Control over health care essential

I know my dog has nothing to do with the health care debate except that I care for him.
I know what it is like for him to age and have seen him go from a young German Shepherd cross to an old dog in front of my eyes. I know the walks around the farm have gotten shorter and the shorter distances take longer than before. I know what it is like to have to carry him back to the house when he goes too far and his joints won’t take him any farther or allow him to make the journey back home.
I became attached because I cared for him. Now I want to do the little things that make his life easier and allow him to survive awhile longer. To others it might look excessive, but they don’t have to care because they don’t have a history with him. To them he is just an old dog. To me he is my dog and friend, and I am willing to do more than anyone else would for him because I’ve gone on those walks with him for 16 years.
Now think of the way we feel about our grandparents and our parents, about children born with illnesses and disabilities or soldiers wounded in war. Think of the people we know, and the times when we’ve struggled. Who knew what was best for us? Whom did we turn to and ask for help? We turned to the people who care about us and the people we trust. Would you turn over decisions for someone you care about to a stranger, to a bureaucracy or an entity without the relationship and the memories?
In the health care debate, we are talking about letting someone removed from the experiences of our lives decide the care our family members will or will not receive. These are the people we would do anything for. The people who make the decisions about health care should be the ones who care about those involved intimately, not a government entity that cannot know or understand the struggles of each individual. Under our current system, insurance companies can decide what care they will pay for; they can’t decide what care we have access to.

If we do not have control over our health care then we do not have control over the most important decisions that affect our lives. Yes, we need to do what is right and help people who are less fortunate than us. Americans already spend a great deal to provide Medicaid, Medicare, S-Chip and a prescription drug benefit to protect low-income families, children and citizens older than 65. It is in our country’s character to take care of the sick and help the disabled but not to take away their medical choices, or ours.
We all know of cases where the experts said nothing could be done, but the family didn’t give up. In our system, we can keep looking, trying different experts or different medicines. It would be frightening to lose those options. Imagine how devastating it would be to know there is help, but not have the ability to access to it. Citizens who are denied access in other countries can come here for help.. If our system fails us, where will we go?
When there is a health problem, it gives us peace of mind to know we can pursue every option for the people we are closest to.