1. is fucking expensive;

2. has poor options (see also “fucking expensive”);

3. has enrollment periods, which are stringent for children.

Now, I get why enrollment periods exist: you don’t want people signing up when they get sick; you want them covered all the time. Fine. But when there’s a change of employment status, you’re supposed to be able to get insurance. Well, I can. But, oddly, my dependent cannot.

Why? In spite of my change in employment, I did not exhaust my COBRA benefits; so while I can buy a plan any time, he, because of his age, cannot. But I CAN’T AFFORD COBRA, in case the “change in employment status” was unclear. COBRA benefits would cost us almost $900/month. I wasn’t making much more than $900/month when I was employed.

But the good news is that I can either pay $900/month for COBRA until September 15, at which time I can reapply for an individual plan for him, or I can add him to my husband’s plan (for an equally ridiculous sum of money per month*), or I can buy a short-term policy for him, but it doesn’t cover the ONE THING that we need for sure: well-baby care. SERIOUSLY? THE ONE THING YOU DON’T COVER IS PREVENTIVE CARE? YOU KNOW, THE THING THAT HELPS PREVENT THE EXPENSIVE CARE?

Fuck you, insurance bureaucrats and actuaries. You make America worse.

*Employers don’t WANT you to have children or add them to your plan: it’s why my teaching load was reduced and why it costs a couple hundred bucks to add a kid to your plan.**

**Ironically, there seems to be a buy-one,-get-as-many-as-you-want-for-free–approach to adding kids to the plan: have one kid or eight — it all costs the same. Somehow, though, I don’t see that as a sign to have more kids…just another loophole in a Swiss-cheese–style industry.

Q1: Is healthcare a right or a privilege?
CMR: I believe in getting access to healthcare for everyone.
Q1: But is it a right or a privilege?
CMR: [repeats previous line]

Q2: The bill before Congress  includes a line to create another program to monitor Medicare errors. Why do we need a new program?
CMR: In this bill, there are a lot of duplications of effort, new offices doing duplicate activities.

Q3: CEOs are not promising to not drop people [lists stats]. What specifically would you support in a healthcare bill?
CMR: “Part of the solution on this bill…er, issue” includes competition in the marketplace. This bill sets up a “commissioner” who inspects plans. One person deciding what kind of plan you can have.

Q4: You talk about gov’t rationing, but isn’t healthcare already rationed by the private sector?
CMR: I believe there should be more competition.
Q4: What about cooperation among politicians instead of competition?
CMR: (no answer)

Q5, guy with spouse fighting cancer: Asks about tort reform. What can citizens do to get tort reform passed?
CMR: Everyone should write to your reps asking for medical liability reform. [Ed. note: Yeah, and quit suing doctors for adverse outcomes unless unless they're egregious, intentional, or a result of carelessness.]

Q6: Aren’t community and support a factor in this issue, as well as personal responsibility?
CMR: “If you look at my record” you’ll see I support a safety net…. [long filibuster]
Q6: You say you don’t want a gov’t bureaucrat between us and our doctor, but we already have an insurance bureaucrat between us and our doctor.
CMR: [Ed. note: I didn't get response -- I don't recall that she gave one, but I may have missed it.]

Q7: What do you think about living wills and durable power of attorneys?
CMR: They should be “an option, not a mandate.” [Ed. note: I agree.]
Mike Hewitt jumps in, tells crowd about how his dad had all those things but when they went to the hospital the night his dad was dying and it came time to “pull the plug,” his mom changed her mind. [Ed. note: this was pretty obviously a scare story that those documents are worthless and don't make one bit of difference.]

Q8: Small businesses in association health plans are losing their homes and going into debt when costs rise, just trying to give their employees and themselves health insurance. Oversight of insurance companies is essential — these people are buying insurance in good faith — and there is a problem with that type of insurance being sold. The gov’t should help craft state-line-crossing insurance policies.
CMR: There need to be protections in the laws that govern these associations. [Ed. note: Here or shortly before this, she'd spent time decrying how tight the regulations are governing what insurance plans can and can't cover, so....]

Q9: I’m willing to help pay for other people to get health insurance.
CMR: We should have portable health insurance.

Q10: Medicare and VA care are public options.
CMR: “There is an appropriate role for government.” But with these plans, “government doesn’t foot the bill.” [Ed. note: Eh?]

Q11: In the bill, the public option is designed to be self-sustaining. [boos, jeering from audience -- the first of the meeting]
CMR: The bill will cost $1 to 1.5 trillion dollars –
Audience person, yelling: “over ten years!” [glares from other audience members]
CMR: Yes — over ten years. Currently, Medicare is going bankrupt, so ‘self-sustaining…’ [applause from audience; Ed. note: this seems like a pretty damn valid point to me]
Q11: You say we should let the free market and innovation drive healthcare. What innovations have health insurance companies brought that help us? [Ed. note: This question seemed to go on, and on -- one guy two rows in front of me stood up and shouted, "You've had your time, now sit down!"]
CMR: In Canada, three years ago there were three MRIs –
Q11: No, talk about America!
CMR: In Canada, three years ago there were three MRIs. I don’t know how many MRIs there are here in Walla Walla — lots, probably. You have access to technology. [very loud applause]
Q11: In Japan – [audience jeering because this woman kept going] people have voluntary access to MRIs. They’re more technologically interested than we are.
CMR: In America, we invest in research and technology. [Ed. note: thought this was a fair point.]

Q12, finally: Insurance companies run healthcare in America. “The only thing I can think of that would be worse than this is if the federal gov’t ran healthcare.” [applause] This bill will bankrupt doctors and hospitals. Are billmakers aware of the consequences?
CMR, clearly grateful to have someone on her side: Good point.

Q13: Who’s going to pay for this bill? Will there be taxes on Medicare benefits?
CMR: “I’ve not heard of anyone opposing that — I’ll keep my eyes open.”

Q14: There is a lack of accuracy in CMR’s information — we need to find the truth and debate on that.
CMR: “I think we can find some common ground in what you said.” Says we need reduction in paperwork and transparency of healthcare costs. “I do not believe that it is true that if you like your insurance, you can keep it.” Here’s why: the plan includes (1) an incentive for employers to drop employees, and (2) there is a commissioner to decide what plans are acceptable and what has to be included in every plan.

Q15, a nurse: What about all the unnecessary tests? all the waste/fraud/abuse in Medicare? What can we do to reduce costs?
CMR: Liability reform, personal responsibility, reduce waste/fraud/abuse in Medicare [illegible notes]

Q16, a doctor: Cites stats given by liberals (U.S. is 37th in healthcare, low in infant mortality, etc.), explaining that different countries use different ways of measuring these factors (e.g. in one country, infant mortality isn’t counted if the baby is < 12 inches; in another, it’s if the baby is a certain weight; in the U.S., all babies are counted). This affects life expectancy. [His point being that the stats are useless, that U.S. healthcare isn't really that bad.]
CMR: “Thank you.”

Q17, a woman in a wheelchair: I love this country and the people who have fought for it. [applause] I’m concerned on where it is headed. I’ve heard that if this bill passes, there’s no way to get rid of it. Is that true?
CMR: “It would be very difficult. Not impossible, but very difficult.”
Q17: “What can we do to keep it from passing in its present form?”
CMR: “I think I need to take you to Washington, D.C.” [applause]

Q18: What type of programs do you support to help people take care of themselves? [audience boos]
CMR: Personal responsibility. [Ed. note: Look, I'm not in shape, but I could still see the irony of the hundreds of obese people in the audience applauding this.] Tells story of joining a local program to track BMI and weight, at least until she got pregnant.

Q19, a recent college grad: Why can’t the federal option compete with private insurance?
CMR: “Let’s see, how can I say this clearer.” [Ed. note: wow, that was condescending.] About 50% of Americans are on gov’t plans, which don’t cover the costs, i.e. they don’t reimburse the providers for the costs incurred. The impact of that is that doctors will leave, so how can the gov’t cover 100 million people [Ed. note: Although there are about 46 million uninsured people in the U.S., CMR stated earlier that she believes enough employers will quit offering health insurance so as to cause the number of people who need/want the gov't option to be about 118 million.] If this happens, then the gov’t becomes the dominating force in healthcare.
Q19: How would you regulate costs? For people like me, recent college grads, we can’t afford the high deductibles.
CMR: Portable healthcare. [Ed. note: WTF? How will that solve the high deductible problem?] Tells about how Basic Health in WA state was started, just covering “the basics,” and how it has been amended and added to so many times that it is now apparently unwieldy and covers too much; she adds that Basic Health covers maternity for everyone, then gestures to Sen. Hewitt, saying, “I don’t think Sen. Hewitt will ever need this.” The point being that if this plan can be enlarged so much, the same thing would happen to a gov’t plan. [Ed. note: my interpretation] And private companies are now tying their reimbursement rates to Medicare’s rates, which are too low and do not cover costs.

Q20: What about people with pre-existing conditions and young people? How do we get insurance?
CMR: We need to have safety nets — that’s part of the solution. [Ed. note: This gets my vote for lamest answer of the meeting.]

Q21: Why can’t you work with people in Congress instead of voting no — not all of these issues (e.g. tort reform) are mutually exclusive. [Ed. note: Best point of the night! Okay, stop there and let her answer it!] Also, [Ed. note: NOOOOOOOOOO!] I have friends in medical school that will graduate with $200k in debt. How will they make that back?
CMR: There is a healthcare personnel shortage in the U.S. We need to expand the WWAMI program, and we need rural care programs that pay off doctors’ loans. “Medicare limits doctor slots in this country.” Have to ask Medicare to increase slots. [Ed. note: Eh? And of course she didn't acknowledge the first question.]

Q22, a woman who lost her 16-month-old to medical malpractice, so she says, and chose not to sue; also a small-business owner with 16 employees: [Ed. note: I couldn't follow her story very well, and I got the sense that others couldn't either, although everyone undoubtedly felt some empathy for mer. However, I got the sense that she was very smug for not having sued a doctor, even though many lawyers apparently assured her it was a winning case. Eventually, she segued into her small business.] I have a payroll of $250k, and under the plan, I will have a 6% tax increase. How am I going to decide which employee to lay off to pay for this? Eenie, meenie, minie, mo?
CMR: Good for you. Small business is what this country was built on, etc.

Q23, named Dick Ingram, a WWII vet [standing ovation]: I’m concerned about the proposed cuts in Medicaid funding. Also Tricare. If Medicare goes bankrupt, what happens to me?
CMR: “Thank you for your service to this country.” You are part of what we call the “greatest generation.” We’ll make sure you have it.

Q24: Out of pocket costs are high, and much of that money goes out of state. Insurance doesn’t cover a lot, and doctors don’t take a lot of plans. You say we can always go to the ER for care, but if we do, we also get stuck with the bill for it. And if we don’t pay it, it goes to collections, and then it’s with us for the rest of our lives.
CMR: Something about how car insurance is required, and we pay a premium for people who don’t have it. [Ed. note: Eh?] Also, you should have access to choices.

Q25: People who are here illegally should not receive medical care. [applause; Ed. note: WTF, LADY. Do YOU want to be the doctor who says, "Oh, I see you're bleeding to death. Well, we'll get to that. But first, I see you have dark skin and a funny accent -- let me see your papers!" Yeah, THAT'S SUCH A GREAT IDEA. Make healthcare providers -- who have sworn an oath to "first, do no harm" -- law enforcement officers. How could that possibly go wrong?! Lady, you get my vote for dumbest person here, and that pretty much goes for all you classists and racists who applauded.] I pay $500/mo for medical care — we are losing our freedoms in this country! [applause]
CMR: “America is worth fighting for.” [Ed. note: While I wish she'd called out the lady on her crazy, a polite response and moving on seemed like an okay way to handle it, too.

Q26: I notice we didn't begin this meeting with the pledge of allegiance, and I'm concerned. It's being taken out of schools -- why has it disappeared? [applause]
CMR: Good point, and I’ll have you know that I was at Edison Elementary School this morning where I presented them a flag that had flown over the Capitol, and we started our day with the pledge. But that would be a good way to close this program. Thanks for coming everyone. [everyone stands; "Tea Party Official" in front row unfurls flag; audience repeats the pledge]

I arrived at WWCC at about 2:30 p.m., camera and reporter’s notebook in hand. And coffee — iced coffee. Outside the building was a small Planned Parenthood demonstration; I saw no right-wing demonstrators. I was interviewed by a reporter at Whitman, so I’ve got my fingers crossed tight that I make it into the Pioneer. I heard a few people say that the demonstrators were bused in from Seattle, but a reliable source said they’re a local group.

Inside, the gym was covered with sound-proofing fabric. A small stage was set up, and in front of it were two long rows of chairs (approx. 50 chairs per row), and then bleachers. I’d say there were roughly 400 people there.

Audience observations:

• Probably 66% of the audience was seniors.
• Definitely 99.9% of the audience was white, and I mean pasty white — I think I may have been one of the few with dark hair and skin (thanks, sunshine! I has a tan!). I saw two other people who may have been ethnic minorities.
• The first two rows of chairs filled quickly, and let me say that it was poor thinking to have seniors sitting on bleachers. Bad, bad planning.
• Probably 75% of the audience was politically conservative and/or Republican, but there was a very vocal, albeit much smaller, liberal crowd.
• My initial thought was that the questions were evenly weighted, with perhaps slightly more (55%?) questions from pro-public-healthcare constituents.
• The constituents who asked questions seemed to range in age from about 20 to precisely 92 (a charming WWII vet), with a large number under age 65, rather disproportionate to the audience age range.

Anyway, that’s what I saw. I could be mistaken in some observations — I was sitting quite in the middle, so couldn’t see everyone well. Oh, I should add — it wasn’t ever referenced, but on stage was that crazy flowchart Republicans have been using to mislead — er, inform? — constituents:

It was also available in handout form, although god bless the conservatives, they save money by printing in black and white. Anyway, the women in front of me were looking at it and one said, “This is how our healthcare is gonna flow.” (Actually, ladies, by the looks of it, you’re on Medicare, so I’d say no, your healthcare won’t flow that way. In fact I rather doubt that anyone’s will.) She went on: “Look, Medicaid is up here, and Medicare is all the way down here.” (Because yeah, that spatial relationship is a reliable indicator….)

The meeting opened with a welcome from some person, followed by some remarks from Mike Hewitt, who first told some joke about how he and CMR aren’t politicians, they’re just “lawmakers” because they haven’t been to jail yet (ba dum-dum ching?), and who wanted people to know the following:

• There is currently no check and balance in Congress. (I think that he thought this was a bad thing?)
• Washington state is outspending the money that is coming in, and that, too, is a bad thing. Federal stimulus money helped stopper that this year, but we can’t expect that in years to come.
• Apparently, this state is moving toward a “one-payer” health system, which is news to me since I tried to get on Basic Health but can’t because there’s a wait list.

Hewitt also had the distinction of making the following joke about how much we agree or disagree with  politicians, saying that it’s kind of like marriage: maybe you only agree 70% of the time, or 80% of the time. To illustrate this, he added, It’s like your wife saying (and quotes here are word-for-word), “Honey, I don’t like the way you voted,” and me telling her, “Well I don’t like the way you do your hair.”

[chelsey's jaw falls open as she tries to swallow the irony in that particular line of reasoning]

This was followed by CMR giving a speech, and I wish we were playing Right-Wing Talking Point Bingo because I would’ve won in one minute. Following are some highlights:

• We do need healthcare reform, but we need to do it right.
• You want to do the right thing, not just “something.”
• Current plan will “jeopardize doctor/patient relationship”
• It will “put a bureaucrat between you and your doctor”
• We don’t want to ask bureaucrats to make our decisions
• The plan increases costs and will cause $400 billion in cuts to Medicare
• The plan will force millions off their private insurance
• The plan will be paid for in one of two ways: (1) raising taxes, and/or (2) rationing care.
• The federal gov’t is cutting reimbursements to providers
• Something about how medical liability costs need to be reined in (tort reform, I think)
• We need to help small businesses afford health insurance for their workers
• We need portable health insurance you can carry from job to job and state to state
• We need to take personal responsibility for ourselves

And now, Lucy needs the bathroom and Matt wants to work on the fence. One of these things will happen. I’ll publish a second installment with the Q&A in a bit.

Dear Chelsey,

Thank you for contacting me regarding health care reform. It is an honor to represent the people of Eastern Washington and I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with me.

I’ll bet. I also love the “Thank you for contacting me regarding” part because, just like my name in the greeting, I know the next part, “health care reform” is the field I had to choose when I sent the e-mail. Hooray for form letters! And databases!

Access to quality and affordable health care is one of my top priorities in Congress. In rural areas like Eastern Washington, access is even more difficult due to geographical challenges and a shortage of medical professionals in rural areas. I am working hard to ensure that Congress increases funding to train additional nurses, doctors and allied health care professionals.

Citation needed.

Also, *yawn*

Although, there are a number of serious issues that must be addressed to ensure affordability and access, we should not sacrifice what has been the best health care system in the world for the frustrations and weaknesses of a one-sized fits all [sic] government-run health care delivery system.

Best? Citation needed.

But don’t let me miss the next good stuff: How, exactly, Ms. McMorris Rodgers, is it a one-size-fits-all system? Creating another option is not one-size-fits-all. Nor is the government going to deliver healthcare — I believe they will “administer” it — oh, hey — LIKE THE ONES THEY’RE ALREADY RUNNING: Medicare, Medicaid, and VA. Which is to say, it’s not perfect but at least it’s accessible (…for the people who qualify). Perhaps instead of misleading your constituents about the type of care being offered, you work on improving the one on the table so it doesn’t have the pitfalls of the current gov’t options.

I recognize that sky-rocketing insurance costs are causing more and more people to forego such coverage. These individuals face significant obstacles in the health insurance marketplace such as increasing costs, limited choices of insurers and inflexible benefit options. Almost two-thirds of the uninsured are the working poor, who cite the high cost of insurance as the main hurdle to health care coverage. One of the problems that drive insurance coverage to unreachable costs is excessive state regulation.

How is that, exactly?

Some believe the government has the answers to America‘s health care problems. They believe these issues can be solved by spending more money and greatly expanding the role of federal government; however, this is not the answer. Americans value choice and control over their health care decisions and greater government involvement in our health sector would lead to higher costs, fewer medical discoveries and treatments, delays in access to care, and excessive and expensive increase in paperwork and bureaucracy. Last year, more than 800,000 Canadians were waiting for health procedures for nearly 18 weeks on average and in a 2003 study far more Americans were satisfied with their health care than Canadians.

Okay, a couple things: One, I am so tired of the mischaracterization that people who aren’t Republicans want to “spend money.” It’s not true. I don’t like spending money myself, but I like things to work well and efficiently. Sometimes, such as when buying a computer to research and write, or a dishwasher to clean my plates, efficiency and access cost money. That is why we spend money. And sometimes — often, even — it is not money well spent. That is when we can use fiscal conservativism to check and balance what is working and what isn’t.You should be checking and balancing, not actively preventing people like me from being able to afford health insurance. Personally, I’m no fan of the plan — I need to keep reading up on it, but it seems very unwieldy — and I’d prefer you to spend your time improving it, not killing it.

Two, as to greater gov’t involvement leading to higher costs, fewer discoveries, delays in access, etc., I’d like to know first of all what evidence you have of that, and then I’d like to point out that you’re making an assumption about it because you don’t want it to work.

Three, it’s insulting to me that you think I’d fall for comparing the Democrats’ plan to the Canadian single-payer system. That is not what’s being proposed — it’s not even an option, though I think it’s a good one, because we could improve on the Canadians’ plan. This is entirely misleading — actually, no, it’s a lie.Quit lying to us. That’s not what we elected you to do.

I have introduced legislation to improve access, affordability, quality, accountability and choice, while reducing costs in health care as a viable alternative to a government-run all health care system for America. Since coming to Congress, I have supported legislation to allow individuals to purchase health insurance from other states, to allow small businesses to band together to offer health coverage to their employees and to eliminate tax code discrimination against people who do not get health insurance from their employer. The bill makes refundable tax credits available to all Americans, regardless of job status.

Uh-huh? And how has that worked out?

The bills I have supported in the past, and those I will continue to support, will increase access to quality and affordable health care, without expanding the federal government’s role. To create a governmental single payer system perhaps may allow more people to be covered; but I believe that it could seriously jeopardize the quality of care delivered.

OMG IT’S NOT A SINGLE-PAYER SYSTEM being proposed.

Thanks again for contacting me on this very important issue. As your Representative in Congress, I am committed to putting the best interests of Eastern Washington first, working to restore trust, solving our growing energy needs with American energy sources and innovation, challenging each one of us to make healthy choices, and ensuring we have an education system which maximizes the potential of every child. I invite you to visit my website at www.mcmorrisrodgers.house.gov for additional information or to sign up to be kept up to date on these issues. Please do not hesitate to contact my office if I can be of further assistance.

*yawn* Filler.

Best Wishes,

Cathy McMorris Rodgers

Member of Congress

The thing that gets to me is that for as many valid pitfalls and loopholes and issues as there are with the current plan, my representative’s method of trying to sway my opinion is misinformation, not valid argument. It’s insulting, really.