businesses to offer their employees affordable insurance, at low cost to the company. And if the small business can’t offer their employees affordable insurance, individuals are able to receive insurance through a company called Exchanges.
Many are just unaware of how great this HCR really is. My advice to all is to become familiar with the HCR. Visit www.healthcare.gov to find out all there is to know about the bill so that we all can be informed, and, most importantly, help our president fight these vultures in the legislative and judicial branch. The alternative is to continue to let the 50.7 million Americans to go without insurance or even die. The decision does rests with us, the American people.