I got this letter from the Cancer Action Network. This anecdote illustrates one of the many reasons why even a less than optimum bill is necessary.
Egberto,
Earlier this year, we asked you to tell us why health care reform was important to you. We haven’t forgotten.
As the health care debate moves forward in Washington, it’s important that we all continue to remember what it is we’re fighting for, and why health care reform is essential to defeating cancer in this country.
The story Nanci from Escondido, California, submitted months ago, still rings true today. In fact, as we gradually pull ourselves out of economic crisis and work toward health care reform, Nanci’s words are all the more inspiring.
Take a moment to read what Nanci had to say:
My father was a superintendent with a new homebuilder when he discovered skin cancer and had it removed. They warned him that he would need to return to have the spot checked to be sure they got it all. Before he could return, he was laid off from his job due to the housing market crash and lost his insurance.
Now, he can tell that the cancer has returned, but without employer-sponsored health insurance and with a pre-existing condition, and with only the income of odd jobs, he can’t afford to get it removed again. Soon, he will lose his house. I only pray that he won’t also lose his life before we can pass health care reform.
There are hundreds of thousands of people in life-threatening situations just like Nanci’s father. They are forced to sit and wait for treatment while defenders of the status quo stall the bill in their efforts to defeat it.
But beneath Nanci’s frustration and beyond the tragic injustice her father is facing—there is hope. Hope for timely reform.
We haven’t forgotten what this fight is about. It’s about people like Nanci’s father who are suffering the same injustice. It’s about people who need adequate, affordable, accessible health care.
As the health care bill debate continues I, too, will remain hopeful. We can’t forget what we are fighting for.
Thank you for your stories,
Molly Danels
ACS CAN
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