What Really Matters

[Joe]

The man I interviewed is Tom Lopez. He is a Fifty-Seven year old Hispanic male, also recently retired from active military service in the United States Air Force. My subject is a member of the SAISD school board. He is also active in local politics, and ran for city council in 2004.

The issue most important to Mr. Lopez is that medical care. My subject feels it should be free to anybody above the age of fifty. He feels that the cost of healthcare is too high today, and that most people at this age can’t afford health care because they are retired, and don’t get in enough income from the government to pay for other necessities as well as insurance. My subject feels that the premiums on healthcare are so high and we need to lower the rates. Mr. Lopez wants to know how they are going to lower the rates and how it will affect are economy. According to the National Coalition on Health Care, “In 2007, total national health expenditures were expected to rise 6.9 percent — two times the rate of inflation.1 Total spending was $2.3 TRILLION in 2007, or $7600 per person.1 Total health care spending represented 16 percent of the gross domestic product”

Also according to the (NCHC) “One in four Americans say their family has had a problem paying for medical care during the past year, up 7 percentage points over the past nine years. Nearly 30 percent say someone in their family has delayed medical care in the past year, a new high based on recent polling. Most say the medical condition was at least somewhat serious.” As we see here, many people have problems with their healthcare cost. The polling shows that people can’t just afford this paying rate for healthcare. We have to find a new solution for people to get healthcare at a cheaper rate.

Basically, my subject talked about issues that affect the common person. With a financial crisis going on today in the nation, along with high gas prices and high health insurance rates, a lot of people in the U.S. are struggling financially. My subject wants a president that will help solve these problems and will give people a sense of security in the way the government will help the common person.

The setting took place on Thursday the 25 of September and it was conducted at his house in the living room at about seven-thirty in the evening.

[Laura]

I think that ,that is everyone's main concern not only the older people i mean there's a lot of people that can't afford it.I think we do need to do something to lower the high healthcare especially for senior citizens and kids because they are the most vulnerable and the ones that get affected thye most i mean we can't let them suffer.

[Robert]

HUGE concern among citizens in general. I'm far from being a socialists but there are some things that neeed central government control, like health care. Otherwise the industry as a whole will swallow up the poor and cripple the middle class. I would tell Mr Lopez that voting for Obama is his best bet, at least he talks about providing the same type of health for the average citizen that federal law makers get......better than nothing.

[Phil]

Cripple the middle class? These days the middle class is gradually growing smaller. I completely agree though that medical care needs a complete do over. How are people who come to this country and make minimum wage supposed to afford healthcare, not to mention the students that work while going to school. Its a grand thing to have people that are rich afford medical but get many tax breaks, and to take it even further its the lower classes tax dollars that will be used to bailout businesses that cant even carry their own weight around. Laura is right as well, its not only the elderly that should be concerned with this eventually it will catch up to everyone even those with little children, to the students that go to college as well. Its a difficult time for all of us.

[John Suchy]

You provided great information! This guy, Mr. Lopez seems like he deffidently knows what hes talking about with his millitary and political experience. His concern towards healthcare actually made me think about how bad our economy is with it. Everyone and I mean everyone should have the opportunity to get taken care of when sick, no matter what the costs are! This nation shouldnt be based completly around the money! I cant believe the part where you said that the national health expidentures were expected to rise twice as much as the inflation would. Is our government really doing this to us! Its so crazy! Great essay!

[Adrian Domitilo Dominguez]

I totally agree with wanting a president who will lower the cost of healthcare. I do not think that only people over the age of 50 shouldbe the ones to get it though. I think that all of the people in the United States need a break on the cost. I have two children plus me and my wife all on my insurance. I pay a pretty penny for it and i still have to pay co pays tha t are extremely to high. It is hard to try to keep up with shots and everyhting else when you have children. I would love to have a president that could begin to break into this problem and begin to fix it.

[Laurie Lopez Coleman]

Joe,
Thank you for your research. The national health expenditures are not reflective of the quality and availability of health care in our nation. I am waiting for leaders in the future administration, perhaps the Surgeon General's office, to make it a priority that health care providers encourage more preventative medicine choices for consumers, especially in the area of dental care and vision care. There are too many school age children whose families cannot afford annual dental cleanings/check ups nor vision exams, let alone the corrective orthodontics or eye glasses. These children suffer not only physically but academically, even socially.

[Willie]

I fully agree something must be done about our health care system. The times that we are currently in with high gas, high health care, high tension low wages and low moral, it makes no since for people to be struggle to keep their heads above water when it comes to their health.I like how your paper gave straight facts, clear and simple and even though these are numbers well never see in really life it seems if we can spend that kind of money everyone should be able to get some type of coverage.