As the President (that is still so cool!) prepares to work with Congress to fix the US' terrible health care system, we Americans abroad have begun our own work to help all our representatives (even the Republican ones... yeah, I'll own John Campbell) back home in the fight over a single-payer system at best and, at worst, at least a public option.Below are the two email versions I sent to Senator Diane Feinstein, Senator Barbara Boxer, Representative John Campbell, and, my boy, POTUS (the letter was too long for the White House online email system, so I sent it snail mail and said a response via email was fine). I slightly altered the one I sent to my US Rep because he's a Republican and I didn't think touting my Dem street cred would do much to help me there. Please feel free to take these as inspiration for your own emails to your representatives in Congress. My only requirement is that if you use either of these letters, please let me know.
To The Democrats:
I am writing to you to discuss the necessity of including a single-payer option in the health care debate (and, hopefully, solution), or, at the very least, a public option.
I grew up in California, but have been fortunate enough to live overseas for a short time in my childhood and for half of my adult life. Having personally experienced the health care systems in the US, France, and Japan (as an adult, responsible for my own health care programs, insurance, doctor/hospital choices, etc.), I can say without question or doubt in my mind that having a single-payer system is the best possible option for the American people. I have had surgeries and hospital stays in the US and Japan, I have visited doctors and specialists in all three countries, I have PAID for insurance in all three countries, and in each of these cases, I assure you that the United States' health insurance and health care system has come in as the least user-friendly, least wallet-friendly, and, most importantly, least available and accessible.
I currently live in Japan (but am registered to vote, and exercise that right, from overseas). Here, I have access to not only the top doctors and hospitals in the country, but these doctors also speak English and their organizations have tie-ins with several major American medical institutions (including Johns Hopkins Medicine International). So, for the cost of about $XXXX per year (an amount based on my income level), I have insurance that I know can never be rescinded; access to almost any doctor in Japan (there are a small number of doctors who cater almost exclusively to the typical expat community, most of whom have private insurance); pay only 30% co-pay (the final amount of which is usually not very much because of the negotiated rates between the government and health service providers) on doctor visits, dentist visits, hospital stays, and prescriptions; and have the comfort of knowing that, no matter how bad my medical condition might be, I won’t have to worry about it also causing debilitating debt.
My family back in the States is struggling with the costs of their individual insurance and I, myself, am afraid to let the costly individual insurance (more than twice what I pay in Japan for far inferior coverage) I have maintained back in the States lapse for fear of never being able to qualify again when I return home. For the time being, I do, in a sense, feel trapped outside the States, unable to return home because of the exorbitant costs as well as the uncertainty of American insurance coverage.
I have been a registered Democrat since the day I turned 18 and was raised in a proud Democrat household. I have voted Democrat in every election I’ve ever participated in. I am very active in Democrats Abroad in Japan—I work closely with our country committee chair, the Asia-Pacific regional chair, and as Chair of the Young Democrats Abroad Japan group. One of the reasons I have stood by the party and my elected officials all these years and worked so tirelessly to register Americans abroad to vote from overseas last year is because I care so much about the lives and well-being of my fellow citizens and I have always believed that the Democrats have the best plans to achieve the best possible quality of life for Americans. However, living overseas, I have come to learn that access to reliable, affordable, quality healthcare is not a privilege, but a right. Without a single-payer option, the United States Congress and President are letting down their constituents, their neighbors, their family members, their friends… all Americans.
The positive consequences of a single-payer system extend beyond just Americans’ every day lives and health needs. How productive could our country be if people didn’t need to choose between paying the electricity bill and paying their insurance premium? How much more could we contribute to innovation and the global economy if every man, woman, and child in American was assured of their access to a doctor without the risk of being overwhelmed by the costs of such a visit? How much more secure would we be if the people charged with overseeing our airports, seaports, and other entry points didn’t need to worry about a loved one’s illness either bankrupting their family’s coffers or, worse yet, not even being able to get their child the best care because of prohibitively costly fees?
I work at the research arm of the Asian Development Bank in Tokyo and so, through my job, have the opportunity to see the difference developed infrastructure systems can make for economic growth and productivity. Health care is a form of soft infrastructure that is woefully lacking in most of my organization’s member countries. The United States is one of the most developed countries in the world, if not the most developed, and, yet, when it comes to our health care system, we are sadly lagging behind other industrialized countries, putting us at an economic and political disadvantage (Because what besides our health can affect the other parts of our lives so completely?) not only vis-à-vis our developed economic competitors, but even in terms of our competitors in emerging markets.
I urge you, in this letter and with my vote, to support a single-payer health care system in the upcoming behemoth of a debate over how to right this too long-standing wrong. Please take courage, comfort, and support in knowing that there are thousands of other Californians overseas who have shared my experience and who also support a single-payer system.
If you would like to hear specific stories about the health care experiences of Americans overseas, please stop by the blog Americans Abroad Know About National Health Care (http://healthcareforamerica.blogspot.com/).
Thank you for your hard work representing Californians… wherever in the world they might be.
Very sincerely yours,
XXXXXX
To The Republican:
Dear [Republican's Name],
I am writing to you to discuss the necessity of including a single-payer option in the health care debate (and, hopefully, solution), or, at the very least, a public option.
I grew up in California, but have been fortunate enough to live overseas for a short time in my childhood and for half of my adult life. Having personally experienced the health care systems in the US, France, and Japan (as an adult, responsible for my own health care programs, insurance, doctor/hospital choices, etc.), I can say without question or doubt in my mind that having a single-payer system is the best possible option for the American people. I have had surgeries and hospital stays in the US and Japan, I have visited doctors and specialists in all three countries, I have PAID for insurance in all three countries, and in each of these cases, I assure you that the United States' health insurance and health care system has come in as the least user-friendly, least wallet-friendly, and, most importantly, least available and accessible.
I currently live in Japan (but am registered to vote, and exercise that right, from overseas). Here, I have access to not only the top doctors and hospitals in the country, but these doctors also speak English and their organizations have tie-ins with several major American medical institutions (including Johns Hopkins Medicine International). So, for the cost of about $XXXX per year (an amount based on my income level), I have insurance that I know can never be rescinded; access to almost any doctor in Japan (there are a small number of doctors who cater almost exclusively to the typical expat community, most of whom have private insurance); pay only 30% co-pay (the final amount of which is usually not very much because of the negotiated rates between the government and health service providers) on doctor visits, dentist visits, hospital stays, and prescriptions; and have the comfort of knowing that, no matter how bad my medical condition might be, I won’t have to worry about it also causing debilitating debt.
My family back in the States is struggling with the costs of their individual insurance and I, myself, am afraid to let the costly individual insurance (more than twice what I pay in Japan for far inferior coverage) I have maintained back in the States lapse for fear of never being able to qualify again when I return home. For the time being, I do, in a sense, feel trapped outside the States, unable to return home because of the exorbitant costs as well as the uncertainty of American insurance coverage.
Living overseas, I have come to understand that access to reliable, affordable, quality health care is not a privilege, but a right. Without a single-payer option, the United States Congress and President are letting down their constituents, their neighbors, their family members, their friends… all Americans.
The positive consequences of a single-payer system extend beyond just Americans’ every day lives and health needs. How productive could our country be if people didn’t need to choose between paying the electricity bill and paying their insurance premium? How much more could we contribute to innovation and the global economy if every man, woman, and child in American was assured of their access to a doctor without the risk of being overwhelmed by the costs of such a visit? How much more secure would we be if the people charged with overseeing our airports, seaports, and other entry points didn’t need to worry about a loved one’s illness either bankrupting their family’s coffers or, worse yet, not even being able to get their child the best care because of prohibitively costly fees?
I work at the research arm of the Asian Development Bank in Tokyo and so, through my job, have the opportunity to see the difference developed infrastructure systems can make for economic growth and productivity. Health care is a form of soft infrastructure that is woefully lacking in most of my organization’s member countries. The United States is one of the most developed countries in the world, if not the most developed, and, yet, when it comes to our health care system, we are sadly lagging behind other industrialized countries, putting us at an economic and political disadvantage (Because what besides our health can affect the other parts of our lives so completely?) not only vis-à-vis our developed economic competitors, but even in terms of our competitors in emerging markets.
I urge you, in this letter and with my vote, to support a single-payer health care system in the upcoming behemoth of a debate over how to right this too long-standing wrong. Please take courage, comfort, and support in knowing that there are thousands of other Californians overseas who have shared my experience and who also support a single-payer system.
If you would like to hear specific stories about the health care experiences of Americans overseas, please stop by the blog Americans Abroad Know About National Health Care (http://healthcareforamerica.blogspot.com/).
Thank you for your hard work representing Californians… wherever in the world they might be.
Very sincerely yours,
XXXXXX
Image source originally Air America.
