In Pain

I hurt my right shoulder seven weeks ago.  Pain, as measured on the 10-point scale, started in the 7 to 8 range and has mellowed into 2's and 3's.  That's bad enough to wake me several times a night.  My medical insurance coverage is OK, though more pricey and less comprehensive than what I had a decade ago.  Out of pocket expenses are now a little over $900.  In one sense, yes, I can afford it which means that I don't have to choose between physical therapy or groceries, haven't been late on the mortgage in order to pay a doctor bill, and have kept up with utilities and health insurance.  But, pain does wonders for focusing the mind and, in my case, for examining ideas about fairness.  Here is my radical idea:  Mitt Romney should pay my medical expenses.  So should Donald Trump, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul; also the Koch brothers, Hunt brothers, and Baldwin brothers.   Add Michael Moore, Jane Fonda, and John Kerry.  And, my neighbors, cops on patrol, and the county firefighters.

Because, here's the deal.  Pain is awful.  Cancer and heart disease are worse.  And, we the people have a moral obligation to help each other.  Sometimes we have to grit our teeth like when a drinker needs a liver transplant or a motorcyclist riding without a helmet requires brain surgery.  We may not like their behavior, but that's just too bad.  Health care is a human right, not an entitlement.   My injured shoulder gets treated and my taxes help pay for everyone else's health care.  Anything less is grotesque cruelty.

Former Senator Rick Santorum thinks he should be President and tens of thousands – perhaps hundreds of thousands – of Americans agree. This is Santorum at a campaign stop yesterday or the day before:

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum told the mother of a child with a rare genetic disorder on Tuesday that she shouldn't have a problem paying $1 million a year for drugs because Apple's iPad can cost around $900.

Speaking to more than 400 people at Woodland Park, Colorado, the former Pennsylvania senator said that demand should set prices for drugs.

"People have no problem paying $900 for an iPad," the candidate explained. "But paying $900 for a drug they have a problem with — it keeps you alive. Why? Because you’ve been conditioned to think health care is something you can get without having to pay for it."

The mother replied that she could not afford her son's medication, Abilify, which can cost as much as $1 million a year without health insurance.

"Look, I want your son and everybody to have the opportunity to stay alive on much-needed drugs," Santorum insisted. "But the bottom line is, we have to give companies the incentive to make those drugs. And if they don't have the incentive to make those drugs, your son won't be alive and lots of other people in this country won't be alive."

"He’s alive today because drug companies provide care," the candidate continued. "And if they didn’t think they could make money providing that drug, that drug wouldn’t be here. I sympathize with these compassionate cases. … I want your son to stay alive on much-needed drugs. Fact is, we need companies to have incentives to make drugs. If they don’t have incentives, they won’t make those drugs. We either believe in markets or we don’t."

I do not know what caused Santorum's emotional disfigurement. Just get him the hell away from me and everyone else. There aren't enough therapists or enough couches in this land to repair his twisted psyche. Has Santorum or any of his cohort ever responded to a question or comment with, “Oh. Wait a moment. You've got a good point there. I may have been wrong/hasty/ill informed/misguided about that idea. I guess I just didn't think it through. Thank you.”? 

Only this one datum – a family can't afford extraordinarily expensive medication for seriously ill child – should smash forever the idea that unfettered markets solve all problems.  Anyone who can't understand that or cannot have a sophisticated discussion about expensive on-going treatments should leave politics.  They have chosen the wrong career.