Our son is self-imployed. The only insurance he can afford (and it is very expensive at that) is catastrophic insurance, only protecting him from very expensive medical bills--with a very large deductible.

I am retired and each year the cost of medicare and supplemental insurance go up more. I would like to see better health care and at a great price since I am on a fixed income.

I quote: "I see no reason why the United States of America, the wealthiest country in the history of the world, spending 14 percent of its Gross National Product on health care cannot provide basic health insurance to everybody. And that's what Jim is talking about when he says everybody in, nobody out. A single payer health care plan, a universal health care plan. And that's what I'd like to see. But as all of you know, we may not get there immediately. Because first we have to take back the White House, we have to take back the Senate,... (more)

My Mom past away at the young age of 64. She spend her last 10 years with insufficiant care. She did not go for treatment because she could not afford it. She finally gave up and let herself die of diabetes because she was tired of fighting the system and could see no recovery in sight. My health concern is much different. I practice preventative care with my family and are fairly healthy. When I do see a doctor, my so called great coverage does not cover many alternative care providers, so I have to pay out of pocket for most of my care for... (more)

it is very sad that country as great as United States of America still do not have affordable health care - every one deserves to be treated equally and with LOVE

My father has Altzheimer's and my mother has a heart condition. With the drop in real estate prices and the stock market they are for the first time in their lives very concerned about how they are going to be able to pay for the health care they are going to need in the coming years. The time to reform health care is now.

We have a small business. We would love to offer our employees a high quality medical insurance. Unfortunately it is just too expensive to do so. Our competitors that do not offer health insurance would have an unfair advantage. We simply can not afford to spend the thousands of dollars a month to insure our employees. On a secondary note I recently had a common surgery which the insurance company covers. We have received probably close to a dozen bills and now the doctors office has sent us a letter stating that the insurance company is... (more)

I was diagnosed with congenital hydrocephalus 6mos after I was born and have bore the brunt of medical costs which accompany my required MRI's and neurological checkups, for the past 26 years. Three years ago, when I joined AmeriCorps*VISTA, I was pretty surprised to discover that my medical coverage did not cover the cost for this necessary checkup (about $4000). When I was seven years old I had to go in for a shunt revision (neurosurgery) and I have no idea what my parents were required to pay out of pocket for that, but I'm sure it was... (more)

My husband and I run a small business in which we are the only "employees". We are the sole proprietors of our company and cannot afford for either of us to be sick. We are not a large enough business to participate in regular health insurance or life insurance plans and must opt for individual coverage. The cost of this is much higher, and therefore we are only able to afford a high-deductible, catastrophic health coverage plan which does qualify us for a Health Savings Account. While having the HSA has been nice, we are in... (more)

I am a student doing an internship at CHOICE Regional Health Network. I see clients everyday that have no insurance and their only option is to get on a waiting list for Basic Health Benefits, a waiting list that may not open for years. In addition, $40,000 people will still get cut off the Basic Health insurance they now have.

I pay a moderate fee for health care, but get really bad benefits in return. It seems like everything is added to my deductible before anything gets covered at all by my provider. Even baby care is not covered until the families $1000.00 deductibly is applied first. I find myself not going to the doctor for checkups, and care before there is a problem because of the costs and unknown benefits. There are many things and injuries I would get checked out if it were affordable. I am forced to wait until emergencies to use my coverage. Thank... (more)

I am on Medicare. However, I also have Blue Cross as a supplement health insurance. But, if medicare does not pay for a procedure, then Blue Cross will not cover it either. There are many procedures that medicare will not cover and more and more primary care physicians will not cover you if you don't have specific coverage. The reason is that medicare pays each physician so little that even after the supplement insurance pays a part, it is still well below the doctor's bill. Further, the doctor's malpractice insurance has increased to the... (more)

In the next year, I will have 2 children who have graduated from college and will no longer be eligible to be covered under our employer sponsored health care insurance plan. We are lucky to have had good insurance for many years, but both of my adult children will join the uninsured very soon. I'm very frightened for them.

need and economics need to dictate health care debate!!! affordable health care stats with government oversight.

I am a "Cash and Carry" vision healthcare provider. The vast majority of my patients have no healthcare insurance, therefore they seek my affordable services. When will we have a national healthcare smartcard like Taiwan, or universal mandated health insurance like Germany's not for profit health insurers, or fast quality care like Japan's private insurance system? They spend less and get more. We care more for our prisoners and Congress than for our average American. Access to care and treatment is a human right. The middle... (more)

My 92 year old mother is on Medicaid. We had purchased an electric scooter about 5 years ago which she has used at her assisted living to get around the building and to meals. It wore out so I took her to Group Health, her HMO, asking if they could approve a new one. After an exam they said yes and referred her name to a local company who provides wheel chairs. I was there when they delivered it. The cost was $8000. We could have replaced the scooter for less than $1000. Medicare and Medicaid paid the entire amount. I love my mom and... (more)

SUPPORT A SINGLE PAYER SYSTEM Mr. President, In the past, you have voiced support for a single payer system, and I am quite certain that you understand that this is the most efficient, cost-effective way to satisfy the three principles you have articulated: REDUCE COSTS: a single payer system would eliminate the overhead of for-profit insurance companies, with their advertising and profit-taking expenses. A non-profit federal single payer insurance program would reinvest hundreds of billions of our current health care expenditures... (more)

In the last four years my 56 year old husband has had 4 major surgeries. We own a small business and therefore have to purchase our own health care coverage. We have spent approximately $1500 per month for the two of us to be covered so that he can be sure to get the health care he needs. Luckily, to date we have been able to pay this large premium, but as the economy gets more difficult, I worry that we won't be able to continue to pay the equivilant of most house payments for our health care.

I am 70 years old and was unable to afford the cost of my medicines until I went back to work. I was able to go back to work but there are millions of people, young and all, who are not able to afford health care, when they access they have no choices or very small ones and the providers are so overwhelmed by the sheer number of patients, that deal with them in a hurry.

Dear President Obama, My name is Alan Adams, I am (and have been) a hard-working American my entire life. As a child, my parents ensured that I had full medical coverage. In college, I received basic medical services, as provided by my school. As an adult in the workforce, I have received full medical coverage provided by my employer for 3 months. I recently turned 32, with the exception of those 3 months coverage I have been UNINSURED (and very briefly underinsured) for the past eleven years of my life! Earlier today I called... (more)