With Out-of-Pocket Medical Expenses Nearing $5,000 Annually, Kentucky Woman Hopes Reform Will Help

MURRAY, Ky. -- Health care reform was a victory for Barack Obama. But is it for Americans?

A Bloomberg poll released on Tuesday, March 23, says 38 percent of Americans favor the new health care bill and 50 percent oppose it. Per Bloomberg, the poll was conducted twice, once before the house vote and once after.

Let's just say that the Democrats are extremely happy about the health care reform and Republicans are not happy at all. I am not Republican nor am I Democrat. I am an independent liberal who will be directly affected by this new health care bill in a good way. I am sorry for those who will have to pay higher taxes or premiums higher than what I will have to pay, but everyone should have access to health care -- not only the rich or middle class.

I live in Murray, Ky., and make $8 an hour -- not even prevailing wage for my medical assistant degree -- at a private doctor's office. I am not offered health insurance from my employer even though he can afford it. I have four children -- 14, 15, 16 and 22. My medical expenses are $300 a month to see my primary doctor and $250 per visit to the pain management specialist. (Read about my broken back below.)

My pharmacy cost is about $400 annually. Altogether, my medical expenses per year are around $4,000 to $5,000 -- out of my pocket -- on a wage of $8 an hour. Ask yourself how I get by. I struggle every day because I have no health insurance, so I hope this bill does everything they say it will because, for me, it will alleviate all my medical issues.

My situation is that of a hard-working American who makes less than the poverty level in my state. My husband was laid off; needless to say, supporting a family of four on income the government deems to be at or below the poverty level is very difficult.

I work full-time, yet my employer, who could very well afford to give his two employees health insurance, does not offer it and has been instead complaining about the new bill for weeks now -- on how unfair it is for the government to raise his taxes and force him to offer us health coverage.

I have several pre-existing conditions, and I am desperately in need of some surgeries, but I do not have health insurance, so I move about my life in constant pain. My injuries are a prolapsed bladder that has been in need of surgery for more than three years now. I broke my back almost seven years ago, fractured my spine at T11 and T12 with two herniated disks at L4 to L5 and L5 to S1. My back injury concerns me the most because the more I wait and cannot have the surgery, the more I am damaging my spine.

I do not qualify for much state aid from Kentucky, either. I can qualify for a "spin down," which is a temporary medical card -- but only after I'm billed for medical procedures I'm unable to pay, such as an MRI or CT. Surgery for my back will cost around $30,000, and while state aid may pay a portion, I may still be responsible for 20 percent to 30 percent. I'll have to find a doctor in Kentucky who will take Medicaid, but most doctors (including the one for whom I work) do not take adult Medicaid patients.

My children are on K-Chip (Medicaid). I do pay a premium for my children to be on state-funded insurance, which is $20 every three months, and I struggle to pay that. So I am hoping for people like me that we will see some light at the end of a very dark tunnel. This new bill will give me total access to the same kind of health insurance that my children get through the state of Kentucky.

Now, with the new bill, I understand that "within 90 days a national pool will be implemented to create some interim coverage for adults that have pre-existing conditions, who do not qualify or have access to health care." This will mean that people like me will be able to get state aid for insurance and get our pre-existing conditions fixed. In the long run, I will qualify for government insurance and will most likely pay a premium much like I pay for my children -- because it is all going to be based on our income.

Sources: www.new.yahoo.com and www.nytimes.com