Is it class warfare after all?

I hate to even ask this, I really do. But, after looking back over my journey for the past 14 years, just passed this mark on New Year's Eve, I have to answer a resounding yes. Is it class warfare after all?  What class warfare you are asking by now?

Medical class warfare I scream! And what is even more disappointing to me, I can't seem to see a resolve to it all...not at all.

Let me explain a bit further of where I am coming from with all of this. My son, now thirty, has a half way decent job and a typical middle class salary with it. And yes, I know that even keeping employment right now is a God send. He also has insurance for health care. Unfortunately he also seems to have inherited some of my autoimmune genes as well. He has been diagnosed with sjogrens recently. Now having insurance one would think that one could go to the needed doctors, receive the needed prescriptions (copays expected) so that one could continue to stay gainfully employed and hopefully give back to society as well.

Well, that just isn't the case. I would scan in the document he unearthed in his health care plan but I am afraid that may cause too many problems but I do have a copy of it. Apparently they have an exclusionary list of ailments that are not covered. This has nothing to do with pre-existing conditions and excludes all insured on this plan. Now, when did all of this happen? I am not talking pre-existing conditions but refusal to pay for any care for over 36 diseases or conditions. Some included on the Uninsurable Conditions list are:

AIDS
Alzheimer's disease
ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)
Anuerysm
Acoustic Neuroma
Cardiomyopathy
COPD
Cirrhosis
Collagen diseae
congential heart defects
congestive heart failure
Chrohn's disease
Emphysema
Hep B and C
lupus
muscular dystrophy
polycystic kidney disease
rheumatic heart disease
stroke
sjogren's syndrome
tay-sachs disease
transplants

Wait, I am not yet done. And now add something called Ratable Risks. According to this document "the following medical conditions are uninsurable for specified time frames and ratable risks thereafter. Whether they fall into an uninsurable or ratable category may depend on time frames, severity of conditions, treatment, stability, and prognosis. This is not an all-inclusive list but a reference of many conditions of questionable insurability. Some listed conditions may require a rating that exceeds our risk tolerance, and coverage will be denied indefinitely."

Some on the list include (63 conditions total listed):

addison's disease
adhesions
agoraphobia
alcoholism
amputations
ankylosing spondylitis
anorexia nervosa
atrial fibrillation
cancer
chronic fatigue syndrome
colitis (ulcerative)
diabetes mellitus
encephalitis
hypertension
lupus
multiple sclerosis
obstructive sleep apnea
pancreatitis
parkinson's disease
peripheral vascular disease
rheumatoid arthritis
TB
etc.

Yes, this is indeed class warfare! If one has lots of money, one can pay cash for their doctors, medications, etc. or even buy insurance at a very high premium to cover these conditions but if one has this insurance(and I am afraid almost any insurance of late), is middle class or lower class, one can't afford to get sick at all!

I was wrongly under the assumption that insurance in this country should cover something but it behooves me, or anyone reading these lists, to exact what precisely they are covering at all.

I welcome a discussion on this as although I don't want to get political on my blog, I am starting to realize that perhaps at some point we need to get political. I for one value human life and I will clearly state that I do believe we should provide healthcare for all and for all conditions. How do we resolve the insurance issues, cost of prescriptions, and medical care currently ravaging not just our economy but humans as well? If we don't stand up for healthcare coverage for all, many will die in this country (and many have already died). We need to ask ourselves precisely what values we hold dearly. Do we believe that life and health are a cost that should be shared by all? Do we believe that it is the individuals responsibility to acquire their own treatments, even if this ultimately leads to their own death due to lack of money? This is truly the bottom line and yet I have not heard this mentioned on the national news media in these terms.

How much are we willing to pay for a "healthy" life?
$5,000
$10,000
$20,000
$30,000
$100,000
$1,000,000
$2,000,000

And more importantly, how do we as individuals begin to make the changes we believe are so desperately needed in this country?

How Cats Are Like RA

Hanging out with friends can be relaxing!

Eating greens is a healthy thing to do!

Sleep is number one on the to do list.

Shopping can be a distraction.

Making a bed is impossible!

Getting a massage is the bomb diggity!

Furry friends can reduce the pain in life.

Stretching can be a good thing!

Further humorous reading:

My Happy Tool Kit...A New Purrspective!

The Many Faces of My RA

My New Montra...

The Crockpot Theory

It's a new year and for me a new way of doing whatever it is that will make my life easier, simpler, and more livable with ra.

A crockpot or slow cooker will not only get you out of the kitchen quicker but it will also provide you and your family with wonderful, healthy meals at a fraction of the cost.  And did I mention that you don't have to stand over the stove stirring your creation constantly. You simply throw in your ingredients, stir them up gently and leave them alone to slow cook for hours.  And if you work, you can prep the pot in the morning and leave it cooking all day (do consider a programmable version if you work) and return to a fully cooked meal. Viola! Instant chef in the house!

It is also the time of year to find wonderful deals on just about everything. So if you don't already own one, may I suggest that if you were lucky enough to get a gift certificate to a retailer that you buy yourself a crock pot.  There are just about as many crockpots out there as recipes for them.

And please, please be sure you look for a coupon or coupon code if you are buying online. You can save a small fortune on purchases if you just take an extra minute to search in google (or your favorite search engine) for an applicable coupon or coupon code.  Type in the name of your preferred retailer and the word coupon.  And may I also suggest if you are an online shopper that you consider signing up on a site called www.ebates.com.  You can earn cash back for each purchase you make online through their website.

If you have a large family you are still cooking for then you may want to buy one of the large capacity ones but if you have downsized like my family, you may want to consider a smaller sized one....say the four quart size or so.

I bought mine for myself as my Christmas present. OK, this was my excuse but in my mind it helped me to justify buying it in the first place. I have this thing with buying things for myself. I am not sure if it is a guilt thing or because I grew up under the less is better philosophy but in either case, I am now a proud owner of  a wonderful crock pot!!

I am now on the hunt for yummy crockpot recipes.  I am sharing here my first crockpot recipe...um...errrr...messy looking but it really it did taste yummy and unfortunately I didn't get a final finished picture which looked much better.  So if you have any favorites, I will so appreciate you sharing them with me.

My first crockpot beauty is bestowed with the name Tantalizing Turkey Tidbits. Combine the following ingredients and cook on low until done (about 4-5 hours depending on the size of your crockpot):

1 package of ground lean white turkey meat
1 large onion (I use the sweet type but any onion will do) chopped
4 cloves of garlic chopped or you can use chopped garlic from a jar
1 jar of spaghetti sauce (I love the Garden Type with lots of veggies in it)
2 teaspoons of Ms. Dash (I use the garlic one but you can the regular one also)

Cook the above mixture for about five hours, then add in one package of cooked frozen mixed veggies. Be sure you cook them before you add them to the mixture. You may be able to add them in at the beginning of this process but I like my veggies crispy, so I add them in towards the very end. I used the mixed version with corn, carrots, and asparagus for this particular day.

If you are avoiding tomatoes for any reason, you can probably substitute chicken broth for the spaghetti sauce and add some flour for thickening (or corn starch for gluten free) but I haven't tried this yet. I am planning on making a stew in the future though and will let you know if this works.

Do save your receipt! If for any reason you find that you don't like using a crockpot (you will have to post and tell me why as I can't fathom that you won't love using this nifty little cooking machine), you can always return it to the store. Waste not, want not!

Happy Crockpot Cooking and do share your new found recipes!

Update: my only complaint so far with the crockpot/slow cooker is that it can be a tad bit heavy when trying to get the ceramic inside out for washing. If you have an extra set of hands available, leave this task to them :-)