Wicked: A Personal Description of American Health Insurance & Pharmaceutical Companies

The definition of wicked, according to Google, is:
evil or morally wrong. Synonyms: sinful, immoral, wrong, morally wrong, bad, iniquitous, corrupt, base, mean, vile.–and that’s just the first definition, there were still two more, but for this piece, we can stop there.

For me to use the word wicked when I describe American healthcare companies and pharmaceutical companies with how they conduct their business these days, is plausible.

I would consider our family to be pretty average when it comes to healthcare needs. I praise God for that. We have children with allergies, the occasional injury now and then, I battle asthma and arthritis and my husband does suffer terribly with feet and Achilles troubles, but when compared to many other American families out there who battle chronic or critical illnesses or injuries, our needs for medical treatment are far and few between. Our children’s allergy treatments involve over the counter meds, very inexpensive, and they have gone through allergy treatments which have transformed their lives and were worth every penny. I have two prescriptions that I take and my husband has a few as well. There have been times, however, when the unexpected ailment or injury pops up and we are forcibly plunged back into the seemingly endless fathoms of medical debt. The only debt that we have, that we have battled for the past ten years, is for medical. True there have been times when my husband was laid off, but during those times we had state assistance for health care. It has only been while he has had a job that we have accrued this constant debt. Sounds backward, doesn’t it?

So you may ask, “Do you have health insurance?”

Yes, and we pay through the nose for it. So then why do we have so much medical debt? Because although we shell out the overwhelming premiums (which rise higher and higher every year) the insurance covers very little, as I’m sure it is the same for millions of other Americans out there.  For example, I need to get a rescue inhaler for asthma struggles. Granted this is not something I need to purchase every month, mainly bi-monthly unless I am in the spring or fall season. Still, the cost of the inhaler with insurance is $71.00. My doctor couldn’t believe it and tried to give me other options… they were all the same, some were even higher in cost.

What is the cost of the same inhaler without insurance?

$72.00.

I’m so glad to see that the insurance, which is robbing us monthly and jacking up our premiums annually, covers that extra dollar. Thanks, guys. You’re a great help.

The reason for my rant right now comes from my most recent bout of frustration from trying to help my daughter. She injured her foot and I wanted to take her to the doctor to see if I could get it x-rayed. To walk in the door of the pediatrician costs us $35. Okay, that’s feasible in this day and age, but the doctor is overloaded today and everyone was completely filled up (I’m writing this in flu season).  I knew I didn’t have the funds to pay the copayment expected for our insurance to take her to the hospital emergency room, that co-pay is $150 to walk in the door then the treatments are added on up from there. My girl’s injury is not really an emergency either, so I decided to take her to urgent care.

I tried three different Urgent Cares and ended up coming home. Why? Because, again, even with insurance, I couldn’t afford to get her in the door. So, we came home and I am giving the matter to the Lord in prayer to help her. But I needed to do what I do best to vent my feelings: write.

I am a person who fully believes in the power of prayer and I believe that Jesus can and does heal us. I know this to be true because I have personally experienced the healing power of the Lord many times and know that it is alive and well. I also believe that God gives man knowledge to help one another. I believe this is why he chose Luke to not only be one of His disciples but also write one of the Gospels of the New Testament. Luke was a physician and was gifted by God to help others in need of getting well. So it is with doctors and nurses today. I know that not everyone is called into the medical field, it is a gift from God and a very special gift at that. I also want to pause and make it clear that this rant against health insurances and pharmaceutical companies is not connected to those who work in the medical field. It is not their fault what these companies are doing and many times, they are also victims of these companies and their greed. My point is, that while I believe firmly in the power of healing miracles, in addition to that, I also believe that God has blessed mankind with the knowledge, compassion, and ability to help us get well.  All of the wellness still comes from the blessings and power of God.

So then, why does it cost so much to get the help we need? In a word: greed.

I have seen nothing from insurance companies to prove they have compassion for people. I have seen nothing to prove that they have the good of the commonwealth as a top priority. What I have experienced is harshness to pay and when you can’t pay it, they constantly harass and badger you, calling you every day and sending threatening letters.

I have seen nothing from pharmaceutical companies of compassion for those in need of medication to function or in some cases live. All I see is greed, greed, greed. Their purpose is to make money while claiming to provide health care for people who are suffering. Yet, I hear it all the time from family, friends, and others, they all pay– or struggle to pay, unfair, outrageous amounts of money just to try and get well. Does anyone else see how wrong this is? Maybe not. But in my opinion, it is morally wrong to charge people thousands and thousands of dollars all because they want to live a healthy life. Which brings me back to my original definition: wicked.

Health Insurance companies are draining the good people our nation today and many of them suffer in silence without a voice to do anything about it. I am not the first to write, rant or cry about this matter. I also know that our complaints don’t even hold a candle when compared to some of the poor souls of there who are suffering terribly with this problem. So, I am writing for all of us. We must see this changed! A parent struggling to make ends meet shouldn’t have to watch their child suffer because they can’t afford to take them to a doctor. An elderly person living on a fixed income shouldn’t have to suffer because they can’t afford to go to a doctor. My mother recently had a friend at her retirement center who had the paramedics called for her because she had to make a choice, pay her rent? Or pay for her insulin? That is a choice no one should have to make A young, healthy person who doesn’t have much income yet should not have to suffer because they can’t afford to go a doctor.  NO ONE should have to suffer, not when we live in a country that has the finest doctors in the world at our fingertips.

Don’t even get me started on pre-existing conditions. I loved my children’s reaction to that when I explained what pre-existing conditions are and how health insurance companies use that excuse to deny a person coverage. They asked, “How would anyone be able to get insurance anywhere?” Right. How would they?

I have heard people complain who live in the upper-income financial brackets about the costs, and I am sure that it is frustrating for them, but their situations are greatly different and cannot be compared because people who have the higher income can afford it. They may not like it and the treatment costs are still not fair, but they have no complaints like those of who live day in and day out, pay-check to pay-check in lower incomes or fixed incomes. How are families who barely make $25 or $30k a year or less who do not qualify for government aid, supposed to constantly pay out these insurance premiums… on top of co-payments… on top of prescription costs and still be able to pay their rent, food, gas, and other needs?

They can’t. 

So then what is the only other option? No treatment or help. They suffer.

What is has been going on in our country with health insurance and pharmaceutical companies for so many decades is morally wrong, corrupt, mean, vile, or back to my original word: wicked.

My line of work is in assisting others in need and I hear the cry for help among those we serve. I am not a politician, I do not work for the government and I would not know the first thing about getting new legislation passed to fix this… even the pros have proven they don’t know how to do that. The best thing that I know to do is pray. Prayer changes things. I pray for those in government who can bring a change. I pray for these companies to be regulated and I pray for those in need of the treatment that God will bring them the healing and help they so desperately need, whether it be through His miracles or through the help of the good physicians in the world.

All I can think of to say to conclude this rant is, God, help us and thank You Lord for a place called heaven where we will never be sick, injured or in need of a doctor. A place where wickedness and greed cannot abide… which means there will be no healthcare or pharmaceutical companies.

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