MA: Canary in the Coal Mine

Wendy Button, a Democrat speech writer, writing in Politics Daily, talks about her experience with Massachusetts healthcare:

“Since I care more about my country than my personal pride, here's how I lost my insurance: I moved. That's right, I moved from Washington, D.C., back to Massachusetts, a state with universal health care.

In D.C., I had a policy with a national company, an HMO, and surprisingly I was very happy with it. I had a fantastic primary care doctor at Georgetown University Hospital. As a self-employed writer, my premium was $225 a month, plus $10 for a dental discount.

In Massachusetts, the cost for a similar plan is around $550, give or take a few dollars. My risk factors haven't changed. I didn't stop writing and become a stunt double. I don't smoke. I drink a little and every once in a while a little more than I should. I have a Newfoundland dog. I am only 41. There has been no change in the way I live my life except my zip code -- to a state with universal health care.”

Ms Button raises an interesting point: why are policy makers in Washington ignoring the debacle that is Massachusetts ‘universal’ healthcare? For that matter, why are they ignoring the crisis that is Medicaid and Medicare? What about Canada? Why are politicians, such as Massachusetts own Ed Markey, Barney Frank, and John Kerry ignoring the many precedents for disaster that have been set over the years? Are they ignorant of history? Do they just not care? As my dad always told me, don’t assign to malice what can be explained by ignorance. So I’m going to go with ignorance of history rather than malice towards their constituents for why they are working to demolish the US healthcare system. Should these people really continue to represent Massachusetts voters?

One other point that struck me in reading Ms Button’s story – she says she is not insured. But she HAS to be insured, it’s mandatory in this state. She claims she can not afford coverage, but IT DOESN’T MATTER. She MUST have insurance, whether she can afford it or not. She will be paying fines if the government catches on to her. Mandatory healthcare coverage is a tax increase – a big one – a point Ms Button could have made.

It’s an excellent ‘light bulb moment’ story for a liberal speech writer. Read the whole thing here.

Author: Mark