It’s still kind of hard to believe that there are so many uninsured individuals in America. Over time, a lot of folks begin to wonder who is truly at fault. The health care system in the States isn’t as great as it should be or as we would like it to be. Access to affordable health care is decreasing each day and those who have pre-existing health conditions give up hope of ever finding a plan that will approve them or one that will give them affordable rates. There are people in other countries living with a universal health care system and it seems to be working rather well; in fact, dollar for dollar, some countries outperform the U.S. by 500% or more.

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photo credit: Dashu Pagla

Imagine constructing a human being synthesized completely through science—a seemingly supernatural fabrication of life. You may think Frankenstein. You may visualize Iron Man. But it’s called bionics.

The field of bionics doesn’t necessarily create entire human beings, but rather constructs body parts for better human functionality. People have been losing body parts and use of body parts since the beginning of time. Non-functioning limbs have been replaced with plastic, wood and even steel.

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All through the month of December, Sylvia tried to ignore her slowly-worsening cough and chest congestion. Although she worked more than forty hours a week at two part time jobs, she had no health insurance and couldn’t afford a doctor’s visit. Her cold would get better on its own, she reassured herself.

It didn’t. She was delirious by the time friends finally took her to the emergency room on New Year’s Eve. The doctors diagnosed pneumonia. Three weeks later, she died of adult respiratory distress syndrome. Would universal healthcare have saved her life? You decide.

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It’s 2:00 pm, and Julie Raines (not her real name) is looking forward to meeting with hospice staff. But today she isn’t seeing a doctor, nurse, or social worker. Today, she’s working with an art therapist. Julie has a rare neurological disorder. Before she started doing art, she was hostile towards her treatment team. Now she is able to express her anger—and recently, some positive emotions as well—on paper. Her team notes that she has become more accepting of her disease process and more able to express her needs to the care team.

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