Texas just passed legislation in the senate that flies in the face of CMS, and our president's principles - read on . . . Why do Glenn Beck's lies matter? What does matter is that Beck and company throughout the nation are precisely what is wrong with "media" in America, today. They lie, They merely comment, or read a script (but have to be re-cycled actors, former reality show idiots, and such, not journalists). Case in point, in Lubbock Texas right now, because their media outlets are owned by one company, and their paper is... (more)

I have written several of these statements. Usually I write about Philip, my 8-year old son with ADHD. I want to convince you that the pricey medication he needs to succeed in school is worth adding a productive, educated young man into our society. Even an average dual income household can no longer afford the medicine we need to be successful and healthy. I believe this to be a breach of our social contract. My country's leadership has allowed itself to become consumed with industry and big interest. They don't want a public health... (more)

Unlike many Americans I have been blessed with great health care. My mininistry has included attempting to fo find health care for the workinking poor and homeless. This has been going on for thirty five years...bless you in your efforts...Barry

I was always on my parents insurance until I got married and while I was on my parents health plan i was diagnosed with skin cancer, a malignant melanoma, fortunately i had a quick recovery but because of this "blemish" on my record I had trouble finding anyone that I could find independantly to purchase health care from. In the interim of my marriage and getting on with a company insurance plan I struggled to finally find an insurance company that had prices that I could afford. Because of this small health scare, Insurance... (more)

I am a young college graduate who has always been financially responsible. I pay all of my bills on time and have very little debt. However, when I was in college I needed surgery and had no insurance. I now have over $8000 in medical bills that I cannot afford to pay. I couldnt afford health insurance and I sure can't afford the medical bills that come along with being uninsured. It is a shame that young people who are just trying to get a higher education have to worry health care costs while worrying about how to pay for their education.

I am a full time student who can not afford health care. I had to go to the hospital a couple years back. My bill before interest is around $37,000. I can not go to the doctor for preventive care because I can not afford it.

My experience with healthcare in the past was seen as a child while my mom battled and lost to AML; Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. She was sick for 2 years and died when I was 15 and when she was 41. Thinking about healthcare costs at this point it's ridiculous to think of how much cancer treatments at MD Anderson CC in Houston cost for 2 years. My younger brother and I were still in high school and my older brother was entering college. We also paid for an apartment while she continued her treatments in Houston, plus our home mortgage payment,... (more)

My niece became ill. She is a child care provider, self-employed, a single parent with two school age boys. The boys Dad is required to provide health insurance for them but often does not pay the premiums so they are without at this time. My niece has never had any health coverage as an adult. When she became ill, she went to the emergency room around 2p.m. on a Wednesday afternoon. She was really feeling bad and was scared as she had no idea what was wrong. She sat in the emergency room until after 2 a.m. on Thursday morning and became... (more)

I carry at least 3 health care insurance programs yet I am still required to pay high co-payments when I see a health care provider.

After nearly 50 years of working in a hospital as a surgical technician, I find myself with no health insurance and no reasonable hope of getting coverage. The insurance companies are asking $1200 to $3600 a month and exclude coverage of cancer and heart disease because of my medical history. The only hope many of us have for basic health care coverage is with President Obama's bill. You can make a difference in the lives of hard working Americans. Please do so.

I just had my second kidney transplant about a month ago. My hospital bill for five days was almost $200,000! As I was on hemodialysis, I realized that the majority of the patients were low income. They could not afford health care, therefore they could not afford to see the kidney doctor or get the very high priced high blood pressure medications. I also grew up with no health care, when I was diagnosed with diabetes as a child the doctor asked my father if we had insurance. When we said no, we were sent home. I was sent home on oral... (more)

Both of my parents died 8 days apart in Feb. 2005 of M.R.S.A. bacterial infections aquired at Covenant Health System in Lubbock, Texas. They did not have these infections when they checked in.

Stop using the middle class working people to pay for all those illegals having a house full of kids they can't take care of. We middle class have struggled for years trying to keep our heads out of water, but we can't because we are having to pay health care for those people that would preferr to draw welfare and food cards. Food cards are being sold for $0.50 on the dollar on the streets to buy drugs or what ever else is needed, yet the Government's attitude is "we give them cards for food and if they sell them they don't eat". ... (more)

At the age of 61, after weeks of fatigue and not feeling well, my mother went to a clinic for low-income people in Levelland, Texas. The doctor sent her for blood work. A few days later, she was sent to Lubbock, Texas to see a "$pecialist" who sent her to a diagnostic center for an ultra sound. The results, cirrhosis, or cancer of the liver. A biopsy to find out what we were dealing with was impossible because her liver was in such poor condition, she could have died during the procedure. This $pecialist put her on a medication... (more)

as a Women's Health Nurse Practitioner, the insurance companies have TOO much say in how I practice, and each company has their own set of what meds they will pay for. In my own case my provider ordered a medication (that works) but my insurance company won't pay because I didn't try the generic first. Insurance company profits continue to rise, but they limit drugs and service for the patients and decrease payment to providers. We need a single payor system!

Health care continues to increase, consumming more of my tight budget. The local health system's is concerned with profit, including the County facility. They Try to find ways of increased doctor office visits, "regular" specility exams for skin, heart, and rectal, each costing over $100 copay. How about combining eye and dental coverage into the regular health insurance instead of having separate coverages? Reform should include national companies ability to offer local coverage to increase competition and end local monopolies!... (more)

As the son of a mother making "too much" for me to qualify for much financial aid for my education, a visit to a doctor has become a luxury. There have been many times over the past few years that a doctor's visit would have circumvented the progression of a mild flu virus, but because of the high cost, I have been forced to rely solely on my immune system to recover. It is absurd, in my eyes, that as a citizen of the greatest country in the world that public health is not a priority of far too many of the legislators that are... (more)

Finally a chance that someone will hear my story. I am a 47 year old wife, mother,and grandmother of 3 beautiful little girls 2 of which live with me, and I pray that I am even here in a year to watch them grow up. You see I'm in poor health and do not have health insurance I just cannot afford it. I have extremly high blood pressure, and in the last 3 months I have been in bed due to degenerative disc diesese, a month ago I could not even dress myself. Thank God I have brother that has put some of my medical bills on one of his credit... (more)

Not long after my husband and I got married last year, he got his first job as a teacher. With a passion for education, we both know that teaching isn't the highest paying job, but the rewards are endless. My husband was sure that we would have great medical coverage to make up for our lower income. In October, I went to my university's medical center because I had been experiencing stomach pains for days. The doctor recommended that I go to the emergency room, just to be safe. Though nothing was seriously wrong, we now have a hospital... (more)

I am a 52 year old, married for 30 years, mother of two. My husband and I have owned a construction company for 29 years...we are self employed. I have had six serious eye surgeries. My health insurance was canceled while I was on the operating table with the first surgery. That surgery cost around 30,000. I have had six surgeries all without insurance. My husband and I have clawed our way through the financial cost of this. After the first surgery I went to work for a Family Practice doctor part-time. This was a way for me to make sure my... (more)