A close friend of the family recently got some bad news. She was told that gum disease and bone loss had caused her five molars to be infected. The only recourse was to have them all pulled out. Even gum surgery would not help at this point. She learned a few years ago, from her visit to the hygienist, that the condition of her gums, coupled with bone loss, was not good. Yet, she could not afford the (outrageous) cost of around $7,000 to have the work done. So, like many in her financial position, she did the best she could by using the waterpik with hydrogen peroxide and regular flossing, etc. If she had even decent dental insurance, at a reasonable cost, perhaps she would not be in her current situation.
This writer can sympathize with the fact she already had three teeth pulled. I myself have four such spaces where a tooth used to be. Why? Well, the cost of having a tooth pulled ($150 to $250) is not the same as $1000+ for a root canal and $1000 + for a crown. Or, how about $2500 for an implant? How many more of us out there are walking around with similar dental situations? Yet, so few of us will demand to have government do what governments were actually set up to accomplish: be our safety net when troubles arise.
As far as medical care goes, Obamacare only helps those not earning much at all, and even that help is very limited. Obama and his party could have “gone for the gusto” and used “the bully pulpit” to rally public support for an extension of Medicare for any American who wished to buy in. At the same time they could have insisted on including dental care in the mix. The actual cost to the consumer would be much lower and with much better coverage than under any private insurance plan, except of course a Cadillac plan that only the very few can afford.
Alas, our corporate empire controlling our two-party system would never allow such an idea to flower and grow. Obama in 2008, when he ran for president, received almost three times more in donations than McCain received from the health care industry. Does anyone then wonder why Obama turned away from a single payer plan as quickly as he did? The real sin of it all is the subject of deductibles. Yes, perhaps the charge for a doctor visit is nonexistent or with a very low co-pay, but what happens if you need hospitalization or surgery? How much money must come out of your pocket before the insurance kicks in? If your deductible is less than $2,000, then you have a better plan than the majority of Americans. One would surmise that your deductible is most likely well over $2,000. Check it out.
We have a situation in America whereupon our local towns, cities and states are out of funding for basic services. New York City, once the beacon of progressive services, does not even keep the libraries open seven days a week. More cuts are on the way.
Here in Florida they just passed a bill to raise the sales tax by one percent. You see, once upon a time, Uncle Sam was able to send more of our federal taxes collected right back to each state (Federal Revenue Sharing) to help subsidize our libraries, schools, infrastructure and first providers like police, firefighters, EVACS, etc. Oh, and yes, maybe even some funding could have been set aside to jump start a Medicare for all who want in option, with of course the needed caveat of dental care as well.
The truth of it all is that such a plan would still entail that those who “want in” contribute via their Federal Insurance Contributions Act payments, so the false argument of “free rides” is hogwash! Those great changes will never occur so long as we continue to use over 50 percent of our federal taxes on military spending, whereupon the cost of keeping one soldier in Afghanistan for one year is $1.2 million dollars, and the soldier gets perhaps $30,000 of that. The rest goes down the toilet of crony contracts and overkill militarism. How much longer can our fellow Americans simply “take it”? As Bob Dylan sang, “It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)”!
Truthout Is Preparing to Meet Trump’s Agenda With Resistance at Every Turn
Dear Truthout Community,
If you feel rage, despondency, confusion and deep fear today, you are not alone. We’re feeling it too. We are heartsick. Facing down Trump’s fascist agenda, we are desperately worried about the most vulnerable people among us, including our loved ones and everyone in the Truthout community, and our minds are racing a million miles a minute to try to map out all that needs to be done.
We must give ourselves space to grieve and feel our fear, feel our rage, and keep in the forefront of our mind the stark truth that millions of real human lives are on the line. And simultaneously, we’ve got to get to work, take stock of our resources, and prepare to throw ourselves full force into the movement.
Journalism is a linchpin of that movement. Even as we are reeling, we’re summoning up all the energy we can to face down what’s coming, because we know that one of the sharpest weapons against fascism is publishing the truth.
There are many terrifying planks to the Trump agenda, and we plan to devote ourselves to reporting thoroughly on each one and, crucially, covering the movements resisting them. We also recognize that Trump is a dire threat to journalism itself, and that we must take this seriously from the outset.
After the election, the four of us sat down to have some hard but necessary conversations about Truthout under a Trump presidency. How would we defend our publication from an avalanche of far right lawsuits that seek to bankrupt us? How would we keep our reporters safe if they need to cover outbreaks of political violence, or if they are targeted by authorities? How will we urgently produce the practical analysis, tools and movement coverage that you need right now — breaking through our normal routines to meet a terrifying moment in ways that best serve you?
It will be a tough, scary four years to produce social justice-driven journalism. We need to deliver news, strategy, liberatory ideas, tools and movement-sparking solutions with a force that we never have had to before. And at the same time, we desperately need to protect our ability to do so.
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We promise we will kick into an even higher gear to give you truthful news that cuts against the disinformation and vitriol and hate and violence. We promise to publish analyses that will serve the needs of the movements we all rely on to survive the next four years, and even build for the future. We promise to be responsive, to recognize you as members of our community with a vital stake and voice in this work.
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With love, rage, and solidarity,
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