Recently, I have realized yet again that we hold government to a standard we do not extend to private business. Some wish to cut Medicare and Social Security to the bone, but they would not be so obsessed with this shortsighted agenda if they did not perceive their expectations to be noble. I wonder why the private sector doesn't have this degree of scrutiny and why we do not cry bloody murder if it fails us? Perhaps this is because no one ever stated, with great solemnity, that corporations for the people, by the people, and of the people should not perish from the face of the earth. Nothing gets people riled up more than corruption in government, but when the private sector nearly tanks our entire economy due to its own malfeasance, our responses are more measured and not as vituperative.
As I've written about before, I'm officially disabled. Due to the presence of two or three concurrent chronic illnesses, I regularly see doctors and specialists. Medicare is my primary insurance carrier and my prescriptions are covered by a Medicare Part D plan. Usually, I don't have too much of an issue in ensuring that prescriptions are covered, but every now and then nagging problems arise. These coverage gaps were never present when I had private insurance. My co-pays might have been higher, but I was never told that the medication prescribed to me was simply not covered, or that the prescribing doctor needed to fill out additional paperwork before coverage would be granted.
Many people with bipolar disorder also suffer from severe insomnia. The last time I met with my psychiatrist, he informed me that it's highly unlikely I will ever be able to attain natural sleep for the rest of my life. And because of this, I take prescription drugs to sedate me thoroughly enough to achieve a full night's rest. I was first prescribed a medication, Restoril, that falls into a class of sedatives that almost every private plan covers. Not so with Medicare. After I arrived at the pharmacy to find I was required to pay the cost completely out of pocket, I called the insurance company to seek answers. I was told that controlled substances like my prescribed medication were simply not covered.
Article comments
1 - roger nowosielski
Kind of moot point, Kevin, don't you think?
Your article might make sense if written twenty years ago before any of us envisaged the present economic crisis. The private sector has long given up on America as the source of profits and has directed its energy and resources elsewhere. So unless you entertain vain hopes that we may still recover, yours is a swan song.
2 - Kevin
I think people still need to be aware of the discrepancy and political thought, rhetoric or otherwise, needs to reflect it.
3 - Igor
Consider this dichotomy then: we (apparently) expect the government to pre-fund government benefits, but not private benefits.
For example, the USPS is expected to pre-fund 75 years of personnel benefits (according to a 2006 Bush era law) and do it in 10 years (thus pre-allocating all profits and precipitating imminent failure), while private company benefit plans have no such pre-funding requirement.
People complain that Social Security has an ¨unfunded liability" (although the surplus will continue benefits at least 25 years) although NO pre-funding is required of private company retirement plans.
4 - Arch Conservative
"Recently, I have realized yet again that we hold government to a standard we do not extend to private business"
ummmm yeah....so?