There are so many children in America who receive adequate medical care. They are among the 44 million who are without insurance, who do not receive care until it is late. When care is finally received it is often in the emergency room where costs are incredibly high. For the uninsured, these costs can and often lead to economic disaster. In fact, healthcare cost is the leading cause of personal bankruptcy with more than two million filings last year alone.
Last year, I asked our City Council to support SB 840, State Sen. Sheila Kuehl's universal health care bill. Senator Kuehl's proposal was the only bill that provided a comprehensive solution to the problem. Unfortunately none of the Morgan Hill Council members elected to support the bill, citing comparisons such as the Council taking a stand on the war in Iraq.
I firmly believe that healthcare is no longer an option but a right. It is similar to rights to protection that police, firefighters and the National Guard provide to fight crime and national disasters. Instead of protecting us from external forces, we are protected individually, and are provided with the resources to fight infection, mental illness, cancer and other crippling diseases.
If our City Council and state legislature consisted of parents with children with terminal diseases, young professionals recently diagnosed with malignancy, a nurse practitioner working in a local clinic, or a senior in need of hospice, I am sure that we would find the votes to support health care.
Mark Grzan, Morgan Hill
Morgan Hill City Council member
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