My brother died of lung cancer only four days after his diagnosis. He was only 46 years old. He did not have health insurance because he was laid off from work. He did not quality for the government assisted health care because he did not meet the poverty level. Watching him go through the pain and suffering was absolutely devastating.Only when he could no longer stand the pain, he went to the emergency room of the county hospital, only to be told that he had a stage IV lung cancer.

Our story is detailed here: www.108DAYS.com and in the new documentary "Money Driven Medicine" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B3t74lrccg Our healthcare system is unregulated, corrupt and broken.

Part of my story was covered by the Courier-Journal, Velocity, and attached is their photo run with that story, in early 2007. Lack of sufficient health care nearly cost me my life. I live in Louisville, Kentucky. In 2006, when I had fallen on hard times. I was unemployed and uninsured. A law grad, I was shaking every tree to see what job fruit might fall. Hearing that White Castle quick service restaurants had good benefits, I got a job there hoping to tie me over until something "real" came along. Work there is hard... (more)

President Obama, My name is Danielle Perez. I am 25 years old and four years ago I became a bi-lateral below the knee amputee. My mother works for the Los Angeles Unified School District and receives full medical benefits. Over the past four years medical insurance has been extended to me because of my status as a full time student. However, this privilege expired the day I turned 25. I am currently uninsurable because of my pre-existing condition. Americans need real health care reform!

My husband had a catastrophic accident last year and is now quadraplegic, his hospital bills totaled over a million dollars for the year he was in various hospitals , he is home now and in order for him to have any healthcare, we are paying over 500.00 a month just for his premium under cobra, we will have to have it extended and it will soon go to 750.00 per month for him, we live on social security disability now and have 2 children in school, I am his only caregiver and I cannot afford to have any kind of insurance on myself or our children... (more)

A few weeks ago I had food poisoning. When I went to the closest hospital I waited for six hours, and was misdiagnosed. This cost our family $13,000.

Mr. President, let me say initially I am thrilled to have you as my Commander in Chief. I am a ardent supporter of yours and agree with all you have accomplished in such a short period of time. There is much on your plate. Here's my story: I am paying out of my checkbook for all health care and prescriptions. i wrote a $22,000 check to have my thyroid removed in 2006. One night in the hospital! $8.00 charges for generic baby aspirin! That was money saved for a down payment on a home. I am going bankrupt. I had $140,000 saved in 1997, and have... (more)

I live in the United Kingdom at the moment, where there is the National Health Service. Without this service, my husband's recent cancer treatment would likely have been too expensive; we would have been forced to consider the cost before deciding upon the best treatment available. Also, many years ago when our daughter was young, she received immediate and long-term medical care for a major kidney disorder, which could later have become life-threatening. We only paid the same National Health Insurance rate as everyone else, but we received... (more)

My little brother didn't have to Die! My little brother Eric is the prime example of what is wrong in America. when the market crashed so did his business of swimming pool construction and sales. Along with that came the loss of health insurance. Eric was sick and couldn't see a Dr because of no insurance and when he did see a Doctor it was only because he had to pay cash. He couldn't afford expensive tests, scans, etc. so he tried to manage his health the best he could. but he was sick and just continued to decline. Excruciating... (more)

Dear President Obama, I was a graduate student when I got sick. It took a year to get a diagnosis and another year to battle the insurance company. Everything was drained: my health, my finances, my will to finish my degree. I was offered a scholarship and completed my PhD in Australia, where I now live (with health care). I want to come home and I have a lot to offer. I love my country... but I love my health more. I hate having to choose between the two.

Dear Mr. President, I don't have a real horror story to tell other than the fact that I have been twice hospitalized for major depression and now am locked into a Blue Cross Blue Shield Policy that costs $5000 a year and has a $10,000 deductible. A few years ago I paid $4000 out of pocket for a colonoscopy; two years ago over $2500 for a mammogram and sono gram that I KNEW were unnecessary but, the doctor insisted (to cover herself from a possible lawsuit I am sure). I have finally solved my health problems. Guess how? I moved to Italy,... (more)

It’s amazing to me that a country like ours, that has always been on the cutting edge of innovation, we can’t find a reasonable way to handle health care. Any intelligent person would have to agree that the cost to maintain decent health care is just to high. The quality of care makes no sense, as it is almost nile. The system as it is insufficient. How many more people have to die needlessly, before we get this. I am one of many people in this nation that fit the demographic of the uninsured. In december I started bleeding from my... (more)

Back in 1993, I was working as a dish washer at Coco's in Olympia, Washington, a coffee shop chain, working for minimum wage. I had no health care coverage, was 27, and thought I was healthy and didn't need it. Was I dead wrong. While working there, I had very severe symptoms that prevented me from working. I ended up doing the normal routine of going to the emergency room at the last minute to get treated. I was diagnosed with type one diabetes. Well, that is a death sentance for someone with no health care coverage. On top of that, I had a... (more)

I am a 39 y/o single mother. I have very good insurance through my employer. My 19 y/o son is unemployed and has no prospects in sight. I cannot add my him to my plan & pay a "family rate" even though he lives with me and I pay all his expenses just as I did when he was a minor, simply because he is not a full-time student. We live paycheck to paycheck on a single income. Last summer, I needed treatment for HPV-caused anal cancer (SCC). We were fortunate that my insurance covered all my treatment and follow-ups, as... (more)

I lived in Ireland for two years in the early 1980's. Ireland has socialized medicine. I had to see a doctor on several occaitons a dendist twice. I also had to go to an emergency room, because I thought that I had broken a rib. In every case I did not have to wait to see the doctor or dentist. I has excellent care and the cost of the doctor & dentist visit was about $3.00. My perscription drugs that were prescribed by the doctor was about 400% less that it would have cost in the United States. Socialized medicine does work and it... (more)

As a physician, I strongly support a government-run insurance plan.

Dear President Obama, My parents were married for 62 years. They met after my father finished six years of military service before and during WWII. My father was the first in his family to go to college on the GI bill and then to buy a house using VA benefits for a reasonable mortgage. He worked for the Dept. of Defense for his entire career, over 30 years. After raising three children, he and my mother retired to Florida. Unfortunately, my father became ill with dementia at age 75 and my mother became his caregiver. My mother was... (more)

My family of four went without health insurance for five years. We were lucky....nothing serious happened to us. I am thankful for the insurance we now have, but the only way we can afford it is to have a $10,000 deductible. I have no regular doctor, and have not had a check-up in twelve years.

When my son and his wife left the air force they came home to Philadelphia with a new baby. The problems we went through to get them health care was unbeleivable in AMERICA. Our long time family doctor saw my granddaughter (who was only 2 weeks old)for free until we could get some kind of health care. And yes, we tried CHIP, WELFARE (WHICH MY SON WAS RELUCTANT TO GO TO SINCE HE IS A PROUD MAN) AND EVEN Tri-Care. It took us over 6 months and many calls and visits to our local congress to finally get Chip with a cost. Now let me remind you... (more)

I have had two open chest types of operations ,one for the heart quadruple bypass ,and one for pneumothorocotomy.Nearly died both times but saved by our health system in Canada.Last major op.was for my gut which twisted cut off the arterial blood supply ,and six feet of the gut died and became gangrenous.Only emergency surgery saved my life.Again our Canadian System saved my life.I could never pay for all those surgeries or the drugs needed to keep me alive.Our system spreads the cost over all our population ,at affordable rates ,and the poor... (more)