I haven’t had any guest posts written specifically for Mothers of Intention for a while.  But when my friend Casey (you may know her better as Moosh in Indy) told me about her current insurance situation, I asked her if she would become a Mother of Intention for me.  About two seconds later I had her response.

I really want the anti-health care reform people in the blogosphere and in Congress to read this — the ones who don’t believe there’s any excuse for not having health insurance.  The ones who think they’re all ‘conservatives don’t need help from anyone.’  Because I pray you never find yourself in the situation Casey and her family is in now.  But I’d be willing to bet money that the anti-health care reform people at least know someone who has a story similar to Casey’s — it’s just not politically expedient to admit it.

And Casey — thank you, my super-kind and gentle friend for writing this about your pregnancy and lack of health insurance.

I am one of the estimated 40 million American citizens without any form of health insurance.

Of course, that is one organization’s estimation. There are other estimates that don’t count the number of people who are uninsured yet qualify for government programs or people who make over $50,000 who choose not to purchase private health insurance. When you subtract these people the number ends up around eight million.

Why am I uninsured? Several reasons, the first being that my husband’s job does not offer any benefits aside from a salary. The reason we do not have private insurance is because we simply cannot afford it and we’re not sickly enough to justify the expense. The last reason we do not have health coverage is because we do not qualify for any government programs — we utilized them while he was in school; however, we lost coverage as soon as he graduated and began working. Up until now we have used a clinic that offers a flat cash fee for services and we’ve only had to use it once. There is comfort in the fact that we would not be denied care if we needed it, but at the same time there is a sting in the fact that we would be paying so much more money than someone who had insurance. It’s a very shady business this health insurance stuff.

However, in August I found out that I am pregnant after years of infertility and being told it simply wouldn’t happen again. My first thoughts were not ones of joy — they were ones of sheer panic. I was not insured. I nearly died from a condition known as Hyperemesis (severe nausea and vomiting) with my first pregnancy and just last year I watched a friend lose her house because she was uninsured and pregnant, as well. I began calling every insurance company and state resource I could find. The responses I received ranged from “Well, we’d be happy to cover you when you’re not pregnant anymore” to “You realize if you would have had insurance all along this wouldn’t be a problem right?” I began to look into free and low cost clinics with sliding fee scales, one administrator actually laughed at me when in response to, “What does your husband do?” when I answered, “He’s an attorney.”

Yes. My husband is an attorney. A profession that many of America still sees as one that brings in six-figure salaries, full benefit packages and black luxury cars. The truth is that my husband’s gross income after we make our monthly student loan repayments is actually below federal poverty level.  But we make it work. We drive twelve-year-old cars held together by duct tape and we don’t have fancy smart phones or even a land line. Our grocery budget is meager and our washer and dryer barely work. But we make sacrifices that allow me to stay home with our daughter, something that is more important to both of us than iPhones, vacations or new cars. I am a freelance photographer and am blessed to be able to contribute a small amount to our family’s income.

But back to the insurance. I have options. I have exhausted every resource I can find and drained anyone I know of information. A nurse in Indianapolis found a midwife who is willing to cover all prenatal care for a flat fee of $3,000 and a hospital that is also willing to take a flat fee of $3,000 for a completely normal no frills delivery. This is fantastic, assuming nothing goes wrong. Another option is to re-enroll in school allowing me to join a student group insurance plan where pregnancy is not considered a pre-existing condition.  My last option, short of plunking down a Visa card at the OB office, is the Federal Pre-Existing Insurance Plan. Started in July, this insurance plan is supposed to cover people exactly like me until pre-existing conditions are considered non-existent by insurance companies, which won’t be for several more years. I applied within a half hour of hearing about it and was denied because I had been uninsured for the last year. I actually had to go through the entire process of applying for private insurance, simply to be denied so I could reapply for the Federal Pre-Existing condition program. Silly, but I’ve jumped through bigger (and sometimes stupider) hoops. I’m still waiting to find out if I will qualify or not.

At the end of this, I will hopefully end up with a happy, healthy baby just as I did with my first pregnancy. But I have been very sick and while there are medications that can help (I’m looking at you Zofran) they (and even their generic versions) are outrageously expensive (However, there is no shortage of people willing to commit federal offenses to get me their Zofran. I have politely declined all offers.) There have been days where I could have felt a lot better had I been able to receive an IV, something I did weekly during my first pregnancy but it’s just not an option at the moment. It would be a huge relief to me if something could just work out, which I know it will, I just don’t know when.

This is how it should be — you get pregnant, you go to the doctor, you have the baby, you come home. A pregnant woman’s biggest worries should be, “Can I keep this horse sized prenatal vitamin down?” or “Where’s the closest bathroom?” not “I wonder how many cash payment doctor’s appointments I can skip over so I can still put food on the table?”

If I were single? This wouldn’t be a problem.

If my husband weren’t working? Again, wouldn’t be a problem.

But this isn’t how we’ve chosen to live our lives. We’ve chosen to follow the rules, gain higher education, work and be married. And you know what? It’s a lot harder than we thought it would be but it’s how things should be done, and eventually one day maybe things won’t be so tight. But for now they are. And we have to live with it.

I have gone back and forth on my feelings towards the whole issue. There was one particularly low moment where I actually hoped for miscarriage. I’m not saying I’m particularly proud of it, I’m just telling you the truth. It’s not really worth stomping my feet and gnashing my teeth because I am the minority and I just happen to live in a state where coverage is not guaranteed upon finding yourself pregnant, and, yes, things are changing. There are options out there for people in my situation, but they are few and they are hard to find.

Not to mention that everyone else has an opinion as well.

Home Birth! Move to Canada! DIVORCE FOR NINE MONTHS!

Oddly enough, one of the hardest things to deal with is having so many people who want to help, but not having any way they can help. I mean, I’ll let you come over and scrub my toilets any day, but beyond that? This gestation stuff is going to be my responsibility.

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia says women aren’t constitutionally protected from gender discrimination, but people of color are covered when it comes to racial discrimination.

All those people who’ve been having their homes foreclosed on?  It turns out that possibly thousands of those families may have lost their houses because of fraud on the part of the mortgage companies.

The “Tea Party” and the GOP may be working together to keep certain voters from the polls in November.

It’s apparently okay for the Senate Majority Leader to call a fellow Senator Kirsten Gillibrand “hot,” as long as he also comments on how smart she is.

Insurance companies are doing their damnedest to get around the new health care reform law.  Their first attempt will keep about half a million sick children from getting the insurance their families thought they’d be getting.

Women still don’t have pay parity and, yet again, legislation to change that is languishing.

And, of course, the fact that those who support the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell let procedural games get in the way of doing the right thing.

Sheesh! Like I don’t have enough things to think about!

As you might guess, I’ve got a little something to say about how big insurance companies are treating our ta-tas and today I’m saying at my weekly column at The Stir, Speaker of the House.

UPDATE:  Everyone’s ta-ta’s should be happier now!

Yes, the PunditMom family is back from our amazing tour of China, and I’m trying to decide what I want to share about things other than the tourist stops — our visit to PunditGirl’s orphanage and the events of those few days are still circulating in my mind as I try to find a way to share that she’ll be comfortable with.

Of course, I can share that I’m checking this one off my “bucket list:”

Yes, I was as happy as a little girl!

In the meantime, here are some fabulous Mothers of Intention you need to spend some time with –

Kim Moldofsky from Hormone-Colored Days shares her experience with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and talking about her pre-exisiting condition in connection with the health care debate.  She totally rocked that news conference!

My fellow MOMocrat Julie Pippert discusses the tenuous situation with our country’s textbooks and the undue amount of influence Texas has on that process.

Morra Aarons-Mele at Women and Work blog talks about ther experience at the White House Workplace Flexibility Summit.

And my honorary M.O.I (I hope she doesn’t mind!), E.M. Zanotti at American Princess takes on Michelle Obama about pizza!

Enjoy!

Aside from whether the summit was more serious policy discussion or brilliant political stagecraft, I have to put the obvious question out there — where were the women? You know, the women who make the bulk of the health care decisions for their families?  The ones who make sure all the insurance paperwork gets submitted?  The ones who fight to find health coverage for their families when a few ear infections and a broken bone get a whole family labeled uninsurable because of “pre-existing conditions?”

Sure, there were some staffers in the background and an expert or two wearing skirts.  But other than that — not so many women lawmakers, at least compared to the sea of older white guys.  Of course, when women only make up about 17 percent of Congress, it is sort of hard to have them represented at the table on anything — there just aren’t enough of us!

I’m sort of surprised that the media noticed at all.  Dan Rather commented in a back-handed sort of way:

“If more women were in the room, might the debate have been different? If there were more women in Congress … might our politics be less rancorous and might our elected officials get more accomplished? There’s a school of thought that is emerging that suggests the answer is yes.”

A school of thought?  An emerging suggestion?  The funny thing about that remark is this — no one is screaming at Dan Rather for making such a wild, crazy suggestion that women might run things differently and get us different results!  Yet, when Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter essentially suggested the same thing recently, she was crucified by the  far right for being a sexist!

Fortunately, one Congresswoman spoke up at the summit.  Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-NY) reminded us that when women aren’t included, how an entire issue is viewed becomes skewed.  And she wasn’t just talking about politics — she was also referring to medical studies that are relied upon in treating women that don’t include women in the studies!

Unless we’re willing to do something about it, though, neither of these phenomena — lack of inclusion of women in medical studies and too few women in Congress — will change.  I know it’s hard to step up to the plate on that one, but surely there are more women out there with the intestinal fortitude to go “woman a mano” with the guys.

As for the substance of the discussion at the health care summit, can anyone confirm that this is what the Republicans proposed?   It wouldn’t surprise me — this idea costs the government nothing, supports the business lobbies and would stimulate certain aspects of the economy!

Photo, Getty Images

If we stop talking about costs, profits, regulation and party politics and focus on the stories of people who are sinking as a result of the insurance mess we have now, maybe we could find a way to take care of each other.  Lately, I’ve been avoiding Keith Olbermann’s special comments, but this one struck a nerve and I hope it somehow resonates with a few people in that room at Blair House as they’re putting on a nice show for the American people.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Finding a way to take care of our families and friends when they are sick so we don’t all go into bankruptcy.   As I say sometimes — yeah, I’m all crazy like that.

“As I said to some friends … in the press, we will go through the gate. If the gate is closed, we will go over the fence. If the fence is too high, we will pole vault in. If that doesn’t work, we will parachute in. But we are going to get health care reform passed for the American people for their own personal health and economic security and for the important role that it will play in reducing the deficit.”

Thanks to my friend Mike Kruger on the staff of the House Committee on Education & Labor for giving me the head’s up on this great quote.  I feel a tiny bit more confident that those who need health care won’t be left out in the cold.

I heard about Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter’s (D-N.H.) comments before they hit the mainstream media yesterday, thanks to XM Radio channel POTUS (Politics of the United States!) — send the men home and we just might  get health care reform done!

The poor congresswoman is taking all sorts of flack now for that comment with Republican men crying, “SEXISM!”  But is it sexist if it’s true?

If both Democratic and Republican women are having chats in the ladies’ rooms of Congress and really are rolling their eyes about the men who can’t seem to agree on anything, then there’s probably some truth to her point.

For the most part, women are the ones dealing with care-giving issues for children, parents, in-laws, sisters,  and extended family.  How can lawmakers really weigh in on what’s needed to address these issues unless they’ve got first-hand experience with some of them?  Of course, there are some men who take responsibility for these issues, but it’s a pretty safe bet that most men in Congress, given the generations they are from, have not been the primary person in their families taking on these issues.  And until you’ve lived those experiences, it’s easy to have conversations about the more abstract issues of health care legislation (and how to keep your insurance company campaign contributors happy) than it is if you’re the one who’s had to deal with insurance companies denying coverage for needed medical care, watch family members be denied coverage or figure out if what little money they have is going to be spent for medicine or food.

So Shea-Porter is taking fire from the GOP who claims she should be focused on getting legislation passed to help her constituents instead of making what they’ve called inappropriate remarks.  I think that’s exactly what she’s doing.  It must be hard for the men on Capitol Hill to hear the truth.  But they can’t escape it by trying to call it sexist. And last time I checked, truth was an absolute defense!

It never occurred to me as a young woman that we would be where we are today, with conservative forces trying to chip away at reproductive rights, even when they claim that’s not on their agenda.

If you think I’m not serious about this, please stop by NotUnderTheBus.com, created by the Women’s Media Center and my friend Gloria Feldt, former President of Planned Parenthood.

You’ll find all the latest information about what’s really going on with the health care bill in Congress and how women’s health is being negatively impacted by a handful of men who believe it’s their job to take away our health care rights.

I’m worried about what will happen in the long run if more of us don’t speak out, because in many ways this conversation isn’t  just about abortion — it’s about necessary procedures performed after miscarriages that get called “abortions.”   Then it will be about the military saying that women members of the armed services will get kicked out if they get pregnant.  And then it will be whether insurance will pay for certain kinds of birth control. Or that covering woman-specific health care items, like mammograms, are just expensive “extras” that we don’t need.  This is a very slippery slope and I don’t want my daughter or me at the bottom of that hill if the conservatives have their way.

Let’s not let out bodies get thrown under the bus.  We’ve come too far to let that happen.  I wish I didn’t have to think about this over the holidays.  But as a friend reminded me, we know the right-wingers aren’t taking a holiday break from this fight.

We shouldn’t either.

]]> http://www.punditmom.com/2009/12/if-we-take-health-care-for-granted-well-get-thrown-under-the-bus/feed 1 http://www.punditmom.com/2009/12/snowpocalypse-2009-with-health-care-crisis-thrown-in-for-good-measure http://www.punditmom.com/2009/12/snowpocalypse-2009-with-health-care-crisis-thrown-in-for-good-measure#comments Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:43:36 +0000 PunditMom http://www.punditmom.com/?p=3719 One good thing about this “snow event” on the I-95 corridor this weekend — legislators are stuck here and have to keep working away on the ever evolving health care bill (not that that’s going to do us a lot …