Musings about health care from a frequent flyer.

The current debate over healthcare reform hits home for me because I'm a frequent flyer, and soon the healthcare my husband get through his company will dry out. I believe his company is paying Cobra until December. Husband is laid off as you may remember, and I'm not fit for dog meat.

Having been in need of our state of the art healthcare system, I've have had a few revelations:

• Doctors do a lot of guessing and don't get much time with patients, all to the patient's detriment;
• It appears (at least in my case) that getting routine checkups makes no difference as to one's long-term health (see above observation);
• It is problematic that health care is a "benefit" of one's employment, especially in our current recession;
• As such, not everyone who needs government assistance is a freeloader;

In reviewing my ten-year journey with brain tumor symptoms, tests and the like, I feel like I received quality care only from my surgeon and the oncologist and nurse practitioner who handled my care after my tumor was diagnosed in 2006. I will always question what in the world happened between 1999 and 2006 that fell through the medical cracks. I had more than one scan, more than one trip to the emergency room in that period and no one knew what was wrong with me, but acted like they did. And we have the best health care system? Really?