Heathcare and Reflecting upon the Past

Before you read on, I'm not a Democrat nor a Republican.  I'm one of those people that seek out facts and honesty in decisions before I will take a stance.  Sometimes that's BLUE, sometimes it RED, and sometimes it's in-between depending on what I dig into and find out.  But most of all I try to draw correlations of current events to the past to find answers.

Below is an excerpt (highlighted) from an online magazine I read about the new healthcare bill.  The author is not BLUE and is not RED, but more inclined to show things as they are through reflection.

Personally, I don't know how healthcare will unravel, but I remember my father (he was BLUE and a WWII veteran) talking about being a teenager during the great depression and all about social security being introduced and passing in congress.  He said there was a strong division between the parties, which led to hatred by the RED.  He often reflected on how it might have been if social security had been in place when the depression hit.

EXCERPT

Miss West, my high school English teacher, was celebrating her 100th birthday last summer when several classmates and I met her for lunch.

 

Not surprisingly, health care was on our minds, and she had a quick explanation for her long life: long walks, playing the piano and, rather than taking the elevator, still climbing the steps to her second-floor room.  But here’s the key, she said: “I don’t take any medicine. I did once and got sick, so I knew enough to stop.”  

In 21st-century America, Christine West is the exception. In fact, each year the average American spends $7,439 on medical care. The average Medicare recipient costs $11,900 and has more than 30 prescriptions filled.

In our dysfunctional health system, that average per capita spending is nearly twice as high as that of the next closest industrialized nation, yet other developed countries have longer life expectancy and lower child mortality rates. And all indications are that costs will continue to soar.

We’re now at crunch time in the nation’s health care debate. President Obama and 535 members of Congress have tried, in fits and starts, to overhaul the nation’s health care system and limit the growing costs. No one said it would be easy, and it hasn’t been.

Presidents since Theodore Roosevelt—for Miss West’s entire lifetime—have dreamed of a national health plan. The last president who tried was Bill Clinton, and his reform effort imploded 16 years ago. Unchanged were the trends of higher health care costs. On reflection, Clinton said three factors make reforming health care nearly impossible.

First, it’s complex, and a majority of Americans like what they have.

Second, it’s very hard to accurately project health care costs—and savings. Remember that the estimated price tag for the Medicare prescription drug program was twice as high as the actual cost.

Third, said Clinton, Machiavelli had it right when he wrote, “There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things because the innovator has for enemies all those who have done well under the old conditions, and lukewarm defenders in those who may do well under the new.”

Put simply, changing the “order of things” is difficult because the people who are certain of what they will lose with the change will oppose it. And the people who are uncertain of their gain won’t support it.

Although this health reform may not be perfect, and social security has shown to have faults as well, I wonder about the future if we we don't try.  Here are some interesting links which give you the ground level of "The Great Depression", versus the politically divided economic version.  These links grounded my feet in reality and what happens when action is not taken.  Regardless if it's perfect or not.

• http://images.google.com/images?q=Dorothea%20Lange&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&rlz=1R1WZPB_en___US356&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi
• http://www.angelfire.com/folk/famoustramp/signs.html
• http://www.metafilter.com/75235/What-was-it-like-during-the-Great-Depression

The Water is Too Deep

Have you ever had someone tell you that they just absolutely couldn't do something, but other people can and are doing it?  I can name a few, like dancing, swimming, riding a bicycle, use a computer...and the list can go on.  I think this is deeply rooted in two things either independently or together.  They are, a lack of confidence and fear.

At work one day this past week someone said to me, "That team said it takes two hours, so that won't work for us".  Knowing that "the team" had a totally different scenario and usage, I asked, "Have you tried it yet?" and they replied "no".  I then asked "Are you going to try it to see?", and they replied "We don't think it will work, so why try?". 

As I looked at this as an outsider, I said to myself "The water is too deep!".  This team didn't know how deep the water was.  They knew how to swim but they think it was too far to go.  So I thought to myself, do they need a boat or a push, because I know the water is shallow!

After a little push and providing them with a boat, they now are at least going to try the process that takes two hours and see if it really does.  I explained to them; trying to build their confidence, what do you have to lose in this case?  You try the process without restriction to see how long it takes.  Because you don't have a restriction, do your work as normal.  If you find it doesn't take two hours and instead takes thirty minutes, you've gained insight both ways and have lost nothing.

So, if the water is too deep, find a long stick and see if you can touch the bottom.  If you can't, find a life preserver and start swimming.  If it's too far or there are sharks or alligators, find a boat and row across.

The lesson is, if you sit on the pier afraid to go into the water don't just sit there saying you can't, or you will never go anywhere or enjoy the water. 

Even if it's hard or scary, do something to make it not so hard and so scary. If you don't, you may never accomplish a thing.  Life is full of unknowns, so make them known and move on. 

Stretch all limits, and enjoy life to its fullest