JIMBLOG#1: A Case for Universal Healthcare
One of our stalwart and very creative volunteers had a serious injury to his leg while working as a self-employed carpenter. Jim Freeman had surgery to repair his badly broken left leg on Friday 10/27. He is home in Verona recovering as we write this.
Just the medications he was sent home with cost almost $90. And that is without the $100-a-day injection that the doctor was considering but decided that he really didn't need because he is a healthy, active individual. |
Other than the fact that we all love and admire Jim, and enjoy working with him, this incident is important to Team LaMarche and the people of Maine for another reason: Jim has no healthcare insurance.
Because of this, Jim has agreed to let us chart his progress as a reminder of what is happening to the uninsured. We invite you to share in his progress over the next few days and to send your thoughts and good wishes to him at contact@pat2006.com.
Let us begin by saying that Jim thought his care at EMMC was excellent, professional and caring. This is a credit to the healthcare system we currently have in place. Under the LaMarche Healthcare Plan, this would not change. Jim still could have chosen the facility at which he would receive his care. He also could have chosen his doctor, to the extent that anyone chooses an orthopedic surgeon in an emergency situation.
The big difference would have been the decrease in worry about the costs of each and every test, medication and treatment he received in order to have a full recovery from his injury.
Just the medications he was sent home with cost almost $90. And that is without the $100-a-day injection that the doctor was considering but decided that he really didn't need because he is a healthy, active individual.
Jim's friends on Team LaMarche are looking into safety net (no pun intended) plans that are in place to help Jim through this crisis, because our current healthcare system is costly for the uninsured.
So, in closing this first installment of the Jim Healthcare Blog, let us say that this is only the beginning. Although the most expensive part of the adventure is over, there is still a long recovery period and many more doctor visits, medications and treatments yet to come.
