Asking for specifics
We had an hourlong conversation with U.S. Rep. John Barrow, Democrat, of Georgia’s 12th District. I was on speakerphone, but Rep. Barrow was in his Savannah office with Janet, Danny and Christian, who had Shannon on speakerphone.
It was a good conversation, and he offered us specifics and reasons for his views. I don’t think any of us agreed with everything he said, but I was impressed with how thoughtful his answers were.
He’s talking about a public-private partnership that would put more regulation on insurance companies and still allow consumer choice. There’s elements of the Massachusetts plan, where people are mandated to buy insurance, but it’s on a sliding-scale fee and people who can’t get insurance would be covered by a government-funded plan.
This would get people access to health care before illness becomes serious and a lot more expensive to treat. Someone with diabetes would have access to the supplies needed to control blood sugar and avert complications. As it is now, someone with diabetes who can’t get those supplies winds up in the emergency room five ot 10 years down the road with complications like kidney failure or infections that require costly, lengthy treatment or amputation.
Somebody with high blood pressure who can’t afford medication will cost a whole lot more if he or she has a stroke.
Asthma that’s managed properly doesn’t require nearly as much hospital treatment.
People whose bronchitis develops into pneumonia cost a lot more than people who can get antibiotic treatment early on.
In other words, it costs us a whole lot more NOT to treat people.
So, even if you don’t want to look at the problem from a humanistic point of view, consider the money we’re pouring into the system now. It’s our money, too. Yours and mine.
Mike would have had access to a colonoscopy under a plan like this, and he’d probably still be alive. Not to mention how much less money would have been spent to treat him.
Janet would be able to buy insurance from a group plan for freelance artists, which can’t be done now. So, if she gets sick, she’ll wait until she’s really, really sick before going to a doctor.
I would have a choice between my current insurance or a government plan, which I would pay for just as I do my current plan, and the private insurers wouldn’t be the only game in town.
Under current law — or lack of it, really — insurance companies can change the rules at will. They can decide to stop covering a certain treatment, declare something “experimental,” claim that the doctors’ charges are “unreasonable” and cover only a fraction of the cost of a procedure. Even people with insurance are left deep in debt.
What really impressed me about the whole conversation was that Danny — who’s very conservative — and I –the liberal — both went away agreeing with much of what he said.
He agrees that it’s time to stop hollering at each other — this person wants a single-payer system and isn’t willing to budge and that person thinks the government shouldn’t have anything to do with health care — and come to an agreement that will get America’s 45 million uninsured, and tens of millions more underinsured Americans, access to our health care system.
There are ways to do it. We’re the only industrialized nation in the world that doesn’t do it. It’s time.
Have a beer in May
Stop into Altamont Brewing, 1042 Haywood Road, West Asheville, any time in May and ask for their "charity" beer of the day. Buy one and Life o' Mike gets $1. In fact, we get a buck for each one sold. So go in every day and have one to support Life o' Mike.
Thanks, Altamont!
Patient Pals & Family Friends
Life o' Mike has a peer support program for people with one or more serious or chronic medical issues or disabilities.
We aim to reduce isolation and fear among people who have conditions, including psychiatric illness, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, mild dementia or other cognitive disorder or disability, thereby reducing depression and complications as people learn to improve self-management of their medical conditions.
Patient Pals help alleviate feelings of isolation and frustration. They can help people develop a list of questions to ask the doctor and then accompany the person to the doctor to make sure all the questions are answered, taking notes to be sure the person understands the doctor’s answers.
Our trained volunteers also accompany their “Pals” to art exhibits, movies and walks outdoors, meet for coffee, call to check in and more.
Our Pals have experienced weight loss, improvement in diabetes, HIV, psoriasis, depression and more, just because they have someone who cares about them. Some relationships develop into longer-term friendships; other Pals move on to more independent lives.
Family Friends are there to help caregivers and other family members grow into their new role.
We need volunteers, who are asked to donate a minimum of one hour a week. Training is free and includes information on active listening, ways to help and when to know more help is needed.
And of course, we need funding.
To learn more, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com.
Start From Seed
Life o' Mike has a new program- Start from Seed (SFS).
SFS is a volunteer doula program aimed at providing non-medical, comprehensive support to low income, high-risk women and families of Buncombe County focusing on three areas:
1. We help new doulas with certification and training in return for their participation as a volunteer doula for SFS
2. We mentor volunteer doulas with their first few clients
3. Our volunteer doulas provide birth and postpartum doula services to low income, high risk moms, providing support and tools to empower them as a new parent.
A birth doula is a trained and experienced professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to the mother before, during and just after birth; a postpartum doula provides emotional and practical support during the postpartum period.
Start from Seed clients are referred to us from the Buncombe County Department of Health’s Nurse-Family Partnership Program, Western North Carolina Community Health Services, and Mission Hospital. The Program is intended and designed for growing clients’ inner strength and helping them gain empowerment to help them cope with the emotional, physical and mental challenges of childbirth, labor, and motherhood.
Our new moms and their infants have many needs. If you would like to help them get off to a good start, please visit our Start from Seed web site: Start from Seed, or call Program Director Chelsea Kouns at 804-814-9946.
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