Health Insurance Now

I'm not normally political, actually I am but I've been trying to leave it off my blog. I wanted to focus on books, movies, and music; the fun stuff that brings us together as a community. I didn't want to spout off my political views though I have many, and as anyone who knows me can attest too I'm not normally shy about sharing them.

I've actually toyed with the idea of starting a political blog but I don't think I would have the time to be as active on it as I would want to. So now I'm having to post this here, on this blog, because I need somewhere to put my reactions to this story I just read.

Here is the link, I'm not going to try and clean it up because if I do, I know I will mess up and break it somehow.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/64677772.html

It is from the Journal Sentinel Online website. The Journal Sentinel is a paper out of Milwaukee, WI and one that I visit from time to time.

I found myself getting rather emotional over this story and more than a bit frustrated. The story is about a family who is having to make hard, hard choices just to make sure they have health insurance. The wife has been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and is having a rough go of it. The husband had lost his job, his severance package was expiring, he has not been able to find a job, and their health insurance was about to get too expensive for them to afford.

The needed the insurance though to cover the cost of the wife's chemo and medical bills. So what does the husband and father of three find himself doing at the age of 39 and while his wife is sick and suffering a relapse of the cancer.

He joins the Army, which is a heroic thing to do, but it should not be the last option for a husband to make in order to have health insurance for his family. He has to be away from his family for 4 years while his wife suffers without him being there. No family, No individual should ever have to make this choice.

We need universal health care in this country so families don't have to tear themselves apart in order to get coverage. I'm tired of the bickering and fighting over the issue and wish those fighting the idea of providing health coverage for everyone would realize that there are real people, real families that suffer due to the lack of health insurance. I wish they would realize that doing nothing is not an option anymore, that those who die every year simply because they lack coverage are victims of a system in disorder. That living in a country where millions of people without health insurance is a problem. That it is an economic, moral, and public policy emergency that needs to be fixed so situations like this never happen again.