Michael Moore's Latest: Sicko

Michael Moore, known for his hard hitting political documentaries, is striking again. But this new film, "Sicko", is not about politics, or the Bush administration, it is about health care in the USA, and why so many people die from lack of coverage when many other countries take better care of their citizens.

While Moore has been known to confront big corporations, like General Motors in "Roger & Me," the gun industry in "Bowling for Columbine," and the Bush administration in "Fahrenheit 9/11", with "Sicko" he ultimately confronts only the American peoples growing indifference. There is no chasing down Health Care executives for controversial interviews, there is a clear statement of the facts, and how they effect every American, as well as showing those systems which work far better like those in France, Canada and Cuba.

According to Moore, 50 million Americans have no health insurance, 9 million of them children, and millions of others are underinsured. Every year millions of people are denied coverage for life and death surgeries, medications, and tests with millions choosing between necessary medications and food every day.

According to "Sicko" the healthcare system of the United States is ranked as 37th.

"When I saw that," Michael says, "[I thought]-I'm an American. I live in the greatest country on earth. I live in the wealthiest country on earth. We're number 37?"

Being insured is only half the battle for those with insurance run the risk of being denied coverage. The trouble is the model for healthcare in the United States which demands that some people be denied coverage. If they are not denied then the companies will not gain profit.

"And let me say a word in their [the health companies] defense," Michael said. "The law demands and requires that a corporation like a health insurance company maximize the profits for the shareholders, and if they don't do that, they're violating the law. ... If they are required by law to make a profit, and the only way they can make a profit is by denying claims or cutting people off of their insurance or never taking them on in the first place, then that's not good for us."

On Oprah a clip from the film showed Linda Peeno, a former medical director at a major health insurance corporation. She testified before congress about her job in the medical industry and how she used her medical credentials to deny as many claims as possible, thus securing her position as medical director. She testified that her actions lead to the deaths of some, and no one ever held her accountable. For that reason she came forward herself and spoke up before congress.

Said Moore: "Twelve thousand babies this year are going to die because they didn't have health insurance, whereas if they were in Germany or France or another country, they'd live. ... And the only reason that they're dying is because they're an American? I just think there's something wrong with that."

Some will say that having "socialized" (universal) medicine is un-American, but Moore reminds us that we have other institutions that are paid in the same manner including fire departments, police departments, libraries, and schools. Is the health of millions of Americans as important as these other public services?

One clip from the film showed workers and volunteers helping at the site of the 9-11 attacks. Many of those who worked to save lives, clear debris, and recover bodies later developed lung and other health problems because of debris in the air. After they spent weeks helping New York citizens the volunteers were left with their health issues, denied coverage because they were not official employees of New York City.

Michael Moore took three of the volunteers, now afflicted with lung problems, to Guantanamo Bay. There, on US soil, alleged Al Qaeda detainees are held and given complete, and free health care.

When Moore and crew could not land on American soil at Gitmo they sailed to Cuba to see what kind of medical care they would receive there. The three American 9-11 volunteers were given excellent care by the Cuban doctors, and it was free.

Because of his detour to Cuba Moore is under investigation for violation of embargo statutes. He believes that it is not because of his Cuban visit that he is under investigation, rather because he is pointing out to millions of Americans "something that's very wrong with our system, that we have 50 million who are not insured. We have 250 million who have insurance and need to worry about [whether] their insurance is going to pay the big bills someday," he says. "We need healthcare guaranteed for every American. Remove the profit from the system."

During the research and filming of this movie Moore lost a reported 25 lbs. because, he said, "one way to fight the system is to take better care of yourself."

On a personal note, my family has health insurance and I know it covers only a small fraction of my medical bills, and none of my prescriptions. I am also one of thousands of Americans that have been put through bankruptcy each year because of medical bills. We've also been forced onto medical for emergency surgery even with insurance.

37th is no place to be. I, for one, will be going to see "Sicko" when it comes out June 29th.