L.A. Times readers: Health care is in critical condition

By GottaLaff

(via)

L.A. Times readers have something to say about the so-called health care debate:

Re "The sick status quo," Editorial, Aug. 13

I was one of many nurses, doctors and dentists who volunteered to provide basic medical care to the public at the Forum in Inglewood. Remote Area Medical started out providing services in Third World countries. Now it has set up shop in one of the largest and most affluent urban areas in the country.

Among those seeking care were people who had insurance but couldn't afford the deductibles and those who needed services that their plans didn't cover. Several patients with asthma, diabetes and/or high blood pressure had recently lost their jobs. They brought empty containers for prescriptions they could no longer afford.

Charity events are no substitute for comprehensive reform. We need a healthcare system that doesn't leave patients at the mercy of private insurers. Single-payer legislation is the only plan that would make this a reality.

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I am ashamed that our nation has so many sick people who must rely on charity for nonemergency care. In what other industrialized nation does such a situation exist?

Yet there are many Americans who do not want reform. They are being fed distortions and lies, leading them like dumb sheep to clamor vociferously for no change to the status quo. With a few more years of the status quo, most of these people will be vociferously demanding reform. It will happen when enough of us are unable to afford health insurance, or have policies canceled by insurers, or are forced into bankruptcy because of a catastrophic illness, or watch a loved one die for lack of medical care.

What we see now at the Forum is just a preview of what we will see in the future.

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Thank you for finally printing a pertinent view on the current healthcare debate. We have become a nation of sensationalists who crave the drama of actors and frauds over the plight of real people. The media are guilty of choosing to report the events unfolding at these town hall meetings, which are merely a venting forum for a disgruntled minority of our society.

The real issue at hand is as you state: people needing care that they cannot get.

Do something about this instead of just reading about it. Go here for phone numbers and e-mail addresses.