The Cost Of Good Health Insurance

It's true that I have phenomenal Health Insurance, and that most people don't.  I hear horror stories about how people can barely afford insurance and copays, coinsurance, deductibles, and premiums.  And I get how it can be annoying when I forget these things and in a state of giddiness, post how awesome my insurance is. 

But people have to remember the other side of why I have such awesome insurance.  I am disabled.  In such a way, that I will likely NEVER be able to work again.  That is why I get SSDI, because I am permanently disabled.  That's what it's there for.  So I am entitled to Medicare. 

I live in Massachusetts, which thanks to Mitt Romney and other politicians, has a great form of Medicaid, MassHealth.  I am entitled to MassHealth for 2 reasons, 1) I am disabled, but more importantly, 2) I am very very poor. 

My husband and I live off of my SSDI and SNAP benefits (food stamps).  That's it.  And the government is constantly trying to take our SNAP benefits away too.  85% of my income goes to rent and the most basic of utilities.  That does not include cell phone usage.  We cannot afford a car.  We cannot afford a bus pass.  I rely on my Health Insurance to provide medical transportation to and from my many doctors appointments.  I rely on family to take me to the laundromat and the grocery store and the drug store.  And they live 40 miles away and only come up twice a month. 

When people talk about going out to dinner or buying things, that is a luxury we don't have.  I get money once a month and have to make it last.  Often I can't make it stretch and we go without.  I pay all the bills when my check comes in, so that we are never without electricity, and if God forbid there is a fire and we lose everything, the renter's insurance is paid up. 

I have friends who tell me I should get this movie, or this book, or try this restaurant, and I politely tell them, "Sure, when I get a chance."  But what they don't realize is, that will never happen, because I will never be able to afford it.  Once a month, we pick something low cost to buy as a treat to ourselves.  This month I got glittery eyeliner for "Valentines Day" which cost $10.  That was my fun treat for the month. 

So back to health insurance.  I get this awesome, all expenses covered health insurance that covers everything, but at what cost?  I would rather be a working member of society, earning my own paycheck, and paying my own way, then this person who scrapes by every month and pisses people off when she posts about how she gets a years worth of free contact lenses. 

Maybe the next President can fix the system, so that everyone has an equal shot at fair and affordable Health Care.  My cousin shouldn't have to go broke paying for her Medicare or her Diabetes testing supplies.  She paid through the system, it should be there for her, like it is for me.