On my Soapbox, Again

With all the changes in government lately, it's been the center of topic around our household. While discussing the current healthcare initiatives after reading sections of the bill over the weekend, it occurred to me that have a viewpoint worth sharing. Of course, I could hearken back to all the political theory classes I've taken and debate the politics of the bill with you. But, that seems futile. Instead, I will just share my personal experiences with government healthcare. There were many experiences over the years, but I'll just share some of the high, or rather, low points that I think will provide "teachable" moments, as the President appreciates those.

As a dependent of an active duty service member, I received government healthcare for 8 years. My memories of that program are not similar to the type of care I've heard tale of from politicians recently. But, I'm sure they've never been the recipient of mass government healthcare.

1. They way it works with the military is that you are assigned a provider. Depending on what is available in your area, it could be a private practice, a military clinic, or a military treatment hospital that houses clinics. The first provider I was assigned was a Physicians Assistant at a military clinic. I was to see her for any appointment I needed. For my annual OB check-up, I didn't have the option of making an appointment with an OB, I had to see the PA. As was standard in my annual check-ups, this PA found that I had lumps in my breasts. I had had several mammograms in the previous years and assured her that cysts ran in my family and this diagnosis had been confirmed by multiple doctors. She referred me to a surgeon at the military hospital who determined that a biopsy was necessary. I was told that this was a teaching hospital and they didn't pass up on teaching opportunities and med students were my caregivers instead of the surgeon. I was not allowed to get a second opinion. I had the option of going through with the biopsy or not doing anything further with the issue. Like I expected, my bilateral biopsies revealed common cysts, and the surgeon laughed when I questioned why the scars were twice as long as he had originally described. In case you're wondering, government healthcare certainly doesn't pay for cosmetic surgery but he did tell me that I could consult with a private cosmetic surgeon and pay for it myself.

2. When Abigail was born, all of the baby books I read described how to interview pediatricians and what to look for and how to select the one you wanted. I quickly learned that it didn't work that way in government healthcare. Abigail was assigned a pediatrician clinic. When I called to make an appointment, I called the central line for that military clinic and whomever had availability within the pediatric department was who we got an appointment with. I'll never forget our first checkup. It was the first time I had gotten out with a new baby by myself, so just getting to the appointment was complicated and wearisome. (If you've never been a new mom, you won't be able to relate to that part.) The doctor we saw was Indian, and I could understand very little of what she said. The nurse had me strip Ab down to her doctor and she was laid on a cold, metal exam table. Of course, I scooped her up and covered her up while we waited for the doctor, but had to put her back down on the table when the doctor came in. She was crying and crying and shivering, and the doctor told me she was hungry. I explained that she had just eaten and the doctor said that she was still crying, so she must be hungry. When I offered the idea that my baby was likely freezing and uncomfortable without clothes and on this cold, metal table, the doctor began asking about how often I fed Abigail. After I described the feeding schedule we had, she strongly criticized me for scheduling my baby. Ugh... It was a terrible appointment. I was so glad that the "lottery" of doctor assignments never happened to plug us in with that doctor again.

2. When Abigail was 13 months old, we had just moved to a new area and were assigned to a former military hospital that now housed multiple clinics, nevermind that it was a 45-minute drive from our home. It was still the same gig that held multiple pediatricians and we got whomever was available for an appointment. At our first appointment there, Abigail was diagnosed with an ear infection and prescribed an antibiotic. This was the first ear infection I had dealt with as mother, and I now know that every ear infection must be followed up by the doc within two weeks. However, I did not know that at that time and the doctor did not want to see her again. The symptoms quickly began to go away and Abigail seemed fine over the next couple of weeks. Unfortunately, on a Saturday morning she did not wake up and I finally went to get her out of her crib only to find her listless, burning with fever, eyes glazed over and unresponsive. With our insurance, we could not go to the ER unless we called and received permission first. When I called, I was told to call the pediatrician on call. I called that number and left a message and waited for the doctor to call. When the doctor called, she gave us permission to go to the weekend primary care clinic on the naval base, 30-45 minutes from our home. After waiting at the clinic, Abigail was examined and when blood results came back, we were told to take her to the ER because her white cell count was alarmingly high and they suspected meningitis. After all of this hoopla, we went to the only ER in the area that our insurance allowed us to go to, not the ER in the town we lived in, and then had to wait and start the process all over again. After an exam, duplicate bloodwork and much medication, it was determined that the ear infection that was never followed up on had traveled deeper into my child's ear and become a very serious infection that had made her so sick. After a shot and some IV meds and fluids, we were able to take a recovering baby home that night after a long day of jumping through government healthcare hoops. Next time your child is alarmingly sick and you immediately know you need to take him/her to a hospital, think about all the phone calls, asking permission and and going to other locations first before you are allowed to go to the hospital. It's not a good thought.

3. When I found out I was pregnant with Cooper, I called my military treatment facility I was assigned to and asked to make an appointment with an OB. I was told that I had to go to the lab and take a pregnancy test before I could make an appointment. Once they had proof that I was pregnant, I was required to take a pregnancy class before I was allowed to make an appointment with an OB. It didn't matter than I was already a mother, I still had to take off work and sit through a half-day class on how to be pregnant and how the OB clinic would handle me. I found out that there was only one hospital I had the option of delivering at, and it was a 45-minute drive from my house. It didn't matter that there was a public hospital (in the same network as the approved hospital) in the town I lived in.

Once I finally got to an appointment, I found that the OB clinic worked just like the pediatric clinic and I would never see a consistent doctor, but just whomever was available. Since I had a complicated pregnancy with pre-term labor and an early delivery with my first baby, I was aware that I was likely to have the same complications the second time. As soon as I began having contractions, barely out of my first trimester, I made an appointment and was aghast when the doctor would not examine me at the appointment. He laughed it away and said it was impossible for me to have contractions that early and I was mistaken. I described the complications in my previous pregnancy, and he did not change his mind and sent me on my way.

At that point, I was fed up with our government healthcare and decided we had to make a change. Before I switched to private insurance through my employer, I started researching our government plan online. I was surprised to find that there were multiple levels of the program and it appeared that I could pay out of pocket and be able to have a PPO plan and see private physicians who I selected. I called the base's insurance office and was told that I wouldn't be able to afford the option and it wasn't worth it. After multiple calls and an office visit and persistent insistent, I finally broke through and switched to the PPO level. I was then able to see an OB who was highly recommended, located more geographically convenient to me, and approved to deliver at the hospital I wanted to deliver my baby. After continually having pre-term contractions, I was eventually put on complete bed-rest early in my third trimester and spent almost two months in bed. A day afterwards, I delivered a very sick premature baby who could not breathe on his own. I can't imagine what would have happened if I had continued to see the OB who insisted that I was not familiar with what contractions were.

Really, these are just small snip-its of my experience with government healthcare, and they are far from what I think people want for themselves and their families. Go online and read the proposed legislation here. I don't disagree that our current insurance and healthcare industries need reform, but that is not what this bill allows for. I don't disagree that our current insurance and healthcare industries need reform, but that is not what this bill allows for, and at least we have choices with what we currently have. No matter how you feel, find a town hall meeting in your area and let your representatives know how you feel about the plan. If this plan is passed, it will affect your take-home paycheck and your healthcare, and I don't think you'll like the outcomes.

-Stephanie