Doctors Within Borders

What a stunning lack of empathy for our neighbors is expressed in many comments here. We are all in this life together and we can find away to take care of our neighbors.

I'll tell you who medicaid helps, those not lucky enough to have their health. I worked my entire life, put two kids through college as a single mom. The courts let their father get out of child support so he could go on to buy a house and motorcycles while I struggled to support our kids alone. ( But that is another wrong thing in this country). 4 year ago I came down with breast cancer. I had zero risk factors except I was a woman. I worked as long as I could to support myself and kids, then the cancer spread. My insurance company I'd paid in to for 35 years dumped me the minute they could. All that is left was medicare, medicaid. THAT is what kept me alive this past year. All of you are one illness away from understanding that it's not lazy people that need benefits, it's workers just like me who paid for insurance only to get denied by the very business that denies care when it is needed. I hope none of you ever find out the hard way that your country isn't taking care of you even when you've done your part and contributed your entire life. Think about it.

Of course, every one wants better health care and, if it is free, even better - but can we as a nation afford to pay for the best health care for all people? and how will it alter the medical care in this country? Because when it comes to medicine, no one wants the best that Abraham Lincoln could offer, they want the best that science and medicine can offer today. They want the cadillac, complete with all the expensive diagnostics and new pharmaceuticals. The cadillac costs money. For this reason, as a matter practice, it is unlikely the government will pay for every treatment every one seeks which means the Government will decide who gets and does not get treatment - forever politicizing medical practice in this country. Government allocations will destroy timely care and put the Government into deciding possible life or death situations. There is much to think about here rather than just how tantalizing it would be to have free health care.

The richest country in the world can't even take care of it's own people - now that's sick!!! We spend billions of dollars roaming around some foreign country blowing up crazy ragheads. GREED, GREED, GREED

lnstead of criticizing the situation, have you considered helping? Read the last three paragraphs in the article? It feels good to help and bad to criticize. Everyone will remember your help years to come and forget your criticism in a matter of minutes. Let's see how we can help and make a difference. Have a wonderful day to all.

Paying for any medical, dental, or visual care is expensive. Most people are just as well off by not having insurance and putting in savings what they would pay for preiums. However all it takes is one major illness to wipe your funds completely out. There is no good answer. We have indulged a medicaid system (in most states) that benefits no one. The hospitals and doctors lose money by accepting medicaid and private pay patients pick up the slack. It is a on going problem, and one has to wonder who gets all the money from private pay and medicaid preiums - some hotshot in an office that hasn't a clue about how hosiptals and other medical offices work - just a high paid number cruncher? ( and I know that some of the money pays for the care but wehat avout the excess?)

I grew up in this part of Virginia and have to say that this hits very hard at my heart. Far too many of us live our very comfortable lives without regard to the needs of the rural poor. There should be a grass-roots effort in this country to care for one another, not celebrate our own success and happiness and forget those in need. You have no idea what poverty exists in this part of the country. In such a beautiful area, there is little employment aside from food services and WalMart.

WE ALREADY PAY TO SEND RAISE THEIR BASTARDS,THEN SEND THEM TO SCHOOL,AND FEED THEM AT SCHOOL AND AT HOME,,NOW WE HAVE TO PAY WHEN THEY GET SICK? WHY NOT JUST BECOME COMMUNIST COUNTRY?

Comment: Well, instead of National Healthcare in this country, our current administration prefers to invade foreign countries to take the natural oil deposits that formed under their sand and control it so we can take it. It's an old story. I vote we indict Bush, Chenney, Rumsfeld and Rove on war crimes and them institute National Health care. Oh. and while we're at it, we could pour some money into solar energy rather than invade Iran next.: Actually, we may all want to learn how to speak Chinease. They''ll be our Landlords soon. And has everyone heard about the Superhighway, that our government denies exists, and the Trilateral Commisson and the Amero? America is in it's last years. Our government sold us out.

Moving to save money is generally stupid. I'm on social security disability, living off less than $1000/mth. I moved from California to Illinois and lost my Medicaid benefits because now I have too much money. The reason I choose cities over rural areas is because, with my disability, I can't drive. Plus, driving would just add on the cost of a car, in which case I would not have saved a dime. I even went to financial counseling just to have the couselor tell me that I'm in debt because I don't have enough money.

as this delightfully entertaining person wrote
" these hillbillys wouldn't have health care even IF they could afford it,they would rather have lottery tickets"
i have something to say. firstly that they have absolutly NO idea what they are talking about. As a resident of southwest va AND a redneck hillbilly to boot i have health care AND asm in perfectly good health. as is the rest of my family. sure we have our problems but doesnt everyone. unfortunatly everyone in my region is not as fortunate as me and my family. but that has nothing to do with buying lottery tickets. it has more to do with our federal and state government!! we are a proud people and very family oriented. we take care of ourselves the best way we can. i am a PROUD member of my region and i am ranked very HIGH in my high school. many people in my region have high IQ's and more intelligent than many others. we know how to SURVIVE when many others are unfortunate enough to barely be able to put food on their tables. We may need to recieve free health care but thats ok because at least we have the opertunities that many do not. plus if it wasnt for this region God only knows what would happen to this country. You need US more than we need YOU!!1

The foundation for all ills is based on plain greed and our natural tendency to be narcissistic. All of us just need to step back and die to ourselves a little bit. , Its amazing what we can overcome with this spirit in spite of our Governments lack of focus and fiscal irresponsibilities. Its the humane spirit that can extend grace, mercy, and hope to those that are less fortunate. It is shameful as a nation, that we indeed neglect our very own. Lets all be courageous and creative on how we can be a little part of this solution, at minimum, we can always get on our knees humbly and pray for our nation.

well fatjoey, it is obvious that your intelligence level is lower than many of these hillbillies, this is a national problem not an isolated problem. If you look around you most people in any area buy lottery tickets with the hopes of winning, this is obvious by the high winning totals that are a pertentage of the tickets sold. Perhaps next time you should look at the nation as a whole and then you will see that the middle class is disappearing at an alarmaing rate and a majority of people do not have insurance, or it is so inadequate our country as a whole should be embarrassed as to the way it really treats our citizens.

What about all of the non-profit hospitals in the United States? They provide care regardless of ability to pay. If you are able to pay, it's on a sliding scale. The hospital I work for is one such place, and they don't turn anyone away - even if the people can't pay a penny. They also provide a mobile dental clinic that travels to schools in a seven county radius that treats kids as young as 18 months to 18 years old. Free. There are options out there...people just have to be aware that hospitals like this exist. Not every hospital is governed by Insurance Giants.