I Will Direct My Apologies Elsewhere [View all]

[n2doc]

By Dr R Scott Poppen

....So everyone is now apologizing to folks in the individual health insurance market who can’t renew their current cherished policies, some of which are so crummy that it is a stretch to call them insurance, and will be paying much more in the Marketplaces because they make too much money to qualify for a subsidy.

So, since repentance is the order of the day, here is mine.

To the woman who testified at my state’s Medicaid expansion hearings last July I’m sorry that you developed advanced breast cancer several years ago, lost your job during your radiation and chemotherapy treatments, couldn’t afford your COBRA payments to keep up your insurance, and had to stop your chemo prematurely. I’m glad you got a new job, albeit without health insurance benefits. I was so sorry, and sad, to learn that your breast cancer has returned, is metastatic, and that you have no insurance.

I’d like to apologize for a member of our legislature, a health care provider himself, who an hour after your testimony stated publically that he didn’t want to hear anymore testimony from patients. You see, his innate compassion for your situation is colliding with his anti-government ideology producing painful cognitive dissonance. His only option is avoidance.

Perhaps, if you are still alive, you can sit down with some of the folks who are going to have to pay more for their insurance and help them find a cheaper cell phone plan, alternatives to cable Tv, or more affordable vacation options. That is, of course, if you are still alive.

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