Health Care Reform... as God Intended?

One of the next items on President Obama's agenda is health care reform. And looking at the insurance system in America, it is hard to argue that the system may well be broken and in need of repair.

But should the government be doing the fixing? What if common citizens, acting in their own best interests, could also serve the needs of the country and help with this mess? Should a Christian, in good conscience, be part of a health care system that uses his/her premiums for abortions, for surgeries and procedures to 'change genders' and the like? Let me propose to you an alternative to the current system.

First of all, some fundamental points of my argument. We, as American citizens, do not have a right to health care. We do not deserve medical treatment. If we have it, or can get it, that is wonderful; but medical care is not a basic human right. That kind of entitlement thinking is exactly what has caused our current economic mess. America is the land of opportunity, not the land of guaranteed favorable results. One of the problems with the HMO/PPO system currently in place is that the cost is rarely counted by the consumer or the doctor. "Is this test necessary?" becomes "The insurance pays for it, so order it up." The underlying principle here is that spending money is always easier when it's someone else's money. Yes, you are paying monthly premiums to the insurance company, but you are not paying directly for the services. Most people have no idea what some procedures cost, since the price is never disclosed.

Case in point: my son broke his elbow. He ended up at the hospital, where they put him under to set the broken bone. They did not do surgery, but they manipulated the bone back into place. He was in the hospital for less than 5 hours, pre-op to discharge. Total cost, between doctors, hospital and anaesthetic: over $25,000. Before the hospital, we were in urgent care (who took several x-rays which were charged separately, and gave us a $20 cast) for about 3 hours. Total cost there: $1200.

We negotiated the bills through the hospital, down to a total of about $7000. Then we paid cash, because other Christians around the country sent us checks ($200-$300 at a time) to cover the expense. My son also received cards and notes indicating people all over the country were praying for his recovery. No insurance bureaucracy, just a negotiation on my part and the bills were paid by other Christians who were also praying for us. Sound good to you? Read on.

Is there a "catch?" To an extent, yes. I would encourage you to research your options for yourself. Under programs like what I described above, normal "maintenance" care is not covered (although once you enter the world of paying cash, things are not as expensive as you might think). But here are 2 great programs you should look into, and then make a prayerful decision about using:

Medi-share (http://medi-share.org/) or
Samaritan Ministries (http://www.samaritanministries.org/) - this is one we use.

One of the traps we fall into in our thinking is that the way things are is the way they have always been, or that they are supposed to be. Health care in America is very broken. But is government the answer? Or could you join fellow believers in prayer and financial support of each other, while paying cash which reduces the need for layer upon layer of paperwork and management (which in turn, reduces costs)? Just a thought.