American Healthcare System is Guilty of Murder. Future Can Be Different Under ‘President’ Kamala Harris
- No one should face impossible debt and massive stress in order to live healthily. We can make it right in the next few days.
“I let my healthcare go because of the cost,” explains Amanda A., a 43-year-old single mother of three and full-time nurse manager. Consistently paying around $260 for insurance premiums, a $7,500 debt-plagued her after her son’s first surgery in November of 2023.
Within the next few months, her son needed another surgery. This time, however, 2024 had arrived and, with it, a treacherously renewed deductible forcing Amanda to pay an additional $7,500. Unwanted calls hound her daily, asking for money she cannot afford. Meanwhile, her son faces another visit to the doctor soon. She worries that the visit, scheduled for November 2024, may result in an additional surgery in 2025 for her son, piling another $7,500 into an already massive flood of debt.
Having amassed $15,000 owed, working full-time, and trying to provide for her three children, Amanda has ignored her own kidney issue for two years, avoiding necessary nuclear renal scans because of the $900 upfront cost. Her kids’ health, she explains, takes the forefront, while her own remains in the back of her mind. This predicament forces Amanda to choose between herself and unbearable costs. The expenses win.
Amanda’s story serves as a testament to the failure of the system. No one should face impossible debt and massive stress to live healthily. Yet, in the world’s richest country, we allow 100 million people to endure this fate (NPR).
To fix such issues, we must make the correct decision at the ballot box. One presidential candidate promises to expand on healthcare progress she already pioneered, while the other hopes to repeal any such progress.
As a leader for healthcare equity, Vice President Harris passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, capping the monthly insulin cost for individuals on Medicare at $35, requiring the provision of vaccines by state programs, and substantially reducing health insurance premiums (The White House). She promises to finally make healthcare a right, not a privilege. Under her leadership, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) can expand, allowing people like Amanda to provide for their families without sacrificing self-health.
“The Institute of Medicine, using older studies, estimated that one American dies every 30 minutes from lack of health insurance, Even this grim figure is an underestimate – now one dies every 12 minutes.”
Meanwhile, Former President Donald Trump seeks to demolish the ACA without any substantive replacement (ABC News). Having already attempted to repeal it several times, he has caused expanded healthcare to become a shell of itself.
It is unconscionable that so many people cannot afford to lead healthy lives because of a flawed structure that creates many more hardships in a story that is already full of pain and difficulty. Yet, In this country, 25 million people are uninsured (The Commonwealth Fund). These people live every day, knowing that at any moment, a health issue can upend their lives, spiraling them into debt – simply to survive.
Almost 40% of people have admitted that they or a family member postponed or avoided seeking care amid the inflated prices (CBS News). It is now impractical for the average American to fulfill a deserved human right.
Our society has failed.
David Himmelstein, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard University explains it best, “‘The Institute of Medicine, using older studies, estimated that one American dies every 30 minutes from lack of health insurance, Even this grim figure is an underestimate – now one dies every 12 minutes’” (Public Citizen).
The American Healthcare System is guilty of murder.
Trump plans to “fix” this by repealing the ACA, a plan that caused a 50% drop in uninsurance rates.
Vice President Harris plans to fix this by expanding on the current administration’s progress, which already gives over 45 million people coverage under the ACA (US Department Of Health and Human Services).
Our country claims to be just to all people, no matter their race. Hence, it is heartbreaking when one discovers the truth: every sect of life still systematically discriminates, and even healthcare harms minority groups.
To illustrate, in the 30 largest cities, Black Americans endure almost 75,000 excess deaths compared to White Americans (American Medical Association). In the US, black men are twice as likely as their white counterparts to die of a stroke (National Institute of Health).
In the United States of America, a country where, per the Declaration of Independence, “All men are created equal,” a person’s skin color dictates their ability to afford health. A person’s skin color dictates their ability to withstand basic medical costs. A person’s skin color dictates their ability to live.
The American Healthcare System is guilty of murder.
The Biden-Harris administration fought such murder by increasing Black enrollment in the ACA by 95% (The American Presidency Project). Meanwhile, Trump ignored the struggles of Black Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic, as he denied PPP funding to 90% of black-owned small businesses who applied for such aid (Brookings).
The future does not have to be bleak. The United States of America’s beauty can be heightened if Vice President Kamala Harris is elected to office.
Reform is near. Soon, healthcare debt will not dominate the lives of Amanda and the 100 million like her. This future begins with our unity and casting our ballots for the candidate who cares.
The American Healthcare System was once guilty of murder, but the future can be different. The choice is clear, America.
Krish Korrapati is a high-achieving high school sophomore dedicated to healthcare equity and public service. He founded Krishya Kares, a nonprofit focused on reducing socioeconomic disparities in healthcare. Politically active, he interns for Congressman Jeff Jackson and serves as North Carolina Co-Youth Lead for South Asians for Harris. Krish is also organizing a summit with NC State Senator Jay Chaudhuri to allow young South Asians to connect themselves to politics.