July 01, 2009 10:15 pm To the editor: Upon reading the long letter concerning "Social Medicine," I came to the conclusion that the person writing it had never experienced it, nor investigated what it is all about. I wonder what any one living in Europe would say of the comments listed in the Gloucester Daily Times as one who has lived with it. What would my mother, who at the age of 97 benefited from it all of her life, say about it? I can relate how good the program is. For example, every morning a nurse visited her at home to make sure she took her medicine and her reaction to it. Later on, another nurse came to help her bathe. In the evening, a nurse came over for her night medicine. All of her medicine was free, according to her age and her retirement funds. If the medicine was very expensive, like in Medicare, she may have a few Euro to pay for the difference. She also could have, like in America, the freedom to buy an additional insurance policy to pay for what the government did not pay. That is what my mother had. Also, her doctor visited her, at home, to see how well she was doing. Would not it be nice to have the same privileges? Even though I do not live in France, I can still benefit of "Social Medicine" and or treatment in hospital if I ever needed it, because during my life in France I paid on my salary for it and would get the benefit for what I contributed. How it is paid is simple: Like we have here, with withholding of SDI, FICA, and others as well as income taxes, so do the French. In one word, everybody pays for it, depending on salary. The comment of the writer about paying for illegals does not ring true, since, if they would be paid a salary it would also be withheld from their pay. If some how, some good American citizens pay them cash to avoid declaring them, they should be the one to endure procedure and be fined by the law. All of these fights boil down to people's ignorance of the facts, or their misunderstanding of how it works. I have not heard it said, as yet, that the government would prohibit someone having their own insurance, or use what they like most. It is time that the insurance companies and the prescription manufacturers who have benefited from abusing the people be stopped. We voted for change, we wanted changes, we needed changes — and now that it is happening, we keep on squawking about it without even a chance to see how wonderful it may be. Give the president his chances for what he tries to do for all of us with justice for all. Jacqueline S. Mallen King Street Court, Rockport
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