Dear Source:
I read the report on the Health Care Bill. It sounds like another bill being discussed without enough research. Cost of health care is ridiculous to begin with. Start with researching how many doctors and dentists tell patients: you pay me and you file for the insurance, which defeats the purpose of having insurance to begin with. The whole point of insurance is because a person doesn't have the money upfront.
Research how many insurers, when it comes time to pay, (say you're area is not under this coverage) put a person in an unexpected bind of having to come up with monies they thought their insurance was going to pay.
Insurance companies have the right to refuse you if you have a pre-existing condition and the right to keep your monies even if you don't get sick. No refund is given to anyone who pays in but never gets sick. In how many cases have people paid in for years and didn't get sick and the one year they couldn't afford it, got sick and had no coverage.
As a single mother for many years, I can tell you, too many years went by where an extra bill for $100 or $200 a month was not viable. This report says cost would be $182 for first person, $182, for second person, $69 for each of first three children…and half being paid by employer. For a family of five, that's $571, $285.50 to be paid for by family, and $285.50 to be paid by employer. How many parents are out there just trying to feed, house, and clothe their kids by working two and three jobs? Is it expected to be mandatory for employers to pay? All I see that doing is forcing employers to keep employees at lower rates of pay in order to handle the extra overhead.
How many patients have been charged ridiculous amounts of monies just for consultation with a doctor or even with his/her nurse instead of the doctor? How many have paid out hundreds of dollars only to be told: we don't know what's wrong with you? This leaves a patient in a right bind of being out of that money still with no answers.
Research all aspects of the problem before putting a bill together. If you want to hear what the problems really are, ask the uninsured the reasons why they are uninsured. Ask their opinions on whether your solutions will work for them or not. Don't forget to also check with the child support office as to how many parents are delinquent in paying support, which also adds to the problem.
In other words, get a reality check first from those who have been experiencing the actual problems for years, from those who are still praying to God that they not to get sick.
Carol Berry
St. Thomas

Editor's note: We welcome and encourage readers to keep the dialogue going by responding to Source commentary. Letters should be e-mailed with name and place of residence to [email protected].