Gas prices are breaking budgets. Food prices are overwhelming. And for those who aren’t pregnant or with young children, healthcare costs are just too much to bear. I think it doesn’t make any sense that because someone doesn’t want to have a child, they can’t have the same access as someone who did. Times are tough for everyone.BadgerCare Plus offers health insurance for kids under the age of 19 and for their parents or a caretaker relative. However, there is nothing available for someone who doesn’t have children. I understand that having children is expensive, but just because you’re single doesn’t mean healthcare is cheaper.

It isn’t fair to offer affordable healthcare to someone just because they have a child. I understand the children are innocent, so let them be insured. I’m not against that.

However, if the state is unwilling to provide insurance to every adult, then they shouldn’t offer it to any adult.

I looked on the BadgerCare Plus Web page. They did announce that in 2009 they plan to offer BadgerCare to people without kids, who met certain criteria. That criterion is primarily related to how much money they make and if their employer offers insurance. They said that they were waiting on federal approval before they can be clear on the details. That is great. I am happy that many people who wouldn’t normally be covered will soon have the opportunity. But what about the rest of us?

I don’t think it should be limited to people who either have no insurance or whose employer’s premium is over some limit. Even for those of us covered by employer-paid insurance the cost is overwhelming. For many, employer-provided insurance has premiums that are a couple hundred dollars a month. When you consider that there is a deductible that must be met before the insurance company pays for anything, you see that soon one is drowning in medical bills.

I, for one, would be more than willing to pay a premium in order to get supplemental insurance. I have an exorbitant deductible.

And if you think that once it’s met that your bills will now be covered, think again. No, instead they cover only a portion. If you’re real lucky they cover 80%, which can leave someone with thousands of dollars if something major happens.

Personally, I’m dealing with a few thousand dollars in medical bills after my recent back surgery. I have talked to others in my position, and their experience is the same. You call the hospital, explaining that you don’t have a couple thousand dollars just lying around. The person on the other end sounds so understanding. “We do offer a payment plan,” they tell you.

You think, “Whew, I can do payments.” That is until you hear they want $200 a month. What? Are they out of their mind? That’s almost a car payment. The hospital doesn’t care; they just want their money. So, as you can see, everyone needs help with healthcare costs. The days of employers providing great health insurance has gone astray for most of us.

I understand that for many employers offering insurance to employees is costly. Healthcare prices just keep rising.

The premium the employer must pay is rising. For many employers, just trying to keep their business flourishing is enough to deal with. However, the pay many employees get is dropping, leaving many struggling to survive. It isn’t just the single mom who has been forced to choose between food and medical treatment.

This affects everyone. Medical bills overwhelm my mom, who is on Medicare. In spite of living on Social Security, which isn’t much, she still has to pay thousands of dollars on medical bills. Although many of us may not be in her position, someday we will be.

I’ve heard the concerns. People talk about how people in Canada wait months, even years, to see doctors. They tell stories of how people have died waiting for medical care. Also, we have all heard that they pay extremely high taxes. I agree there is potential for that to happen here.

There is the risk of people abusing the system. I have seen abuse firsthand. Someone I know has a form of BadgerCare, and she’ll go to the emergency room for just about any reason. The common cold, menstrual cramps, things that could (and should) wait to be seen by a family doctor, she’ll go in for. She doesn’t care because she doesn’t have to pay.

Maybe they should provide safeguards that could be put in place to prevent abuse. Maybe if all of us paid a premium that would be based on our income, and maybe health needs, we can make healthcare available to all.

I don’t claim to have all the answers. However, sometimes just asking the right questions can help people come up with solutions. If we are willing to challenge the way it is now versus just accepting it, we have hope for a better future.