Healthcare

Today was my youngest daughter's one year checkup and it got me thinking about healthcare -- what I like and what I don't like about the system.  We live in Massachusetts and having coverage isn't an option here.  You must buy into the system or you face a penalty, unless you're poor of course and then you don't face a penalty, but rather you get signed up to free insurance... but I digress.

Anyway, I noticed that most of the people posting about healthcare online are people who don't have kids and who don't live in Massachusetts.  I only mention the latter because where you live plays an important role on which side of the aisle you're on.  While this is a rather liberal state, I find that many of us who are part of the "experiment" don't have enough of a chance to voice our opinions on the matter.  So without further hesitation, lets just dive right into what I like and what I don't like about the system.

What I Like:

• I like that it's available.  I know in some states it's much harder to get insurance than it is here.  In Massachusetts if your employer doesn't offer health insurance, you can buy it through the states health connector.
• I like that it's easier for people with pre-existing conditions to get coverage.

What I don't like:

• I don't like the ridiculously long waits at the doctor's office.  I've gone through three pediatricians now and they are all pretty much the same.  You wait an hour past your appointment to be seen and yet somehow the visit only takes 5 minutes or less.  It doesn't make sense.  I blame this on the lack of doctors -- many retired or moved out of state once the Universal Healthcare law took effect here.
• I don't like that there's a penalty for adults going uninsured for more than 60 consecutive days, even in the event of a job loss.  I especially don't like this because employers are still allowed to impose a 90-day waiting period before coverage begins when you start a new job.  Being unemployed is stressful enough, but now when you add in the tax penalty for your coverage lapsing, you're looking at a new level of stress.  Most people who lose their jobs can't afford Cobra, and if you're not one of the people who are unemployed for years on end, you won't qualify for subsidized insurance. 
• I don't like that it added forms and questions to the income tax form.  Taxes are complicated enough without that extra step.
• I don't like how impersonal healthcare has become.  I remember going to the doctor and feeling like they knew me.  I didn't have to bring my own records in or anything else like that.  I had faith in the medical system.  Now, things are so rushed and so hurried because of a lack of doctors and a surplus of patients that you really need to be on top of your game, otherwise your kids are going to get the wrong shots and your own care will be less than adequate.  Don't even get me started on how impersonal and ridiculous having a baby is.

Given everything that I now know about the system through my own experience, I'd much rather live somewhere without Universal Healthcare.  There are other things they could have done to improve access and increase coverage without going this route.  For example, open up competition across state lines to drive-down costs like they did with car insurance or homeowners insurance, create incentives for students to become doctors (because lets face it, Universal Healthcare puts a burden on doctors that discourages young talent from seeking an advanced degree), create more pathways for access to midwives, NP's and other medical professionals that are adequate for routine care, offer a tax credit to people for having medical coverage (positive reinforcement), or any number of other solutions.  I really feel like the politicians took the "easy way out" on this one and spent all of their time arguing and forcing legislation instead of brainstorming creative ways to solve the problem.

I sincerely hope that I'm wrong and a program that failed on the micro scale can somehow work on a macro scale, but unfortunately I don't think that will be the case. The new law only brings in more penalties and hurdles rather than offering incentives and assistance. That's really not the way these things are supposed to work.