Romney: People Don't Die For Lack Of Insurance

[Grateful11]

I was just disagreeable with the guy but now he's done pissed me off.

Romney I wish I could get this message to you smirky smile face in some way but I know that's not going
to happen. You and I could take a ride down to the cemetery and you tell this to my son because there was
a small window of time that my son could have gone to the largest transplant hospital in NC but mostly due
to the lack of any insurance they would not take him. Now I realize you and your elitist friends can afford
to pay whatever it takes for care above and beyond the average person but when an insurance company
says no we won't sell your son an insurance policy due to preexisting conditions then you know not what
you are talking about.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/10/...-insurance

[$tevie]

Grateful11, my heart goes out to you. I'm so sorry you had to hear such painful BS.

[Grateful11]

Thanks Stevie. The thought of what might have happened goes through my mind everyday, if only he had
had insurance other than the small $50K policy he had through the college he was attending and working at.
I blame myself a lot and my wife tells me to stop doing that but if I had been working when this all happened
he would have had insurance, very good insurance at that. Sometimes life deals you a crappy hand and
I keep telling myself I just have to take it and go on but it's there in my mind and I don't think it will
ever go away.

[Pam]

Your son would not want you to hold on to these thoughts. He'd tell you to let them go.

[SteveO]

Pam wrote:
Your son would not want you to hold on to these thoughts. He'd tell you to let them go.

Exactly.

And what you said about being dealt that hand. Yes. Many of us can relate to that in various ways. And what you said about moving forward...yes. It doesn't mean you don't grieve. Grief is good. Just don't let it turn to despair. Big difference.

What I can tell you from my experience 11 years on is there is no why. And echo what Pam said. That all doesn't mean I don't still have weak moments where I am angry at certain people who could have done more. I let it come in for a moment or two, then I shrug it off. I don't let those people stay in my head any more than I can blame myself for what happened. They're not representative of my loved one or my loss.

There is no why.

You know he wants you to be happy. You know what he would say to you. Listen to him. You honor him and yourself for doing so.

And yes, Romney is an insensitive ass for saying that.

[RgrF]

dupe post

[RgrF]

You've talked about his before and I've never actually addressed your loss. Parents are supposed to precede children, I'm so sorry for what you had to endure and hope you are finding a way to heal.

Without Medicare I'd be dead and my family would also be carrying an open wound. At least I'd like to believe they would. Suspending any suggestions of whether my survival was a good thing or not, let's talk about realities.

I had private insurance but only later found out the fine print disallowed many of the procedures my aortic aneurysm surgery required and but for the fact I had just barely crossed the artificial Medicare time line for coverage. Without Medicare I'd have been repaired, the hospital and surgeon would have gone mostly unpaid and I'd have been out on the street if I needed follow-up, which I did, I'd have been hard pressed to find anything.

Not to mention, how do you later face the guy who saved your life after a 16-hour operation and tell him he'd have to wait for me to earn enough to pay for his services?

Medicare made that follow-up painlessly obtainable. Without the drama and detail, Medicare (and USC) have kept me alive beyond my expected lifetime.

There is a philosophical question as to if we ought to be expanding that natural life span, you'll not find me arguing in the negative.

[August West]

Every time I think of your loss I get angry and choke up a little, Grateful. I hesitate to join threads about your circumstance because I am afraid to provoke you to relive it unnecessarily through my words. But please know that I'm very, very sorry for your loss. Likewise SteveO. I can't believe it's 11 years, but it's clear that, painfully, you have learned from it and your advice about discerning grief from despair is a lesson well heeded that I thank you for giving me.

RgrF:oldfogey:, I gotta be happy you're still about, but the jury is always out on you. :biggrin:

[cbelt3]

Grateful----

I agree with you. The man is an idiot who is clearly out of touch with reality. While I've not experienced the sort of loss that you have, I've definitely been in situations where needed medical care has been 'avoided' or 'patched around' because insurance wasn't available, or the cost, even with insurance, is too high.

The jury is still out on the Affordable Healthcare Act... nobody really knows what the impact will be on healthcare in the US once the true impact starts hitting us late next year. I think we all expect serious upheval and confusion.

[Gutenberg]

Gratefull, I am so sorry you went through this. Your son would not want you to blame yourself. You were not to blame.