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Actress Bette Davis declared, "Getting old ain't for sissies." I think she had that motto needlepointed for a pillow, perhaps a pillow which provided lumbar support when sitting! In any case, her observation has merit. As we age, things start to change — bits and pieces work less well, stop working altogether, or just fall off. There's a certain indignity to this process, but one must bear up.
These days we hear much talk about "saving" Medicare and Medicaid by making drastic changes to these programs. Changes are needed, of course, because Medicare and Medicaid will eat us out of house and home if we don't find solutions. At the same time, those who talk so glibly about "saving Medicare" — by handing out vouchers and letting seniors buy insurance in the private market — have forgotten our history. Back in the 1960s, when Medicare was set up, most seniors could not afford to buy healthcare insurance, and most insurance companies did not want to write insurance for seniors. If the Wikipedia "Medicare" article is accurate, in that day seniors had only half the income of younger working people, but their health insurance cost twice as much. So, many seniors just did without, because they had no choice.
George Santayana said, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." That's not what we need as we deal with our so-called fiscal cliff.
Without Medicare, I would not be planning to consult a neurosurgeon about my back problem. While I have only modest symptoms now — mostly stiffness after sitting too long behind the wheel of my car — without Medicare I would have no chance even to consider how this problem might be addressed today or in the future. I'd just have to put up with whatever discomfort and disability my back gave me. The point is: Medicare is an essential service for seniors. If changes are made, those changes must balance cost and compassion, and assure older Americans of reasonable access to healthcare. •••
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