Via Shakesville comes this little Bushian gem on one of my favorite topics, affordable and available health care:
I mean, people have access to health care in America. After all, you just go to an emergency room.
Oh, right! That's all I have to do to access care. As Jeff Fecke says in his post on the topic,
Sure. Because emergency rooms love it when you bring your kid in with an earache. They’re happy to help. And they just waive the bill!
Let's remind ourselves what happens to people when they get so sick that they have to go to the emergency room, shall we?
I count myself as extraordinarily lucky that Connery has needed the services of the ER only once since we've been here. (And believe me, I'm knocking on wood like crazy as I say that.) We're insured. Even so, that one ER visit--which lasted only about 20 minutes, five of those with an actual doctor present--cost us in excess of $200. And I still feel like we got off easy, since in Livingston you rarely have to wait to get into an exam room (especially at 3:30 in the morning) and because the problem was solved for us without too much delay.
So yes, President Bush, we had access to that ER. We also had access to a car to get us there and the wherewithal to absorb a $200 bill, which we didn't have to pay on the spot because we have insurance (even though it doesn't pay). Joe Uninsured coming in with his kid in full asthma attack mode would probably not have been given the same bill-me courtesy.
The privilege contained in Bush's two very simple sentences really defies belief. Here is a man who has never once in his life known hunger, poverty, or want (much less need!) telling us how easy it is to get health care in America. I'm sure it is just that easy when you are born into a family dynasty like Bush was. It's akin to the thinking that I imagine he has that it's really easy to get into (and pay for) Yale and it's no sweat to get a great, high-paying job. It's not a problem when you're George W. Bush, that's for sure. The rest of us might have a little more difficulty.
It's giving me a headache just thinking about it. Maybe I should go to the emergency room. In the meantime, I'll be hanging out with the rest of the peasants, having some tasty cake. Don't worry, it's not yellow.