Medical care

After Dave had his usual chilaquiles y huevos for breakfast and I had my more American omelette de jamon y queso, we went to the market for the makings of our supper. I have finally gotten use to the meat hanging in the open air and watching as the butcher cuts off what you ask for. It is some of the best pork and beef that I have ever eaten. I still have not gotten to the point of buying fresh chicken, but I guess it really makes no difference as to the cleanliness and saftey of the food. We have been eating from the carts of the local street vendors most of the time that we have lived here and have survived with little or no discomfort. Everyone (even the locals) suffer from amoebas, but we just take medicine once a month to take care of that problem.

Speaking of medicine, we watch with interest the American debate on health care. Though our time watching American news is much less than when we first arrived, we do try to keep up with current events. It gets so frustrating though to see how slanted American media are when they present activities occurring south of the border. Life here is not nearly as dangerous as CNN portrays it. But, I will save my opinions on CNN for another time.

So back to health care. We are well taken care of here. Most medicines are purchased over the counter and a consultation with a Mexican doctor varies from 20 pesos to 30 pesos. If you want to use the services of the doctors who cater to the expatriates, you can easily pay thirty to forty times that amount before leaving their office (I guess some expatriates feel comfort in knowing their doctor drives a new jaguar and they don't mind paying the extra costs). We were foolish in not purchasing health insurance when we first got here, but because medical costs are so low we figured why go to the expense of buying insurance. But, then we thought better of it. IMSS, the government medical insurace, takes three years to fully kick in with coverage. The first two years cover some things but not all. After paying the third year premium, EVERYTHING is covered with no deductible. Our premiums increased 100 pesos this year. It is all based on age (by decade). So my annual premium is 2133 pesos and Dave's is 3211 pesos. Also, we live right down the street from Cruz Roja (Red Cross) which is nothing like American Red Cross. It operates like an emergency room/clinic and financed with charitable contributions and donations from the patients. If a person uses Cruz Roja, an amount to contribute will be suggested (which is minimal), but if the patient cannot afford it, then that is OK too. So, you can see why we watch with interest what the American health care program will be, who will benefit, and who will pay the costs.

The longer we live here the more I realize that living in a third world country is not like what the media portrays it. Though there might be some violence, government corruption, poverty, and even people without medical insurance, can't the same be said about the United States? Maybe the United States should look at third world countries and see how they deal with problems that all societies share. The United States always has solutions to problems (both domestic and foreign), but are the solutions always the right ones for others?