Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Presidential Politics / Silverman BBC Talks to Nashvillians About Universal Health Care
Posted by Jack Silverman on Tue, Oct 7, 2008 at 11:10 AM
A poster for Molly Secours' TennCare documentary
With all eyes on Nashville for the debate, BBC News spoke with a few Nashvillians regarding the hot-button issue of universal health care.
The BBC's Jon Kelly spoke with Nashville filmmaker Molly Secours, who, early last year, in a cruel twist of fate, was diagnosed with uterine cancer—just after she had completed her documentary The Faces of TennCare: Putting a Human Face on Tennessee's Health Care Failure. After witnessing firsthand the devastation of being sick and uninsured in the U.S., she knew she had to have her own insurance. Even though she was 80 percent covered, she still racked up $40,000 in bills.
A popular Nashville figure, Secours was fortunate enough to have friends who rallied behind her. Through benefit concerts and donations, she was able to cover much of her debt. But not everyone is so lucky. Her choice for president should come as no surprise: Barack Obama.
Meawhile, Nashvillian Paul Wright, who works for a "tyre" company (oh, those Brits and their wacky spelling—they seem to think they invented the language), likes things just the way they are. He contributes to his company plan, and feels people have "a duty to look out for themselves." He agrees with McCain. I wonder how he'll feel if he's one of the tens of thousands of Americans who will likely lose their jobs in the next year, or if he's suddenly struck with a devastating illness.
Secours told the Scene that the BBC's Kelly had suffered a brain tumor himself several years ago. "When they removed it," Secours says, "he was left with no muscle control on the left side of his face—which now slightly droops. We discussed his ordeal and how all his care was paid for. And soon, he will undergo a 13-hour reconstructive surgery that will restore his facial muscles so that he looks like himself again. All of this is covered under the British health care system."
So where do you stand on universal health care, Pith readers?
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