The Voice of the People: Jessica, Noah & Hunter (Ft. Wayne, IN)

Jessica and her husband were laid off from their RV company (based in Elkhart, Indiana) this past August. They have four kids under the age of ten. The lost all their health coverage and cannot afford COBRA which cost $1,200/month. The kids are now on Medicaid but they, the parents, are uninsured. "If something happens to them," Jessica said, “how'll the kids be taken care of?”

This is Noah and Chris in the picture also. Today was Noah's birthday too and thanks to the Ft. Wayne rally, he had a big turnout for his party!

Voice of the People: Nate in Ft. Wayne, IN

Nate’s a young and relatively healthy guy. “Last year, in December, I came down with pneumonia,” he told me. He’s a diabetic and so his illness was complicated by diabetic ketoacidosis, acute kidney failure, staph infections, and ‘cardiac issues.’ “I was in the ICU for twelve days, unconscious for a week,” he told me. Even though he just been laid from his job, he told me, “he was lucky in the timing of things … like a ‘roll-of-the-dice,’” that he happened to have insurance just when he had gotten deathly ill. And hopefully he won’t get so sick again, since COBRA, which he cannot now afford, costs $800/month especially with his pre-existing conditions … and especially being unemployed.

Voice of the People: Jorge (Warsaw, IN)

The most telling story came to us in a Mexican store down the street. I spoke with one of the counter people, who wished not to be identified. She told us that she did have insurance (through her husband) and that she was happy with the system and that she would not change anything. Then, next to the register, I noticed a posted sign with a picture of a young boy in a hospital bed pleading for $100,000 to help with a kidney transplant.

Doesn’t that tell it all?

Voice of the People: Uprendra in Warsaw, IN

Being self-employed, and that business was not so good this year, Uprendra cannot afford health coverage. He is not insured, nor is any of the staff. And, he has diabetes and gets his insulin, when he can, as free drug samples from his brother, who is a retired doctor. I was humbled by his generosity, the complimentary room, and even more, the $20 donation, his wife (and hotel co-operator) Sheila, gave me when I checked out the following morning.