Today was the 58th anniversary of Medicare. As usual, I was there to try and protect and extend. The celebration was in front of Senators' Gillibrand and Schumers office. Schumer didn't respond to an e-vite. Gillibrand did respond and stated she would be in DC, but was interested in meeting with us when she was back in NYC.
Medicare is a limited program intended to avoid impoverishing elders who needed medical care. In that, it is successful. Because it is successful--and successful in the sense of finances--every private insurance company wants its mitts on it. Privatization does not increase efficiency. It could, but it doesn't. Privatization means a reduction of services. The private company gets a pot of money to administer it. They subcontract it out to actual administrators. They keep a percentage just because they are hiring the administrators. This percentage then reduces the amount of money for medical services. The actual administrators need to make a profit too. More reduction of money to the hospitals/physicians. This is made up for by charging co-pays. People on a fixed income will then reduce their use of needed services and meds. But the insurance companies still make a profit. Yea.
I have been conducting research and writing papers on Medicare for All since 2017. But it doesn't matter. I don't matter. Even after COVID, when people received treatment and vaccines for free--no one wants to extend it to Health Care for All Reasons and All Seasons. No one made the easy walk from caring for people ill with COVID to people who are ill with anything. No one made the leap over the health properties of not receiving bills and more bills. No one made the leap from not using crowd funding to pay for health care. Let's claw it all back and do it better. Let's get our mitts on the one health care for all elders we have. Let's start making them pay premiums and co-pays. Let's go back to the future, when elders made tuna sandwiches from cat food tins.
But the great thing--I found out there is a group of Jews looking to do social justice. Jews for Racial and Social Justice. I sent in basic membership dues--I'm in. They have meetings and get togethers. At last.