Showdown on Capitol Hill

Ok...so just my two cents, and yes, it has a lot to do with the ACA and therefore is pretty much a waste of time and effort. But, here it goes...


To me this is an open and shut case. The question at the core of this is, does this fall under interstate commerce which clearly falls under the jurisdiction of Congress in accordance with the Constitution. (Article 1. Section 8. Clause 3) The Constitution clearly states that Congress has the power to "regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes." This brings up the question on whether or not it falls under Congress's power to regulate interstate commerce. For this to qualify under this clause it has to be an industry that crosses state lines and is participated in universally. Healthcare does cross state lines, and everybody does at some point participate in it though not necessarily pay for it. Furthermore, due to it's nature, healthcare is something that we all need, it is an industry we cannot afford to do without.

I work in an emergency room. Two very brief examples I have seen, just two of MANY. A man in his mid fifties comes in with a laceration on his finger that requires stitches. As an ER we are required by law to provide service without any questions about insurance or money until after the patient has been seen and treated. This law is known as EMTALA. This gentleman, obviously, had an income, as seen in his clothes and the car he was driving but as it turns out did not have insurance. He received the service and he may or may not pay that bill which will definitely be a couple of thousand dollars. I might add, before the racists start their speculation, that he was a white male in his mid fifties. Another case this woman, white female mid forties, came in THREE times over four days because her ARM WAS ITCHING!!! An ER visit for an itching arm! Not one visit...THREE! No insurance, no Medicare, Medicaid...and no intention to pay...as evidenced by her tab covering several years. We are required by law to see her but she is not required by law to pay for it or have any means to pay for it. These are two very BROAD cases that I purposely kept very broad and general so as not to risk any HIPPA violations...more regulation the government imposes on hospitals that nobody seems to have a problem with...but for some reason seem to have problems with us getting actually paid...

So who pays for these cases and the many others like the mother that brings her baby in because his butthole itches or the person that comes in Monday morning with a slight cough but wants a doctor's note to cover their absences from work? A job that they either can't get insurance because they are part time or their employer does not offer it or they don't have insurance because they choose not to pay for it since they rarely use it and when they need it all they have to do is go to the ER and get free treatment. Who pays for this ridiculousness? Well...here is the funny thing, Tea Party friends...The taxpayers get part of that bill when it is written off as charity and either way the hospital ends up eating the loss which then continues to drive up the cost of medicine. So everybody BUT the person responsible gets to pay for it. Hospitals lose money, cut jobs; force nurses to cover more beds than sanity should allow and drive the cost of care up.

The Tea Party screams about freedom. A particularly snarky friend of mine told me they happen to like freedom, as though I don't because I happen to support the heinous "Obamacare". But here is my question...freedom for what? Freedom to run up bills and then not have to pay them? Is that the freedom we are defending? Is that the freedom these people are defending so jealously? Freedom to turn down their employers insurance and then get into a car wreck and expect the healthcare system they appear to hate so much to save their asses for free? What freedom is being taken here? Make no mistake, Healthcare is an interstate commerce and is something every citizen participates in, they just do not all pay for it. By making people be responsible for their healthcare by making insurance a requirement, it is no different than requiring people to have car insurance so we don’t have to pay when a deuchbag hits us with no insurance.

That is the funny thing…we already have requirements for car insurance. In SC if my car insurance lapses my license gets suspended and I get fined every day I am without insurance. They are not insuring my ability to drive they are insuring the possibility of an accident. Healthcare, like driving, will be used, and it will be used by all and it will be used in all states and across states.

So is this really about freedom? Are the Republicans really defending the Constitution and the freedom of the American People? Or are they playing politics? Well, consider this question, when and where did the individual mandate, the heart of the Obamacare legislation occur? Well, funny thing is that it originated with the Republicans in the 1980’s and they pushed it even harder when they were fighting the universal health care that liberals were pushing during President Clinton’s tenure. Republican Governor Mitt Romney then revived the idea in Massachusetts where he enacted it in that state. The Heritage Foundation, a known conservative think tank actually supported the idea, when they were trying to fight President Clinton. So why now? Why fight it now? Why all of a sudden is it NOT Constitutional and why all of a sudden NOW it is socialism and government over reaching. The answer is actually quite simple…

Politics.

Make no mistake. These people are eating out of the hands of people that do not give a rat’s ass about anything other than their own political future. Pure and simple. Politics.

In conclusion, healthcare is an interstate commerce that falls under the authority of Congress and therefore, like it or not, the Affordable Care Act is actually constitutional and the only freedom you are defending is for people to run up a bill and never have to take responsibility for it. I have heard the..dubious…defense that people’s credit is ruined and therefore they still have consequences. The only problem with that is that people like that simply don’t care about their credit and according to the credit rating companies, while medical bill do affect your credit rating the affect is miniscule. So, so much for even THAT amount of responsibility. Simply put, the individual mandate makes people responsible for their own health, it does not steal their freedom, unless you are referring to the freedom to be a bum and a worthless turd in society…then yes…I guess us “socialists” are imposing on your freedom…