We've Got To Do Better, America

Hey Everyone!

A few weeks ago, I had a bit of a sinus infection and went to pick up a prescription for some antibiotics. I was angry because I pay through the nose for insurance each month, but since I have a deductible, which I'll probably never meet, I had to pay for the doctor's visit and the prescription completely out-of-pocket. It irks me to no end that our healthcare system is such a scam.

When I got to the pharmacy, there was an elderly lady in front of me who was counting coins on the counter trying to find enough to pay for her insulin. She ended up being $12 and change short. I'm not rich, but I've got $13, so I paid the difference for her. She hugged me and cried.

I had intended to reward myself with Starbucks for getting up early and running all my errands, but I decided to save the money instead. When I got back to my car, I cried. Not because I didn't get my overpriced coffee; I could have gotten it if I'd really wanted it. But because an old woman, a person, in my community was reduced to tears in the arms of a stranger in the middle of a grocery store because the pharmaceutical companies are holding hostage the medication she needs to survive.

I don't begrudge her the momentary breakdown, if it were me I'd already be worried about paying for it next time, I'm just furious that this state of affairs exists. Here. In the wealthiest country in the world.

As a relatively healthy person, I'm rarely personally affected by the organized criminal syndicates we call the insurance and pharmaceutical industries. And when I am, the financial hit only means that I cut back on entertainment expenses; I'm privileged enough that going hungry or losing my home to pay for needed medical treatments isn't a choice I have to face. But it is a decision that millions of Americans -- people all around us in our towns and cities, people we know and people we don't know -- have to make every day. Not because we lack the ability to assure that the basic needs of all our citizens are met, but because we choose not to. We've got to do better, America.

Peace!