Health-care, Smealth-care, but it will eventually become Your-care, therefore, we had all better be paying attention!

During my doctor visit on Tuesday I had an opportunity to talk to my physician about the healthcare initiative being pursued by our government. He has practiced medicine for nearly forty years and he believes his days are numbered as a professional who can treat patients based on a personalized approach. He believes that every form being considered will take away many of the options that he and patients have had at their disposal in trying to deal with health challenges. He said at one time he thought he would probably be off the scene before this socialized medicine approach would be forced on America but he now sees it coming in the very near future. I know this is not a very uplifting subject for early on a Thursday but it is being tracked on the radar screens of millions of Americans and this is what I am writing about on this warm windy July 30, 2009.

Is my doctor an alarmist? Hardly. His views are consistent with those expressed by doctors who host weekly radio programs in our area and those I have heard speak on news programs. The main concern that most in the medical profession have centers around the unknowns buried in the 1,000 page bill. The ‘knowns’ are enough to send chills up their spines already. One prominent house member said this week that reading the bill is hardly worth the effort unless you have a team of lawyers to help you understand it. I go back to my original question asked over and over again: What program of any significance run by the government has ever been thought of as being efficient and effective? Are there areas in need of fixing within our broken healthcare system? Absolutely! But any solution that makes our government the administrator is a disaster before it even begins.

I have said before that I applaud President Obama’s desire to see the current system improved. However, having conceded this as a positive, I must tell you that 99% of what he has stated as what he wants to see happen is diametrically opposed to my appreciation for the freedoms and values we cherish. As more and more of the details from the 1,000 page bill come to light, more and more Americans are seen scratching their heads and saying: “Do what?” As they hear these particulars it is something they can identify with because we all have had to deal with a medical challenge, if not for ourselves, for our family members. When we hear about following a computer model along with a panel of experts to determine what level and when care will be provided, hello? Perhaps I am more sensitive to all this since I am closer to joining the elder care category than I like to admit, however, I honestly am even more concerned about government run anything and its threat to our way of life, especially in the long term, which will greatly impact my offspring and theirs. Hurrying this up makes little sense given that it impacts every person in our country and has monumental implications for our economy. My doctor seemed sad when he shared his concerns like he was facing the loss of something very dear to him. This is what I am hearing and I do hope you are out there somewhere listening as well. May God intervene is my prayer. Amen. ……More later.