The last question is especially intriguing to me because I never hear it mentioned by mainstream politicians, yet it is such an obvious example of injustice playing out daily in every community throughout the US. I realize not all providers are greedy, self-serving bastards, but in a capitalist healthcare system, by default they are vultures positioned to prey on humans in a most vulnerable place: our experience with sickness, pain, and potential death. For the docs these feasts-on-suffering supply their bank accounts with thousands of dollars each year. Are we okay with a healthcare system that creates and perpetuates such blatant exploitation?
And what if the patient can't pay? The system allows docs the option of refusing care, which happens all the time, for example providers refusal to serve patients on Medicaid. But there is also the magic of credit, and I don’t mean the provider offering a personal payment plan as a service to the patient. No, it's a credit system that ensures the doc gets paid. For instance, a provider recently explained to me that in his office he offers a credit card option to those “can’t pay” patients. The credit card company pays him and gives the patient a few months to pay-off the balance. If the patient fails to pay-off the balance in those few months, he is hit with an astronomical high interest fee that is retroactive! All the while the doc has either spent or invested the money without having to give second thought about the economic repercussions to the patient.
What would take to reframe the health care debate, shifting from political rhetoric to an engaged dialogue about the purpose of the healthcare system and who it should benefit? What actions can we take to create a healthcare system that serves human needs rather than greed?
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