The Shadow In Health Care

This is my grandson Mitchell, with his friend Groucho. Yesterday we spent all day with Mitchell and him family at a local hospital's pediatric oncology unit, learning that this beautiful little guy probably has lymphoma. There is a large unexplained mass of tissue present in his abdomen, as well as smaller masses in his groin and his armpit. So tomorrow we will all go back to the pediatric oncology unit with him, where Mitchell will be biopsied and bone marrow scraped and tested and treated lovingly and professionally again by the excellent staff that work there.

We also learned yesterday that the health insurance which both of his working parents pay into out of every paycheck may not cover oncology treatment. Bumps and scrapes? You got it! Cancer? No way! It's sham insurance. Looks and sounds like health insurance, comes out of your paycheck in the same way, just doesn't cover you when it counts.

Where has this country come to? When two hard working young people have to worry about whether or not they're going to be able to afford the medical treatment which will be necessary to save their son's life? We're not talking tummy tucks or Viagra prescriptions, here. We're talking cancer care: the Big C. For one of the sweetest little boys in the world.


And where is this country going? When those in power would rather keep the "the other party" from moving forward on comprehensive health care than come up with a simple system that would work for all?

We could afford to wage an unfunded war in Iraq for trumped up reasons, killing, bereaving and maiming hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and Americans, but we cannot afford for Mitchell to have a bone marrow scrape and chemotherapy? 

We can afford tax cuts for the rich and the powerful, but if Mitchell does get well enough to go back to school, we cannot afford for that school to have art, PE or music teachers?

If you're "Proud to be an American" right now, perhaps you're just not paying attention.