[Thread] My experiences dealing with my wife (cancer, died), father (cancer, terminal) and mother (diabetes, substance abuse, disability) have reinforced my belief that the government should pay for health care, and that mental and physical care should not be separated. 1/

I am very fortunate to have had a good health care plan through my employer. I never would have been able to afford Nancy's cancer treatment and she would've died two years earlier than she did, with important projects (including her nonprofit for trans teens) unfulfilled. 2/

A ritual for me & Nancy was looking at the total that insurance covered. After two years, the number was $550,000. Only a fantastically rich person could afford that out-of-pocket. It makes no sense that others who don't have good heath plans go bankrupt because of illness. 3/

Dad has pretty good insurance through his military service (Army, 1960s) and the musician's union, but he (and I & my brother) still paid out-of-pocket for a lot that the plans wouldn't cover. Thousands of dollars each year, over seven years. 4/

There's always equipment or medicine or experimental treatments that even good plans won't cover because they're trying to keep the company as profitable as possible. It's inhumane to have a middleman like that standing between a loved one and health. 5/

I don't even know where to begin with my mother. She has so many debilitating issues, and living in another state with five kids to support, I can't even begin to give her the kind of help she needs to be truly functional. 6/

Mom's caretaker/boyfriend is elderly and has his own very severe problems. And they're basically on their own. Even if they had a network of friends, they'd all be in their 70s and dealing with their own health issues. The entire situation is unfathomably cruel and cold. 7/

The thought that has popped into my head regularly in the last few years is: No single person can handle these challenges. There isn't enough money, time, or emotional energy. Companies won't do it. They only care about profit. It has to be the state. 8/

I have a brother who married a Swiss citizens and lives in Switzerland now. The difference between healthcare here and healthcare in most developed European countries is the difference should be deeply embarrassing to the US. But somehow, for many Americans, it isn't. 9/

I have no policy suggestions about any of this. It's not my area. But it should be clear to anyone who has chronic health issues, or who knows somebody with them, that the system we now have is a joke and a scam that only intensifies human suffering. 10/

Our priorities as a country are completely out of whack, and have been for many decades. We're putting out money into all sorts of areas that enrich already rich people but do very little to alleviate the most basic kinds of pain and deprivation. I hope that changes. /end

apologies for the typos. it's late and I'm exhausted, so spelling and grammar are not at the forefront of my mind.

And in case anybody's wondering, yes, I would like to be taxed at a higher rate if it helped alleviate physical and mental suffering by people who need better care than they can afford. Tax the shit out of me. And tax the rich even more. We'll all save money in the long run.