I voted for Barack Obama two weeks ago, but I'm not volunteering for him today. Not because I don't want to, but because I'll be home caring for my six-year-old son as he recovers from surgery.
This was Nick's fifth surgery, and he'll need at least that many more to correct the congenital condition he was born with. I hope that he will be able to have those surgeries. Every year the out-of-pocket cost to our family increases, and the insurance hurdles get higher. I fear that one day my little boy will not get the treatment he needs because our insurance won’t cover it.
It shouldn't be this way. It doesn't have to be. I was born in Australia and grew up with universal health care. Under Australia's Medicare system everyone gets free primary and hospital care. You can see any doctor you want, anywhere in the country. Doctors are not government employees; they bill the government just as American doctors bill insurance companies. However, there are no insurance gatekeepers standing between patients and doctors. Doctors don't need approval to provide treatment. There are no bureaucrats rationing care so that more money can line executive's pockets.
My son deserves this kind of health care system. We all do. Indeed, we are already paying for it. Australia's Medicare system is funded by a 1.5% income tax, almost exactly the same as the 1.45% Medicare tax that Americans pay. We're paying the price but we're not getting the service. Instead, we pay even more for inferior coverage from an insurance industry which values profits more than patients.
We deserve better than that. Barack Obama's health plan will set us on the road toward a more equitable and efficient health care system. Today, while I care for my son, I will be praying that America chooses that road.