My husband, KA Muston, and I are poor. We fall well, far, deeply below the "who the hell came up with that number?" of poorosity.
No, really. We have no Kruggerands buried in the yard, no undiscovered Rembrandt's secreted away in the attic, no bearer bonds, no mysterious Swiss bank accounts.
We barely have an American bank account. As it is, we have to take the tiny amount of money SSI give us, and live on it: on K's SSI of $721.00 a month we have to pay for car insurance, gas, electric, water, gasoline, house and car maintenance, paper products (tissue ain't cheap), laundry soap, dishwashing liquid, clothing, and oh so much more.
Could you do that? I don't know how we do; we have no home insurance, because we can't afford it, so every Tornado season I pray that Goddess will spare us from ripping our house out of the ground and making us live in debtors prison.
Most of you know K had a Stroke, 8 years ago and, chas v'chalilah, we made it through (and I wrote a book about it, published in part here, and now with far more pages and detail on "Smashwords" any minute now). It still took us a year plus to get him qualified for Medicaid (with five doctors letters saying to the McIdiots that he should be ON Medicaid [but the McIdiots, who have no medical education, experience, power to write scrips or diagnose or even spell "cat" said, "No, you may not have Medicaid or social security until we drive you completely, totally insane by saying "No" over and over and over despite the many letters you have from MD's and therapists saying that you need to be covered"]).
In fact, I qualify for Food Stamps (called "SNAP" now, and, you'll love this, K's Social Security was raised from $710.00 to $721.00, so SNAP dropped our allotment from $235.00 monthly to.... drumroll.... $129.00. For two adult human beings. Isn't that funny? Doesn't that make you want to laugh and scream and do things with pointy objects... you get the picture), but they (the mysterious "they") will not allow me to have social security nor Medicaid. In fact, last year, I was in such dire physical, screaming agony (and possibly quite near to being dead, and about that I do not jest) that K called a clinic nearby, not a free clinic, mind, and asked them to please please help us, to help me.
And they did. K told them our sad tale of poverty, and they made an immediate appointment for me to be seen, and I was seen and the doctor took one look at the John Hurt-like bulge thrusting out of the left side of my abdomen and said, instantly, "Oh, yes, we have to get that fixed, MRI right now, let's go, shoo shoo, don't die on the table, yep, you're in dire straits, come on, go go go" and, gratis, these people (and I know I will come to regret saying this, because when I thank people for being wonderful, something terrible happens to me or someone I care about very soon thereafter, but I'll chance it), these amazing, caring people MRI'd me, confirmed I had an umbilical hernia that could eat France, and it was about - close to popping and making me septic and dead and they operated and saved me.
For free. The crew who operated, the MRI people, the folken who greeted me at the door and made sure I had a taxi voucher to get us home (I was in hospital far longer, btw, than they expected: I didn't awaken from the anesthesia for 13 1/2 hours, not the two they expected. I told the anesthetist that I am highly sensitive to it, but apparently he didn't believe me). I've been sent bills, called the number at the clinic, and a lovely woman who runs their financial dealie place told me to just call her if I get a bill, and they will make it OK (again, getting nervous saying all these nice things about all these nice people, but it must be done) and go bye-bye.
And so to the root of the matter:
A week ago I got a postcard from K's eye doc saying "Time for your yearly check-up!" so I called to make the appointment, but the woman who answered said, "Oh, Medicaid changed that, you can only be seen once every two years (instead of yearly) and you can only get glasses every five years (instead of every two years)."
Hah? Aintcha glad the Repulsivans, who get FREE EVERYTHING, are running this particular state (Indiana)?? Their families, and, for all I know, household pets, get free medical, dental, vision care, bunion repair, tennis elbow therapy, Tommy John surgery, free free free. Forever.
Us? The Us who make NO money now because we are disabled, but when we weren't we worked for decades (me, since I was 11), paid our taxes, took no bribes, have no lobbyists to jet us to Vegas and back and "rent" us Ferrrari's and "loan" us Rolexes?
We're fucked. Just so very fucked.