Of Guns And Health Insurance

     I had an interesting thought the other day.  For the cowards that be, who have deemed it necessary that we all get to live in something akin to the Wild West, what is the health insurance breakdown for someone who falls victim to a mass shooting?

     Since a mass shooting happens as frequently as weather, I think it's a fair question to ask.  There was another one in Virginia on 5/31/2019 and I'm sure there will be at least one more by the time I post this.  Do the survivors run the risk of losing their homes from medical bills because some dipshit wanted to be entertained and express his freedom?

     We live in a country that guarantees the right to send someone to the hospital but does nothing for the person that gets sent there because of it.  I'm no genius but something seems a bit askew with that math.

     And given our shitty work protections, I wouldn't be surprised if people have lost their jobs because they had to spend time recovering from these incidents.

     It's already been established that gun manufacturers cannot be held accountable when one of their military grade products is used to level a school full of children.  The shooters are rarely taken into custody and they aren't the most affluent folks to begin with so recouping medical expenses from the perpetrators is not realistic.

     I have fairly decent health insurance because at least my shitty day job is a shitty union day job and I still have a $150 emergency room copay.  Repairing the damage done by bullets is not easy or cheap.  Chances are most people would max out their insurance within the first few hours of care, never mind recovery, rehab and follow ups.

     Especially in Pittsburgh where the two major health care providers are also the two major health insurers.  Both companies are so entrenched in their own bullshit that they're going to stop accepting each others plans because of greed and the desire to become a monopoly.  Who gives a shit if people are going to die because of it, there's money to be made so fuck the doomed.

     If I get shot because some idiot doesn't know how use their words to properly express their emotions, I don't think the ambulance driver is going to ask to see my insurance card while I'm bleeding out on a gurney.  I'll end up at the nearest hospital regardless of whether they're in network or not.  Would they call me a cab to ship me off to a hospital that does accept my insurance or would I have to take the bus?

     If the hospital doesn't accept my insurance am I then handed a bill for my treatment on my way out?  There goes my house and my car because we all know how understanding banks can be when you start to miss payments.  Don't I have the freedom to not fall into financial ruin and lose everything I own?  I guess not since somewhere along the line we all thought it would be a good idea to live in a coast to coast killing field.

     We are all at the mercy of someone not losing their shit.  If their shit is lost in your vicinity, you're on your own.  That's your fault for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  In case of emergency, get your Go Fund Me page ready to launch.

     You would think that all these people that are in favor of cutting a small child in half with an AR-15 would also be in favor of having a better healthcare system in order to deal with the aftermath of their freedom.  Especially when these rugged individualists end up with the diabetes from jamming freedom fries and Mountain Dew down their gullets.