Central to the presidential race is healthcare access. Sadly, most opposition to expanding access comes from those who enjoy healthcare paid in whole or in part by their employers, the cost of which is borne by the consumers of the employer’s products or services. Too often, opposition comes from members of Congress, legislatures, county and local governments and school districts, where their “employers” who pay the bills, are taxpayers.
It seems fair to ask: Should not those who wait on us in restaurants, or pick up our trash, or drive the trucks that transport the goods we consume, have access to healthcare?
Few understand that indeed we are our brother’s keeper. If you’re around 75 years old collecting Social Security (SS) you are a taker, having received more in benefits than was paid into SS by you and your employers for all the years you worked.
If you are on Medicare and have had by-pass surgery, a knee or hip replacement, or a pacemaker implanted then you’ve received more in benefits than was paid into Medicare by you and your employers. You’re a taker, and that makes you part of the national debt because Congress failed to pay for the benefits provided in both programs.
One woman opposed the effort to expand access in 2010 said she did not want government involved in healthcare … but that no one should touch her Medicare. Really? Another said, “I don’t need healthcare, I’ve never been sick a day in my life!” Lucky you.
Is it hypocrisy that many of us enjoy healthcare paid by others but don’t want to help pay for healthcare for others? Or is the failure to understand who’s paying for the benefits we enjoy evidence that “Artificial Intelligence” has been around far longer than most realize? Or both?
Barry Shutt, Harrisburg, Pa.
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Publish date : 2024-08-10 06:42:00
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