Cataract Surgery, drug side effects and Healthcare

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Cataract Surgery, drug " side effects " and Healthcare

 

My friend Patrick told me something the other day which I

wanted to post about here. I checked with him, and he told me it was

OK to post.

 

He has recently had cataract surgery in one eye. When that

eye has healed, he will have cataract surgery in the other eye.

 

I sent him this link

http://video.about.com/vision/Cataract-Surgery.htm

and asked him if this is what he had done to his eye.

 

He replied " Exactly. Though instead of a standard fixed-focus

lens, I have one that allows for a wider range of focus without

glasses. After healing, I will need glasses for distance vision, but

possibly not for close to midrange vision. "

 

Patrick is younger than I am, so I was puzzled for his need

for surgery. So, I asked him " What caused your lenses to get cloudy?

I always thought cataract surgery was for people late in life (75+). "

 

He replied, " Not sure, but this is right up your alley.

It's most likely from the two steroid medications I've been taking for

several years for my asthma and allergies. They both list cataracts

as a rare but not unheard-of side effect. The good news is you can't

get cataracts in an artificial lens. "

 

Now, he has health insurance and accumulated sick leave. But

if he had not had medical insurance, the doctors and drug companies

would have not volunteered to pay for the surgery, or reimburse him

for time lost at work.

 

I have no home, no car, no investments or retirement fund.

Suppose I needed cataract surgery because of " a rare but not

unheard-of side effect " of some prescription drug I had been taking?

 

There is a local blind musician I know. He is probably in his

70s. He did not used to be blind. I suspect he needs eye surgery he

cannot afford.

 

Patrick's eye problems brings home to me the need for

affordable health care in the US. Not the bs Obamacare now before

Congress. But REAL healthcare paid for by the government, not the

individual. No matter how cheap the Obamacare plan might be, it will

still cost me money every month which I need for rent, utilities,

food, and supplements.

 

End the wars and the US would have plenty of money to pay for

healthcare.

 

Compel the AMA monopoly to train more doctors. Supply and

demand. If there are more doctors, cost of doctoring goes down.

No, the rich docs won't like it. But there are plenty of bright

young men and women who would be very happy to work for 1/3 of what

doctors make these days. Plumbers and Electricians are skilled

workers. They are no less skilled at their trade than doctors are at

their trade. Let's start paying docs as well as we pay electricians

and plumbers.

 

The insurance industry is a racket. Medical insurance should

not, in my not-so-humble opinion, be a profit making business. A

nice government run insurance plan, like Medicare and Medicaid, could

be run without giving exorbitant profits to the insurance companies.

 

Do the 3 things above and medical care becomes economically

feasible. Don't do those 3 things, and everyone who is not upper

middle class has no healthcare beyond what they do for themselves.

 

Alobar