Letters and Comments for October 12, 2009

Morehead

Health care system works

To the Editor:

In response to Norm Cimon’s Oct. 2 community comment, I’d like to insert my two cents worth on American health care.

About five years ago, I awoke one Sunday with severe chest pains. At Wallowa Memorial Hospital, the doctor on duty and my family doctor diagnosed a heart attack. Loaded on to Life Flight (insurance purchased one month prior to attack) to St. Alphonsos, where with no waiting, a stint was inserted and I was back cutting wood two weeks later.

First-rate care in Enterprise and in Boise.

A little over a year ago, after walking around with what I thought was a double hernia, the same family doctor diagnosed lymphoma. Doctor took a biopsy in-office to find out what kind of lymphoma and sent me to Wallowa Memorial for a CAT scan. Again, no wait and first-class staff. After results were sent to Walla Walla Cancer Center, I found it was large cell B cell lymphoma.

I started chemotherapy at Grande Ronde Hospital almost immediately after a two-week delay for elk season. My delay, not health care industry’s.

Six treatments spaced at three-week intervals at the first class GRH with first class staff at the direction of Walla Walla Cancer Center and a no-wait CAT scan showed cancer in remission.

Does this mean I’m cured? No, but no other country and no other health care system could have done for me what good old American systems did in both of my cases. Maybe if the Democrats would permit the sue-happy lawyers to be held in check, costs would go down.

I certainly don’t subscribe to “hate everything American” and “change everything American” that has been in vouge since the election.

Paul Morehead

Joseph