During the Thanksgiving holidays Ryan and I rented the DVD Sicko, Michael Moore’s documentary about the state of the American health care system. I’d been wanting to see it for some time, if for no other reason than the movie made such a splash and got people talking about our health care woes.
You may remember that Michael Moore got in a bit of trouble for taking some of the patients he was profiling to Cuba for care. Americans aren’t supposed to travel to Cuba as part of the embargo – unless you’re a journalist. And that’s where things got sticky for Michael. He was supposed to check with the State Department first, which always struck me as a bit of a freedom of the press killer.
All that aside, my feelings about the film, just like my feelings about American health care, are mixed. You can love Michael Moore. You can hate him. The guy did make a point that needed to be made. For millions of us, having the misfortune to get sick has ruined our finances and stolen our dreams. There really are people out there who honestly cannot get the care they need. They honestly are falling through the cracks. And they’re not all homeless street people either (not that if they were everything would then be okay.) It’s one of those things people don’t always get until it happens to them. And it can happen – to anyone.
Recently a co-worker of mine has had a spat of health troubles. She’s been in the hospital several times over the past few months. The other day she asked me very quietly if I knew of some sort of relief fund for people with chronic illness and mounting medical bills. Obviously I couldn’t help her.
I was riding the wave of the film, cheering it on and nodding my head, until the Cuba segment. That was just a little bit too much of a stunt that wasn’t required to make the point. It went “out there” just enough to give people an excuse to not take the film seriously. I support Michael’s right to go to Cuba – I just don’t think he needed to. But, to me, the whole Cuba thing isn’t worth more than a mention.
The real issue is how are we going to fix this health care problem? And that’s where I run into trouble. I’m the kind of girl that wants to find a plan I think will work, and go out and advocate for it. But, to be honest, this is such a huge mess I can’t get my head around how to fix it. I feel a little sorry for the politicians trying.
I just know there’s something incredibly wrong with a country where some people can develop an actual addiction to cosmetic surgery, while others can’t even get medications that could significantly improve their quality of life.
What it’s going to ultimately come down to is what are we willing to trade? We won’t be able to do it all. Will we be satisfied with longer wait times or hospitals with a fewer comforts of home? How can we create a better system without creating a worse bureaucracy? Personally, I haven’t figured it out yet.
You may remember that Michael Moore got in a bit of trouble for taking some of the patients he was profiling to Cuba for care. Americans aren’t supposed to travel to Cuba as part of the embargo – unless you’re a journalist. And that’s where things got sticky for Michael. He was supposed to check with the State Department first, which always struck me as a bit of a freedom of the press killer.
All that aside, my feelings about the film, just like my feelings about American health care, are mixed. You can love Michael Moore. You can hate him. The guy did make a point that needed to be made. For millions of us, having the misfortune to get sick has ruined our finances and stolen our dreams. There really are people out there who honestly cannot get the care they need. They honestly are falling through the cracks. And they’re not all homeless street people either (not that if they were everything would then be okay.) It’s one of those things people don’t always get until it happens to them. And it can happen – to anyone.
Recently a co-worker of mine has had a spat of health troubles. She’s been in the hospital several times over the past few months. The other day she asked me very quietly if I knew of some sort of relief fund for people with chronic illness and mounting medical bills. Obviously I couldn’t help her.
I was riding the wave of the film, cheering it on and nodding my head, until the Cuba segment. That was just a little bit too much of a stunt that wasn’t required to make the point. It went “out there” just enough to give people an excuse to not take the film seriously. I support Michael’s right to go to Cuba – I just don’t think he needed to. But, to me, the whole Cuba thing isn’t worth more than a mention.
The real issue is how are we going to fix this health care problem? And that’s where I run into trouble. I’m the kind of girl that wants to find a plan I think will work, and go out and advocate for it. But, to be honest, this is such a huge mess I can’t get my head around how to fix it. I feel a little sorry for the politicians trying.
I just know there’s something incredibly wrong with a country where some people can develop an actual addiction to cosmetic surgery, while others can’t even get medications that could significantly improve their quality of life.
What it’s going to ultimately come down to is what are we willing to trade? We won’t be able to do it all. Will we be satisfied with longer wait times or hospitals with a fewer comforts of home? How can we create a better system without creating a worse bureaucracy? Personally, I haven’t figured it out yet.
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