This should not be happening

I'm reading about public health policy and came across a shocking statistic. Well, there are quite a few shocking statistics, but here is just one:

In 2001, approximately 2 million Americans experienced bankruptcy caused by inability to pay medical bills; 76% of these had health insurance at the onset of their illness!!!!! (Himmelstein et al., 2005).

What the heck!?!?!?! This is not right. 3/4 of the people who went bankrupt from medical bills had insurance!?!?!?

Health care is a basic right... If you don't agree with this statement, then you are a fool. Health care is a socialist policy and it SHOULD BE. In terms of health care, the wealthy SHOULD "redistribute" their wealth to the poor.

Sorry republicans, but if you buy health insurance, you are already contributing to the "socialist America." If you are healthy and paying your monthly premium, then you are subsidizing the ill.

If you disagree that health care should be a social policy, consider the following scenario. You are driving in your car and you come across a really bad accident. There is no one at the scene and you stop and find a women stuck in her car and bleeding badly. You are in the middle of nowhere and she asks for your help. She says, can you please call an ambulance for me? I'm bleeding and think I might die. You check your cell phone for service and find that you are roaming. You tell her, "I don't have any service in my phone. If I make the call, will you reimburse me for the outrageous roaming charges that I will accrue?" She says, "I'm sorry, I am totally broke, I cannot pay you anything."

What do you do? Do you make the call and save the woman's life, knowing that you will be charged for the call? or... put simply, would you pay a little $$ to save the life of a mom of 3 kids and a loving wife who is active in her community and attends church on a regular basis?

If you answered yes, then you also believe that health care SHOULD BE a socialist policy. Good for you.

the Doctor's note

Ok, ok, ok. So I'm back in Grenada and will tell you all about how the first two weeks of term 3 have been in a subsequent post, but I was just listening to a lecture and I heard something AMAZING I just had to share with the world.

So, yeah... The doctor's note. What a powerful tool. You can miss work, get out of school and pretty much do what ever you want with the appropriate note from your local physician. Oh also, I forgot to mention... change your sex on your passport?!?!?!?!?!?!?! wait.... WHAT????

Yeah, apparently, as was just explained to me by one of my behavioral science professors, with the appropriate doctor's note, you can actually CHANGE YOUR SEX ON YOUR PASSPORT. Yeah, if you have something called a gender identity disorder, or GID, apparently all you need is a note from your doctor and that's it... male to female... or female to male... what ever you want.

So, in conclusion... I knew doctor's notes were cool, but seriously, it is almost like a free pass to do whatever you want... I wonder what else you can do with a doctor's note... and... I wonder if a doctor's note would suffice if you ever need to get out of work as a doctor... probably not: ahh yes, the great paradoxes of life.

So, really in conclusion, if any of my friends want to go from M to F or F to M, hit me up in a couple years... I'll write you a note.