News
Most people know our economy is in trouble. Gas prices have driven up the cost of everything due to our method of trucking products and their need for fossil fuel. But the health care system has been disintegrating for years.
As the HMOs became more powerful and the doctors received less and less from the insurance companies, we have been paying more and more every year. But the doctors aren't seeing a penny.
I know many people who have never met their deductible but pay about $400 a month or more for fear of loosing their homes if they become really ill. They aptly call it catastrophic insurance. It's all been for corporate profit.
Our elected officials take orders from the industries that pay for their campaigns, thanks to the Supreme Court giving them personhood and freedom of speech along with it. This allows them to literally bribe the politicians with campaign money because they have the same rights as the individual.
The insurance industry is right up there (usually No. 3) as a huge contributor. This is all public knowledge - look it up. It's also easy to find out that we are no where near being No. 1 in health care. Actually, we are No. 37. To put this in perspective, Chili is No. 33, Morocco is 29, and Colombia is 22. It's very shocking if you think our country is a leader in most everything. Well, we used to be.
If you're not insured, and you get really sick, you better fly to Europe as fast as you can. It will be cheaper and you'll get better care. They are No. 1 through 21, with a few like Japan thrown in.
So rather than sit home stewing, raging, suffering, or whatever you do to cope with what seems unchangeable, why not do something about it? Are our lives too busy to save ourselves? Should we just stand by while our jobs are outsourced, funds are cut for education, firefighting and Medicare, to name a few? Does it have to affect everyone directly before we take action? Do we need to become a Third World nation before we rise up and fight for basic health care? I wonder what the founding fathers would think about their creation if they saw it today. Where are "we, the people"?
If you want to do something to implement a change for the better, you can come to the silent auction at the Seaman's Lodge in Pioneer Park Sept. 20, from noon till 6 p.m. and support the fundraiser to educate others about what they can do to make a difference.
You can join the Health Care for All organization, dedicated to making sure all Californians have decent health care with no one turned away because they have existing illnesses or can't afford standard, for-profit insurance. They meet every third Thursday at the hospital outpatient building in Room 110.
I once talked to a wealthy European who said if they had our health care system, there would be rioting in the streets. It shouldn't have to come to that. Please do something before it's too late. If you don't care about this, find something to care about. We, the people, need to take our country back.
Jennifer Cull lives in Penn Valley.
As the HMOs became more powerful and the doctors received less and less from the insurance companies, we have been paying more and more every year. But the doctors aren't seeing a penny.
I know many people who have never met their deductible but pay about $400 a month or more for fear of loosing their homes if they become really ill. They aptly call it catastrophic insurance. It's all been for corporate profit.
Our elected officials take orders from the industries that pay for their campaigns, thanks to the Supreme Court giving them personhood and freedom of speech along with it. This allows them to literally bribe the politicians with campaign money because they have the same rights as the individual.
The insurance industry is right up there (usually No. 3) as a huge contributor. This is all public knowledge - look it up. It's also easy to find out that we are no where near being No. 1 in health care. Actually, we are No. 37. To put this in perspective, Chili is No. 33, Morocco is 29, and Colombia is 22. It's very shocking if you think our country is a leader in most everything. Well, we used to be.
If you're not insured, and you get really sick, you better fly to Europe as fast as you can. It will be cheaper and you'll get better care. They are No. 1 through 21, with a few like Japan thrown in.
So rather than sit home stewing, raging, suffering, or whatever you do to cope with what seems unchangeable, why not do something about it? Are our lives too busy to save ourselves? Should we just stand by while our jobs are outsourced, funds are cut for education, firefighting and Medicare, to name a few? Does it have to affect everyone directly before we take action? Do we need to become a Third World nation before we rise up and fight for basic health care? I wonder what the founding fathers would think about their creation if they saw it today. Where are "we, the people"?
If you want to do something to implement a change for the better, you can come to the silent auction at the Seaman's Lodge in Pioneer Park Sept. 20, from noon till 6 p.m. and support the fundraiser to educate others about what they can do to make a difference.
You can join the Health Care for All organization, dedicated to making sure all Californians have decent health care with no one turned away because they have existing illnesses or can't afford standard, for-profit insurance. They meet every third Thursday at the hospital outpatient building in Room 110.
I once talked to a wealthy European who said if they had our health care system, there would be rioting in the streets. It shouldn't have to come to that. Please do something before it's too late. If you don't care about this, find something to care about. We, the people, need to take our country back.
Jennifer Cull lives in Penn Valley.
