Thursday, August 20, 2009

Another reason why health care for all is a good idea

OK, so when I said I didn't have anything else to add about the healthcare debate? That still stands. But I'm reading a book called Waiter Rant and just got to this paragraph:

Most restaurants do not offer health insurance to their employees. Some waiters like me might have coverage, but among immigrant staffers, it's practically unheard of. So when people get sick, they don't get the medical attention they need, and whatever's sickening them gets worse or lasts longer than it has to.
[snip]
And these are the people cooking and handling your food! You shouldn't be surprised. Let's face it: economics, politics, and lack of proper access to health care are creating a nation of potential Typhoid Marys that is going to weaken this country with disease from the inside out.

I hadn't ever thought about how health care for all actually makes a different for health care for me.

4 comments:

Paul Snatchko said...

That's a good point. Certainly, we should health care reform if it's the right thing to do.

But, having a point of self-interest can't hurt.

LKT said...

Shhh...don't say this part, but this might be why we might want health care for illegal immigrants, too. Not for their health, but for mine. Which sounds callous as all get-out, but that's the only way to sell it.

I certainly hadn't thought about extending health care to this population, but it had never occurred to me how illegal immigrants interact with my daily food until reading this brief passage of this book.

Art Deco said...

I think you have confounded medical care with public health measures.

LKT said...

The two are not mutually exclusive. I think that's a point The Waiter is trying to make.