Get Your Own Healthcare!

“I don’t want to support people who don’t take care of themselves,” barks my
co-worker. Yes, my jaw drops as soon as those words dart out of her mouth. No
universal health coverage? Especially, for a developed nation … like the United
States? And probably for the one that considers itself “the most developed?”

We have to first turn our attention towards the economic reality in our own
backyard. We have been through what is now called “The Great Recession.” Although
economists say the recession is over and we are on a journey towards recovery,
its path of destruction tells otherwise. In my neighborhood alone we lost
several mom-and-pop shops that have been a staple in my community – sort of our
own historical landmark. For months restaurants have been advertising
“recession sale” meals, clothing stores have the words “C-L-E-A-R-A-N-C-E”
plastered throughout their windows, and the shelves at my local Associated
Supermarket are nearly bare.

Are we really on this journey towards recovery together? According to the 2010
Census Survey
, the poverty level was considered to be $11,139 for a single person and $22,314 for a family of four. However, if you live in an urban area, it’s impossible to
support yourself or even an entire family on such a low income level. Plain and
simple, you cannot survive, let alone even think about health coverage.

Thanks to The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act [PPACA], signed by President Obama, young adults have been able to cling onto the healthcare plan of their parents until the age of 26; but, for the estimated 14 million currently unemployed, Medicaid becomes their safety net. The now jobless entrepreneurs that once lighted the streets on my block rely on the aid of the government to help their families through this hard economic time. Unfortunately, the Republican presidential candidates have all promised to launch a repeal of the PPACA.

So, is universal healthcare a democratic right? It’s certainly a human right. And
don’t democratic governments protect human rights? Universal access to
healthcare should be a right, not a privilege, in a democratic government, and
indisputably in a developed nation, such as our own. As for my co-worker, there
may come a time where she will search for that safety net, and it’s up to us to
make sure it remains secure in the future.

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