Someone I know who is 60 years old has leukemia. His poor health means that he is out of work. And since he is out of work he has lost his health insurance. Even if he was wealthy, the health insurance companies consider him to be uninsurable. With an income well under $10,000 per year he certainly can not afford any sort of mandatory health insurance requirement. That someone with leukemia is me.

I have several disabilities that require attention and I have no insurance. I have a M.S. degree but am unemployed. I have tried purchasing health insurance but because of my pre-existing conditions no one will insure me. I have epilepsy for which I take medication daily. It runs me about $500.00, after the farmacy discount card kicks in. I also have an amputated left arm and residual effects of Cerebral Palsy that I had as a child. Because of the CP, one leg is shorter than another so whenever I buy shoes I have the additional expense... (more)

Whether or not any American can afford today's insurance costs, I find that the cost of Drugs hits us all. It is unconscionable that the drug companies hold us hostage with the prices. Even the best of insurance coverage will not allow some drugs.

I am a physician. I see in a daily basis the struggle of patients without medical insurance. Specially, chronic illnesses like diabetes associated with multiple complications. I am a nephrologists and I see how uncontrolled diabetes in great part due to the lack of preventive medicine leds to end stage renal disease. The treatment of ESRD costs millions of dollars to the US goverment. We know, supported on evidence based medicine, that diabetic nephropathy progression can be prevented with intensive multidiscipilary aprroach, that... (more)

I retired at age 62 to be able to assist my husband who was in need of care. Shortly thereafter I developed cataracts in both eyes. I did not have health insurance so had to wait until I was 65 and eligible for Medicare to have the surgery.

I am 58 years old and, so far, in reasonabley good health. Okay, so I have high blood pressure and am prone to getting kidney stones, but for the most part, I still live in fear of having to be hospitalized for some affliction that will totally drain my life savings (or what remains of my life savings). Here's an idea. Stop touting it as health care reform. Frame it as health care. Under the current system only the wealthy and members of Congress can afford to get sick. If health care was truly provided on a universal basis, perhaps people... (more)

I started a non-profit business and because I am the only employee, I cannot get health insurance.

my employer cancelled my health insurance and told me i was on my own. i had an accident and ended up in the emergency room. i couldn't pay the bills and as a result i now have bad credit. this country was founded on the principle that we are all created equal and that every individual has the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. it is a grave injustice that these rights are being infringed upon everyday when those of us who can't afford medical treatment are denied it.

I want to be able to pay to be part of the Medicare system NOW...not three years from now. I can't afford to see the doctor because my deductible is so high and the plan I have as a retiree of Teacher Retirement system of Texas limits which doctors I can use...and during the year, the doctors drop out of the plans! My mother's doctor wants us to be part of Medicare ... Why can't we be????

THE HEALTH CARE REFORM WOULD BE VERY IMPORTANT TO ME BECAUSE AS FOR MYSELF I DOMT HAVE ANY HEALTH INSURANCE FOR MY SELF SO IT HAS BEEN VERY HARD FOR ME I HAVE TO PAY ALOT OF MONEY JUST IN ORDER TO SEE A DOCTOR FOR ANYTHING IN THESE TIMES WE ARE GOIN THROUGH NOW SO IM REALLY ALL FOR THIS NEW HEALTH FEFORM I THINK IT WILL GREAT BENIFIT FOR ALL OF US!

I am German-born and raised. We had government health insurance. However, those people affluent enough had private insurance as well.

I quit work to care for my aging mother ten years ago. Mom is still living (barely) but she has tricare for life and is thus well insured. I, on the other hand, being a 63 year old woman in good health, cannot afford to purchase health insurance because the insurance companies place me in the "high risk" pool. Thus the premiums are way out of my financial reach. Two more years to medicare. If I get sick between now and then, I die, since I have too much money to qualify for medicaid and insufficient funds to pay insurance... (more)

My wife and I are teachers. We have good insurance from our school district. But even with good insurance, we are not covered for a most obvious need for our son, a wheelchair. Nicolas was born September 17, 1998 with Pelizaeus-Merzbacher, a rare leukodystrophy. Consequently his coordination is so poor that he cannot speak and he cannot walk. After he outgrew baby strollers, our family acquired his first wheelchair in 2002. Now, as you can imagine, by 2008, at age nine, he had outgrown it. In April, 2008, Nicolas was prescribed a new... (more)

I'm self-employed and buy my own health insurance. To make it affordable, I have a $5,000 deductible, which means I pay for everything (doctor visits, labwork, procedures, etc.). I go to the doctor as little as possible and try to just stay healthy. So far, I've been lucky and haven't had any serious health problems, but I always feel like I'm just counting on luck. I worry about what will happen if I get a serious problem. Will my insurance be canceled? Will they renew the policy but refuse to cover the serious problem because it's a... (more)

I am a quadriplegic and realize how very important it is to have good health care coverage. When I fell in a freak accident in my bedroom eight years ago, I then spent about three months in trauma care in a hospital and in a rehab hospital. Since then I have required a wide assortment of medical help. I am a retired school teacher, and my husband is retired from Civil Service, so we are fortunate to have good coverage; I am indeed a lucky one. Receiving the kind of care I have needed would have been impossible for some. I know of others... (more)

My late husband and I lived in London England in the 1990s. My husband worked as a molecular biologist at the Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine. I worked as a caseworker in one of Europe's largest homeless shelters for men - Arlington House. I was required to obtain T.B. testing and a number of vaccinations prior to working with this population. Thus I was introduced to Britain's National Health System. It was easy for me to get an appointment to see a doctor (general practicioner - G.P.). I chose who our doctors would be out of the... (more)

No major dramatic storty here, but, it should be known that as a single parent I have had both partially-funded insurance through my employer(s) and also, at times, been forced to try and find individuial coverage on my own. What I found with "individual" policies, such as what BCBS offered at the time, was that the insurance company would raise the premium every 6 months, even though I and my child were utilizing the insurance on only on a very limited as-needed basis. Insurance premiums need to be reasonabale as does the amount... (more)

I will be 77 years old in July 2009 and am a Breast Cancer survivor. To maintain my health, I need to continue my medical checkups and taking medications. I continue to pay for Medicare as well as supplemental insurance. However, over the years, the cost for my healthcare coverage has increased dramatically. I am now only able to afford coverage without any extras. My concern is that I am not able to pay for the additional cost for Dental. My employer did not have Dental coverage when I was working. And now that I am in retirement, I do not... (more)

Due to financial difficulties and other circumstances, I was forced to leave work at which time I was only able to afford continued health coverage under COBRA for my son (about $250 a month). I would have had to pay nearly $1000 a month to continue coverage for my husband, my son, and myself. My husbands work does not offer health coverage. I have applied for individual coverage for all of us, only to be denied with the reasoning that my son has a pre-exhisting condition. However, he does not have a pre-exhisting condition, he has a... (more)

Its all about the money. During the last month I have found out how poor our health care system in El Paso really is. I have been dealing with hospitals and doctors for over 35 years and have never seen it this bad. Poor health care and service to the public is at its lowest point, in my opinion. Now, more than ever I support the President's Health Care Reform Policy. We sure need it here. I am employed full time with a school district and I pay high premiums for a health care family plan which is not cheap. We just recently changed health... (more)