Article on Obama's Mother

[debrand]

On The Blaze, a site started by Glen Beck, there is a story discounting Obama's assertion that his mother had trouble with her health care.

‘Once she was back in Hawaii, the hospital billed her insurance company directly, leaving Ann to pay only the deductible and any uncovered expenses, which, she said, came to several hundred dollars a month

Paying medical bills that equal several hundred a month would be a hardship for my family. in 1995, I am sure that was even more difficult.

You can read the rest of the article here:

theblaze.com/stories/turns-out-obamas-story-about-his-mothers-healthcare-struggle-is-inaccurate/

I've noticed that a lot of conservative Christan's seem to have little sympathy for those who have problems with medical bills. Its surprising because I didn't think that most of Beck's supporters were wealthy so wouldn't they understand the difficulty of paying large, monthly medical bills? Also,why do they so conveniently forget that the bible talks a lot about helping the poor? I just don't get why they ignore the best parts of the bible. Sorry, for the rant.

[elliesmash]

I've never understood that, either. They seem willing enough to collect social secuity and medicare for themselves, but when it comes to other people needing it, they're remarkably harsh. I really do think that among my conservative Christian extended family, it really does boil down to racism- they're advocates for drug testing for TANF families, and whenever the subject of welfare comes up, the term "Worthless Welfare Queens" always manages to work it's way into the conversation.

[bicyclecat]

It's yet another example of class warfare. The haves are often remarkably hard on the have nots and try to discourage the have nots from getting anywhere. Protecting one's position, as it were.

Apparently, there's a sentiment that health care is a privledge and is only reserved for those who can afford it. I find this mentality absolutely disgusting, as there are people dying every day from completely preventable illnesses, and a few hundred dollars in medical care could save their lives. There are certain things that are rights in this country, whether the haves recognize that fact or not.

[Lillybee]

The thing is I live in a city that has a very small minority population but people in need are still demonized.

[valsa]

Glen Beck and others like him have an amazing ability to scare people into voting for things that go directly against their best interest.

[WokChop]

My parents are not rich. They are, however, extremely conservative and in love with Glenn Beck (to the point where they used to salute him each night at the close of his program...ugh, embarrassing). Their attitude about health care confuses me because they have watched my struggle firsthand.

Ten years ago, I was a single mother, struggling on a small income. I had lost my health insurance a few years before, when the owner of the business I worked for sold the business to someone else. I had always been healthy, but suddenly became ill in 2001. My health rapidly deteriorated until I was forced to stop working. I was then at the mercy of public assistance. It took seven years to become relatively healthy again. If it had not been for social programs, my children and I would have been screwed. Even if my parents had taken us in, who would have paid my medical bills? My illness was complex and resulted in seeing tons of specialists, including a study at the University of Michigan hospital, as well as consultations at the Cleveland Clinic.

My parents witnessed all of this firsthand, but for whatever reason, they are still staunchly against any type of universal health care, as well as any other social programs for those who fall upon hard times. Their cognitive dissonance astounds me. Somehow they view me and my circumstances as worthy of receiving government help, but they don't believe that others are entitled to help....because...WHY??? Of course, they are black and white thinkers and they think that everyone (but me?!?!?!) who receives government assistance is a lazy, no-good, morally-lacking person, I guess. Ugh.

Now I feel a bit uneasy about over-sharing. :?

[booksnbeats]

My parents witnessed all of this firsthand, but for whatever reason, they are still staunchly against any type of universal health care, as well as any other social programs for those who fall upon hard times. Their cognitive dissonance astounds me. Somehow they view me and my circumstances as worthy of receiving government help, but they don't believe that others are entitled to help....because...WHY??? Of course, they are black and white thinkers and they think that everyone (but me?!?!?!) who receives government assistance is a lazy, no-good, morally-lacking person, I guess. Ugh.

Now I feel a bit uneasy about over-sharing. :?

Don't feel bad! My mother's family is exactly the same. My aunt had twins, and her husband left her before they were even a year old, so she has been on some kind of federal aid since then. But she, and her parents, are completely opposed to welfare, etc. (Of course, some their reasons for doing so are completely racist.) Plus most people in their family are on state health care. I don't get it.

And I haven't seen my grandfather in years, but he's completely the kind of guy who would salute Glenn Beck. He used to keep an 8 x 12 portrait of George Bush on the wall right next to his TV armchair.

[Hane]

See, here's the thing: Jesus said, "Sell what you have and give to the poor," but he DIDN'T say, "but first decide for yourself whether they deserve it."

[debrand]

You didn't share too much information, WokChop.

My family is not much different. My grandmother was democrate but the rest of my family loves the republicans

Some of the disconnect among America's working class is caused by our nation's very positive belief that anyone can be successful. I don't think that it is unusual for Americans to believe that if they work hard enough and are clever enough that they too can find the way to make millions.

On his radio show, Beck used to brag how he lost a fortune due to his drinking but earned it back. The message was that with enough hard work and determination anyone could be wealthy and that is a powerful message. It makes the listener feel hopeful for their own future.

There are many people who view themselves, not as low paid workers, but as potential millionaires. Taxes against the rich might one day hurt them.

Health Care is viewed as a handout that will take money from the hardworking people and give it to those who are too lazy to work. Luckily, my family has insurance through the military.At my husband's current job, it the health insurance is very expensive.

I think that the democrates would have more success passing health care if they would tap into the belief that Americans can do anything. A person who has to pay less in health insurance can put that money toward starting their own business, investing the remainder or any number of positive things that might help the economy.

[FlorenceHamilton]

I came from a Liberal family in the Northeast. Folks had pictures of Roosevelt in their living room. Even when I was a child, I never could understand why people would keep a framed picture of an old president on their walls.

Oh, and they are just as capable of cognitive dissonance. Although they still consider themselves liberal and do vote that way, in their personal lives, my family is a bunch of bigots. They use derogatory terms to refer to anyone who is "other" than they. Anyone who marries outside the group or gets divorced is considered "lost". I am the total black sheep of the family because I actually walk the talk.

Recently my mother pointed out to me that her life long happiness has been due to the fact that she has stayed nearly exclusively within her own socioeconomic and ethnic group. There is some truth to that. I think that is a comfort that the Findies get as well. They simply block out anything that feels different.

In any case, I don't keep pictures of presidents on my wall unless one day the president is a close friend or family member.

[Austin]

We use our health care, overall, fairly infrequently. It is a decent policy, as my husband is a schoolteacher, but not a "cadillac" policy or anything. It is from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan, pretty typical 80/20 plan with a $2000 deductible per person, $4000 per family, $30 co-pay for office visits and a mail-order prescription drug plan that will cover most generics, but few "name brands". Our portion of the premium is just under $600 a month, with his employer picking up the rest.

However, every time we do use it it's a problem. They seem to automatically deny nearly every claim on the first go. We're supposed to have full coverage for one preventive care visit per year (meaning that for that one visit, there is supposed to be no co-pay, no coinsurance, fully covered). My twins had theirs last September 17, and it was just a normal well-child (well-adolescent) check up, no procedures, no medications, no follow-ups. BCBS of MI didn't pay until April, no joke, and only after I had made seven calls during that time period. Each call takes at least 15 minutes, and sometimes much longer, depending on how many departments they switch me around to.

This has been my experience with private health insurance for years and years, although BCBS of MI has been the worst so far. So when President Obama has spoken about his mother, during the last months of her life, having to spend what little time and energy she had left fighting with insurance companies, it rings of pure truth to me. Just because one has insurance doesn't mean that the insurance company is going to pay without a fight.

One reason I left the republican party is b/c of the growing sentiment of, "I've got mine - screw everyone else". And the tea partiers have this attitude X1000. The notion that they "got theirs" only by virtue of their blood, sweat, and tears is laughable. I couldn't swing a dead cat here without hitting a conservative or tea partier who decries unions and collective bargaining while conveniently forgetting that their own family was pulled out of poverty by these very things. They cry about the war on the middle class, but decry the very institutions/entities that created the middle class. As someone said upthread, their ability to live in a constant state of cognitive dissonance is astounding and I would never imagine that so many people of at least normal intelligence could be duped into voting against their own interests time and time again.

One of my sons works at McDonalds. He works with many adults (it's a busy McDonalds) for whom McDonalds is just one of their two or three jobs. These people work like mules just trying to put food on the table for their families. Most of them would put the average asshat carrying a tea party sign or cheering for Glenn Beck to shame with their work ethic. But most of them have absolutely no health coverage. So the notion that just by the virtue of working hard everybody should have everything they need is pure nonsense.

[QueenNocturne]

When I was growing up, both my parents worked and we had health insurance through my mother's job. However, from a practical standpoint, my younger sister and I were uninsured. Every time we had a need for our insurance, whether it be a check up, dentist visit, whatever, the insurance company would refuse the claim. There was one time where we almost had a collection agency sent against us because our insurance company took over a year to pay for an emergency room visit for my sister. So, as a result, I could barely see a doctor for much of my childhood simply because my parents couldn't afford to constantly fight with the insurance companies.

We've since switched to an insurance policy with my dad's new job and it hasn't been that much better. My younger sister was in an accident and hurt her back and our insurance company tried to get out of paying it saying it was an unnecessary visit. As a full-time second-year law student, and still quite young (22), I'm eligible to stay on my parents insurance likely until I finish law school (at 24), but every couple months the insurance company bugs me to "prove" that I'm still in school and that I'm under their maximum age, which gets very tiring.

And I absolutely believe the story about Obama's mother fighting with the insurance companies because we had to do the exact same thing with my grandfather before his death. He was a exceedingly healthy man up until a year before his death and the insurance company he paid into for decades without really having to use it had a hissy fit about having to pay for his medical expenses. We ended up having to pay a group to specifically make the insurance company pay because it was too much work. This is why I get pissed off when I hear a tea-bagger go on about "death panels" resulting from universal health care. My grandfather had to go through a death panel thanks to our insurance company, one that refused to even cover palliative care while he was dying until we called them to task.

If the Tea Baggers are so in love with our current health care system, I think they should be forced to go through all the shit my family and other families have had to go through with insurance companies and see how they like it.

[GenerationCedarchip]

No kidding. Even when the insurance company does pay a claim, you're usually subjected to a logistical nightmare to get everything done - because that's exactly what you feel like doing when you've been sick.

I was in a major accident once and the insurance tried to get out of paying my hospitalization saying that it wasn't preapproved. Now that would have been a fun call - "Excuse me, can you give permission for me to get hit by a drunk driver running an intersection? I'm thinking we might have some broken bones, maybe a concussion? okthxbi" It seriously took about a year to get it all straightened out.

[emmiedahl]

I'm in a unique situation because dh and I have over ten thousand dollars in medical debt from before he was laid off. We could have gotten it written off by the hospital if we had been poor at the time, but since we were doing well we were charged the full amount. So, as if it is not hard enough to live on two part time incomes barely above minimum wage, we have to carve over $300 a month out of that to pay the minimum on our debts. That payment didn't bother me when we made $70k a year, but at $20K it's a whole nuther story.

Hospitals are the most vicious bill collectors, btw. If you are a day late or a dollar short, you are screwed.

I have mixed feelings. I mean, in one instance they saved my life and everyone should be paid for that. I received world class care, really I think it was the best I could have gotten anywhere. But $8K for 12 hours in the hospital seems extreme. That shit adds up really fast.

[ppmath]

This is something I'm really curious about. The cognitive dissonance among right wing evangelicals regarding health care coverage is amazing to me. I think most of them are white people with jobs so health care coverage is not an issue, and when a family member or friend has a problem with their health care coverage, they think it's an isolated incident or they just bury their heads in the sand, thinking "God won't let that happen to ME." We have health insurance and it works well, but I'm always aware that we could lose it all in just one day with that one phrase "we're letting you go."

[Courtneyb]

This is a subject near and dear to me. My boyfriend is 20 years old and diabetic (type 1) and his parents don't help out at all. He works full time as a car mechanic and goes to school full time as well. The insurance at his work is super shoddy, and although insulin isn't the standard $500 a month it is still $60 not including supplies which aren't covered (an additional $200ish). $260 is a lot of money for someone making barely a grand a month (not subtracting all other expences/insurance). It also has a crazy high deductable so he hasn't had a check up in over a year.

Although the fed. gov has been very generous in giving him pell grants for his entire community college education so I do have some faith. Hopefully it gets better.

[fundiefan]

You know why these people focus on his mother and events from decades ago? They are incapable of offering an intelligent, reasonable rebuttal to what matters. Instead of offering up livable, manageable medical solutions, options or ideas for the current population, they go back in time and take apart the stories and experiences of the President's mother. Because now people are talking about and trying to defend her and not paying attention to what is happening in front of them and the issues that matter in their own lives.

[emmiedahl]

In my state, Medicaid is generous with children and pregnant women (my kids got it when we were relatively well off) and so many Tea Partyers around here want it cut. I don't understand how personal accountability applies to a sick baby.

ppmath, I think they do assume that God's Provenance or whatever will keep them from tragic things happening. Also, as a friend pointed out, a lack of insurance is not a lack of care, you can still get treated and most hospitals will write off the charges if you are really poor. But that leaves a lot of middle class people screwed because they can get burdened with five figures in debt almost overnight through no fault of their own. I think the middle class is the real loser here, and these people are supposed to be pro-middle-class.

I was all for expanding Medicaid in health care reform. I think that would have covered a lot of people who are lacking coverage and it would have cost a whole lot less than the current legislation. I know my family did not get jack shit from healthcare reform despite the trillions of dollars spent.

[Austin]

Hospitals are the most vicious bill collectors, btw. If you are a day late or a dollar short, you are screwed.

OMG, so true. Nearly all the medical facilities in my city fall under the auspices of what's called OhioHealth. Our family doctor's office operates under this as well.

The second OhioHealth receives the (predictable) denial of a claim from the insurance company, they send an invoice. If it's not paid within seven days, they start phoning you, and phoning you, and phoning you. They will phone you as early as 7 a.m. and as late as 10 p.m., seven days a week. There have been numerous times when I've just paid the bill because I can't have these people calling me at all hours. When the insurance finally pays, I get a refund check - eventually.

My niece, when she lived with us, had no insurance. She was a recent high school graduate with a part-time job at a goodwill store. She needed to see the doctor for a UTI, so there was the doctor's visit charge and a laboratory charge. Altogether, it was something like $170. She tried to set up a payment plan with them for $25 a month, but they said they wouldn't accept any payment that wasn't at least $50 a month. They were relentless, even when she was making an effort.

[debrand]

Emmiedahl, tell your friend that the poor person will wait until their condition is advanced before they go to the emergency room. If she has a real emergency, she will have to wait with people who have problems that could have been addressed by a doctor for much less cost. Her wait will be longer. Then she will have to pay higher taxes to cover the cost of that poor individual. Somewhere I read that Americans pay more per tax payer for our country's medical care than governments who provide health care. The difference is that we don't invest in preventative care so we get less for our money.

Not only that, but it is damned heartlessness to condemn another person to suffer through pain and illness just because they are poor.

[liltwinstar]

Well, and I think a lot of people just don't think that something bad will happen to them. Or, they think that cancer/heart attack/etc is a possibility, but they don't consider things like a broken arm, and table saw accident, a large infection, etc. Those things aren't usually life-threatening, but they do need to be treated, and they can cost thousands of dollars.

For example, I went to the doctor for what I thought was a routine wellness check. I had some general questions, plus I hadn't had a regular check up in a couple years. So she was doing her thing when she found a large lump in my thyroid. So, then, I had an ultrasound, a biopsy, appts with a endocrinologist, etc - only to find out that I might have cancer, but they weren't sure, so they recommended surgery to find out. So I had surgery - it took about two hours and I had to stay in the hospital overnight. Fortunately, I didn't have cancer. So, you know, yay!

I am also fortunate enough to have a good insurance plan - so I think I paid a total of $500 for all the stuff listed above (office visit co-pays, hospital stay co-pay, medicine). If I did not have insurance, I have no doubt that my care would have cost $30,000 or more - money that I don't have. But what could I have done? When the doc tells you that you might have cancer, do you want to go home and look under your couch cushions for change to pay for it? No! You need to get those things taken care of right away - and they're expensive.

Also, just culturally, we tend to think that lifestyle choices will keep us 100% healthy - and that may be true for some conditions/diseases. But it's not true for all of them. You can be super healthy and still get into a car accident. You can exercise to keep diabetes at bay but still get breast cancer. So, lifestyle does not protect us as much as we like to think it does - yet, people seem to think that if you're sick, you brought it on yourself somehow, by not taking the stairs enough or not eating whatever magic food is being peddled in the magazines at the time. I think that attitude has permeated society to such an extent that medical care is seen as a luxury or as something you could have avoided if you'd been more careful, and that's just not true.

[Austin]

Also, just culturally, we tend to think that lifestyle choices will keep us 100% healthy - and that may be true for some conditions/diseases. But it's not true for all of them. You can be super healthy and still get into a car accident. You can exercise to keep diabetes at bay but still get breast cancer. So, lifestyle does not protect us as much as we like to think it does - yet, people seem to think that if you're sick, you brought it on yourself somehow, by not taking the stairs enough or not eating whatever magic food is being peddled in the magazines at the time. I think that attitude has permeated society to such an extent that medical care is seen as a luxury or as something you could have avoided if you'd been more careful, and that's just not true.

Americans tend to confuse uber-hubris with self-reliance. Bad stuff only happens to people who bring it on themselves.

American exceptionalism has gone very wrong (could it go right?).

[SquirrelySquirrel]

OMG, so true. Nearly all the medical facilities in my city fall under the auspices of what's called OhioHealth. Our family doctor's office operates under this as well.

The second OhioHealth receives the (predictable) denial of a claim from the insurance company, they send an invoice. If it's not paid within seven days, they start phoning you, and phoning you, and phoning you. They will phone you as early as 7 a.m. and as late as 10 p.m., seven days a week. There have been numerous times when I've just paid the bill because I can't have these people calling me at all hours. When the insurance finally pays, I get a refund check - eventually.

My city's hospital turned me into a collection agency before I even made the first pre-arranged payment for my c-section. I didn't know they had done it til some months later (and bear in mind, I had been making all of my payments on time) when we were at our bank getting financed for a vehicle. The loan officer shrugged it off and said they do that to people all the time, so thankfully she didn't count it against us. I then had to fight tooth and nail to get that removed from my credit report. I just don't understand how they can get away with such unethical bullshit.

[fundiefan]

Well, and I think a lot of people just don't think that something bad will happen to them. Or, they think that cancer/heart attack/etc is a possibility, but they don't consider things like a broken arm, and table saw accident, a large infection, etc. Those things aren't usually life-threatening, but they do need to be treated, and they can cost thousands of dollars.

For example, I went to the doctor for what I thought was a routine wellness check. I had some general questions, plus I hadn't had a regular check up in a couple years. So she was doing her thing when she found a large lump in my thyroid. So, then, I had an ultrasound, a biopsy, appts with a endocrinologist, etc - only to find out that I might have cancer, but they weren't sure, so they recommended surgery to find out. So I had surgery - it took about two hours and I had to stay in the hospital overnight. Fortunately, I didn't have cancer. So, you know, yay!

I am also fortunate enough to have a good insurance plan - so I think I paid a total of $500 for all the stuff listed above (office visit co-pays, hospital stay co-pay, medicine). If I did not have insurance, I have no doubt that my care would have cost $30,000 or more - money that I don't have. But what could I have done? When the doc tells you that you might have cancer, do you want to go home and look under your couch cushions for change to pay for it? No! You need to get those things taken care of right away - and they're expensive.

Also, just culturally, we tend to think that lifestyle choices will keep us 100% healthy - and that may be true for some conditions/diseases. But it's not true for all of them. You can be super healthy and still get into a car accident. You can exercise to keep diabetes at bay but still get breast cancer. So, lifestyle does not protect us as much as we like to think it does - yet, people seem to think that if you're sick, you brought it on yourself somehow, by not taking the stairs enough or not eating whatever magic food is being peddled in the magazines at the time. I think that attitude has permeated society to such an extent that medical care is seen as a luxury or as something you could have avoided if you'd been more careful, and that's just not true.

I'm sure there are some who live/believe/function that way, but in my personal experience that is not the case.

When I had insurance, I was on top of all medical care on an annual basis. I didn't avoid doctors or check ups. Now, without insurance, I don't avoid them, I simply don't have the means to pay for them. And I live with a constant level of fear of something 'bad happening'. It's not a fear that rules the day, but it is always there and it always exists. I don't take anything lightly, from driving on the interstate to walking down the stairs.

The level of fear exceeds fear of an event. It's fear of the aftermath/consequences. I was on the interstate one day last year and the car two cars ahead slammed his brakes for reasons I still don't know. The car in front of me hit him, and I swerved into the median, hitting the wall. My brakes effectively slowed me down so there was little damage to the fender and none to me. After everything was dealt with and I went on my way, I had a panic attack. I freaked out about what 'could' have been. And, it wasn't freaking out over the idea that I could have died - it was the idea that I could have survived. Hospital/medical care and expenses, who would take care of me in the event of long recovery - and pay for it, how would I keep my apartment if I couldn't go to my part time job to make the money to pay rent and who would I live with? A million thoughts, entirely focused on money and the financial cost of a medical disaster.

Most I know who are in similar positions, financially and in regards to insurance or lack of insurance, live the same way.

But, we can't live in fear and can only do our best to get on with and live life and take it as it comes. That probably gives the impression that people think nothing bad will ever happen. It's not thinking it won't happen, it's controlling the sometimes oppressive fear that it can happen so you can live your life.

[liltwinstar]

fundiefan - I'm sorry, I should have been more clear. I was referring to the fundies who seem to have a "la-de-da, that will never happen to me attitude" and who talk about unassisted childbirth, cherry juice, dental care being an unnecessary "luxury" and whack-a-doodle herbal rememdies as having a cavalier attitude towards their health.

I know a lot of people in this country are without insurance and I know a lot of folks worry about that. I wasn't trying to imply that people without insurance are ignorant of the risks...just that this population of whacky fundies seem to willfully ignore/discout those risks. I hope that's more clear :)