The Closest I Will Get to Political

In my previous blog on urban design I managed to avoid political waters for the most part. This is primarily due to the fact that I am moderate and a centrist and it turns my stomach to listen to folks on the fringes hurl insults at one another. As such I can’t maintain an interest in politics, my mind moves on to other things. That said, the topic of today’s blog is about as political as they come these days. Today, I humbly ask that you lower your political guard for a few moments and consider what I have to say a real-world example of something that has been abstracted and politicized.

Just so you know, I tend to lean right on political issues, but as I mentioned, I am a centrist and favor cooperation and collaboration over taking it to the mat to win every issue. As recently as nine months ago I was in total opposition to Obamacare.  As a self-employed, small business owner the idea that my monthly rates were going to jump to pay for a bloated government program made me cranky. Because of the particulars of my situation I was grandfathered for a year before I had to convert to an ACA policy. During that grandfather period I was diagnosed with cancer.

Had the ACA not been in place by the time I was diagnosed, the Rushing family would have been financially ruined. The key was the pre-existing condition provision. If I went to the market as a self-employed, sole-proprietor with stage four cancer, no insurance company would have taken me. We certainly would not have been able to afford to pay for cancer care without insurance. Please note that this is not due to failure to plan on our part. We have followed the savings playbook to the letter- we have our 6-month buffer, religiously contribute to our retirement accounts, and have 529’s set up for the boys. Despite that diligent work, the monumental cost of this cancer care will far eclipse to few farthings we’ve worked hard to save. Through its pre-existing conditions provision, the ACA has mitigated an unimaginable stress, and preserved a brighter future for the Rushings.

I hate to be "the drain on the system" that gets more out of the system than he pays in. But I can assure you that I didn't plan on getting cancer at age 42, and we can't trace a poor life decision that led to the cancer. I simply drew a short straw.

Part of the promise of the ACA is preventing illness from having catastrophic financial effects on people. I firmly believe in this premise, and have been a beneficiary of it. I hope as we move into election season that when we take our positions on this issue people realize that portions of the ACA make sense for everyone.

So that’s off my chest, I really felt like I needed to say something. (Now don’t go using this an excuse to flood my Facebook with political stuff- there’s enough of that out there already. And I say that with love in my heart :) Until next time, Roll Tide ya'll!