I live in Chicago, IL and my mother of age 59 has been unemployed since October 2007. SHE WORKED FOR 32 years with the CHICAGO PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSYTEM and was 8 months from retirement when her principal quit in September 2007 and an interim principal came in and started cutting positions to buy office furniture and hire his friends instead. She cannot retire for she is too young still, but she could not afford to keep her apartment and lost that in August 2008 and has been living with me and my son since then. Her unemployment is a lifesaver but she has NO Health Plan/Insurance and COBRA is just too expensive. My mother (GOD BLESS) is not under medications at this time for he health is fair and to date she has not needed any medical attention nor does she have any Medicaid/Medicare.

MY FEAR is that w/o this health care option my mom will be pushed to the back of the line when it comes time for her to receive medical care with 8-12 hour delays in a hospital waiting room. Please add to this bill some supplemental care that grown children can add their parents to their health care plan or can buy plans for their parents (within reason).

As for me personally, I have no personal story to date to tell except that the co-payment to see my HMO doctor keeps increasing each year and I find that irreprehensible but I will say this...why don't the other guys in Washington and the insurance giants get their heads out the sand. This is a good plan. Other industrial nations have implemented this universal plan and it works so why not America. We have money. I see no shortage of cotton and linen nor ink. We should be taking care of the essentials as well as the non-essentials to move our people and nation forward. Tell them they should be a shame to vote against such a plan. It benefits every American and what is wrong with that