Eyewitness: Healthcare Reform in the United States

The United States House of Representatives passed a $1.1 trillion healthcare plan on 7th November 2009, but the debate on healthcare reform continues to rage in the Senate and around the nation.

"Healthcare reform is needed, but this is a bit hasty. Rushing into things has rarely worked out for America in the past, and this is a potential trillion dollar mistake," writes Ellen Poulose, a pre-medical student from Kansas City, Missouri. According to a recent Associated Press poll, 43% of Americans oppose the healthcare plans being discussed in Congress, while 41% support the plans. 15% remain undecided.

The main hurdle to public support seems to be the predicted cost of the plan. Although most of the nation agrees that changes to the system are necessary, Americans are reluctant to bear the costs. Kate Kuhn, of Acworth, Georgia, was quoted by the AP as saying: "Well, for one, I know nobody wants to pay taxes for anybody else to go to the doctor ? I don't. I don't want to pay for somebody to use my money that I could be using for myself."

The legislation passed by the House of Representatives on the 7th runs to 2,000 pages. It includes a mandate that would require most American citizens to obtain healthcare or face tax penalties. To prevent such penalties, the bill would expand Medicaid, a government program that currently provides healthcare for the most disadvantaged Americans, and would also offer subsidies to help middle-income Americans purchase private insurance.

Most Americans who are insured are covered by private companies through their employers. Under the House legislation, most employers would be required to provide health coverage for their employees or pay a tax penalty on their payroll.

The House legislation also included a controversial amendment that would effectively tighten the restrictions on abortion, the inclusion of which was insisted upon by pro-life Democrats. This amendment would deny coverage for abortion in government funded plans except in cases of rape, incest, or endangerment to the mother's life.

Pro-choice groups such as the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) have unequivocally condemned this addition to the healthcare bill. On their website the group referred to the amendment as "an unacceptable addition to the healthcare reform bill that, if enacted, would result in women losing the health benefits they have today."

Though the Senate has been urged by President Obama to act quickly on healthcare, the proposal there is only slowly inching towards a vote. Only the broad outlines of the Senate bill have been made public, but there are already some substantial differences in relation to the House bill. While the House bill made provisions for a public option, the Senate bill allows individual states to opt out of this option. The bill is currently mired in debates about cost, though there is speculation by pundits that a test vote on the bill could occur within the next week.

According to the United States Census Bureau, as of 10 September 2009 there were 46.3 million uninsured Americans. Many more Americans could be called underinsured. That is, they have private insurance plans, but those plans do not meet all of their needs. Their plight is a difficult one.

DeLisa Dixon, a customer service representative from Liberty, Missouri, writes that "I honestly didn't realize how big a problem it was until I was taken off my mom's insurance and had to get my own. Many people like me have bills for services they need because their insurance is terrible."

Even the largest private insurers often fail to provide adequate coverage, especially in cases of major illnesses. Pennsylvanian community organizer Christina Bernardo claims: "I went to a few healthcare rallies sponsored by Health Care for America Now, which exposed some of the horror stories of big private insurance companies.

"Those companies cut people's healthcare when they needed it most without covering pre-existing conditions.

"One woman had brain cancer and CIGNA (one of the seven largest insurers in the United States) was her healthcare provider. When she needed treatment for cancer they raised her deductible from $100 to $1000." In both the House and the Senate legislation, provisions are included to prevent this.

Though the cost of the health care bills is a major issue, many Americans feel that there should be reform. Anna Sambursky, a digital animator based in Chicago, says that:

"Quality healthcare should not be something that only the wealthy can enjoy. Everyone has a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; and healthcare is life. We cannot deny this fact."

Stephanie Hull - TCS Reporter