September 27, 2013

Ted Cruz’s phony filibuster on September 24, 2013, was ostensibly about “freedom.” Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council said, “… the greatest threat to our faith, our families and our freedom is Obamacare”  And one internet troll complained, “Thanks to Obamacare, I’m losing all my choices?

Oh, really? And what freedoms are you losing?

The freedom to let other people absorb that $79 billion a year in uncompensated care for the uninsured?

The freedom to wait several hours in someone’s emergency room for routine care because you are uninsured and none of the doctors in town will see you?

The freedom to go bankrupt because the cost of the care for your catastrophic illness exceeded your insurance policy’s lifetime cap?

The freedom to be uninsurable because you developed cancer, lost your job and then lost your insurance?

The freedom to put a pickle jar on the local convenience store counter asking for donations for your child’s surgery because you make too much to qualify for Medicaid but can’t afford insurance on the individual market?

The freedom to stay in a soul-crushing job under a boss you hate and you would leave in a heartbeat if it wasn’t for the the health insurance benefits you desperately need?

If you are fortunate enough to have heavily subsidized health insurance through the generosity of your employer you can keep it. Thanks to Obamacare, you have additional proctections – insurance companies can’t drop you because you actually needed your insurance. So stop complaining that 30 million people will now get something you’ve taken for granted.