Fight for Our Healthcare

Protect our Care Iowa and Progress Iowa lead the way...

Screenshot of ZOOM meeting hosted by Protect Our Care Iowa and Progress Iowa.

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I was in Knoxville, Iowa yesterday to talk to a friend who has an office near the square. I had a ZOOM meeting invite that I wanted to attend at 1:00 pm, so I suggested an early lunch. At about 11:30 am we started to walk out the door of his office when through his big storefront window I saw another friend crossing the street that I didn’t want to talk to.

“Wait,” I said. “I don’t want to talk to “X.”

My friend looked puzzled. “Why don’t you want to talk to “X?”

“Because he’s an insurance agent and I don’t want to chew his ass in the middle of the street on a cold day.”

My friend understood my sentiment without having to say a word, and he paused at the door and we waited for our friend to enter his insurance office.

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Mom and Dad in 1953. Family says she’s pregnant with me.

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Our healthcare system is broken. And it’s been broken for a long time.

My Dad had a small construction business. I grew up learning the trade. At the height of his business, it supported several families. Some of my high school buddies and I worked for him in the summers. We made good money and had fun. This was during the late 60’s and early 70’s and we would frame a house a week. He was proud that he and everyone who worked for him was covered by Blue Cross and Blue Shield.

They had a good retirement fund set aside.

Then Mom got cancer and fought it for years. It bankrupted them. So much for Blue Cross and Blue Shield. And the American system.

I was a little uncomfortable sharing photos and Mom and Dad’s story and I hope my family doesn’t mind. Mom and Dad knew the system was broken and maybe this is them doing something to help fix it. Mom volunteered for maybe 50 years at the State Hospital in Woodward where she helped people with intellectual disabilities. Governor Ray gave her a Volunteer of the Year award sometime in the 70’s. Dad always fought for good pay and health insurance for his crews.

Besides, as many of you who have lived awhile know, those you love are never really gone, and I can feel their presence with me as I sit here at our kitchen table typing.

Mom and Dad goofing around. Early 70’s probably. If I remember correctly, we built that house and those cabinets. My sisters, niece, and their families were valiant in their efforts to help Mom and Dad towards the end.

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A family member recently had a benign melanoma on her shin. She had to go to Des Moines to get it removed. The bill was $10,000. The claim was denied by the insurance company.

That same family member had a series of allergy tests done because she was having difficulty eating. The bill was $4,000. The claim was denied by the insurance company.

Fortunately, she had gone to our local hospital, the Knoxville Hospital and Clinics, and the staff there were able to convince the insurance company to pay. I doubt that would have happened in a big city hospital. Thanks to the Knoxville Hospital and Clinics.

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Delay, Deny, and Depose was the message left at the murder scene of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and represents the tactics used by healthcare insurers to deny claims. UnitedHealthcare is arguably the worst in the insurance business; estimates are that they deny up to 33% of claims. While no one condones the murder of Thompson, how can we condone the corporate strategy of denying claims that lead to the pain, suffering, and deaths of tens of thousands? Hundreds of thousands? Millions of Americans?

I know how. We justify it as merely a “business decision” in the late stages of capitalism where we glorify money over people and we let billionaires run the planet. From what I read UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was a good man. He was a good man caught up in a legal and glorified for-profit state-sanctioned system of structural violence against people. Sadly, he became a victim of the system too.

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The ZOOM meeting was organized by Protect Our Care Iowa and Progress Iowa. Dr. Austin Baeth, Iowa State Representative, Lori Hunt, and Matt Sinovic, Executive Director, Protect Our Care Iowa and Progress Iowa spoke.

The following is from their press release after the event. It’s a little long and I should paraphrase it but I feel I don’t have time to do so; the open enrollment period for the ACA ends on January 15 and people can save thousands of dollars if they enroll. Lori Hunt told her story with courage. I could feel how much Dr. Baeth felt for his patients and how frustrated he is with the system as he spoke. Both Lori and Dr. Baeth made the point that healthcare is an investment in our people—not a cost. And if I remember correctly, the story Dr. Baeth told was about a man who was a carpenter, like Dad and me. Here is the press release and link to the video:

This afternoon, State Representative Dr. Austin Baeth and Lori Hunt joined Protect Our Care Iowa to discuss the urgent need for Congress to stop Republican premium hikes. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) open enrollment period runs through January 15, and Iowans will continue to save thousands of dollars on their health care thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act’s enhanced premium tax credits. As Congress continues to negotiate a health care package, new reporting indicates that Republicans have rejected Democrats’ proposal to extend the Inflation Reduction Act’s enhanced premium tax credits for one year. Republicans are working overtime to dole out more tax breaks to their wealthy friends on Wall Street. If these tax credits do expire, Republicans will own this premium hike for middle-class families and the coverage losses for millions that come with it.

Thanks to these savings passed by the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress, a record 133,380 Iowans enrolled in ACA Marketplace plans in 2024. But, these tax credits are set to expire at the end of 2025. Millions of Americans depend on lower premiums. According to a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, if Republicans in Congress do not take action to extend the Inflation Reduction Act’s savings, thousands of Iowans will see their premiums increase by at least $1,000/year. Speakers urged Republicans in Congress to renew these tax credits so that Iowans can continue to rely on these savings to remain insured and healthy.

Access to health care is a number one priority for Lori Hunt of Des Moines, who describes it as foundational for a community’s ability to thrive. She explained that major increases on premiums will reduce the amount of Iowans with this access.

“If we see these drastic increases in the cost of ACA plans, we will also see the amount of Iowans with health coverage decrease,” Hunt said. “Many would have to choose between paying the higher price or for other necessities. This would be detrimental to our communities and wellness across the state.”

Discussing the record 133,380 Iowans receiving health insurance through the ACA Marketplace, Dr. Austin Baeth, who represents Iowa House District 36, called this a day for celebration, but also caution. Dr. Baeth has seen the benefits of increased access to health outcomes, but these days he is talking to patients worried about losing their access to health care if Republicans let the Inflation Reduction Act’s savings expire.

“I remember very specifically a gentleman who hadn’t had a doctor in two decades because he couldn't afford health insurance,” said Baeth. “And because of the Affordable Care Act and subsidies it provided, he was seeing me for the first time in 20 years. He came in for a physical. On that day I diagnosed him with blood cancer. Thank God I saw him when I did because soon we got him treatment, and today he’s considered cured. This is a guy who is still working. This is a guy who is a father and a grandfather. And if it weren’t for the fact that our government, our society, invests in our people like we did through the Affordable Care Act and providing this gentleman with health insurance, he wouldn’t be here today. Along with the thousands, maybe millions of other Americans.”

You can view the full event here and learn more about ACA open enrollment and Republican attacks on health care here.

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Thanks to Protect Our Care Iowa, Progress Iowa, State Representative Dr. Austin Baeth, and Lori Hunt.

Thanks also to Mom and Dad who helped me write this…

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I’m a proud member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. Please check out our work here. Subscribe! Become a paid subscriber if you can afford it. Please and thank you. We need you. Thanks for being part of the team! Want to buy me lunch or a cup of coffee? Venmo @Robert-Leonard-238. My friend Spencer Dirks and I have a podcast titled the Iowa Revolution. Check it out! We can get ornery. And have fun! I also publish Cedar Creek Nature Notes, about Violet the Dog and my adventures on our morning walks at Cedar Bluffs Natural Area in Mahaska County, Iowa.