Hello Daily Kos! I'm Mary Sorteberg, registered nurse and wife of Oregon Senate candidate Jeff Merkley. I am glad to be back here blogging with you. I wanted to take a minute and talk to you about the race in Oregon and about the health care crisis, an issue that does not receive the attention it deserves.
We all know that health care is a huge problem in our country and we are surrounded by people who don’t have health insurance. Recently, I volunteered at a free clinic for the uninsured. It is one thing to know that 600,000 Oregonians are without health care, but to put names and faces and stories to some of those 600,000 people is a completely different thing—very sobering.
When I arrived at the clinic to work for the evening, the waiting room was packed, every chair felled, people standing in the doorway, and children sitting on their parent’s laps. I noticed that the room was very quiet for the number of people there. Everyone was just sitting patiently and I sensed a preparedness in the room to wait as long as necessary in order to see a doctor. I was told that as volunteers, we work until there are no more patients so I didn’t know how long I would be there either.
There were common threads among all the people I saw that night. People had very real health related issues—some rather simple, some more complicated. But what I found is that they all had waited to seek help because they did not have health insurance—waiting means that problems become more complex—it means stress and worry. The other common thread I noticed is that all the people I saw were working hard to make their way in the world.
We saw a woman who was exactly my age and I was so happy that she told me she had just been accepted to nursing school. She was visibly excited about this accomplishment and road ahead—but she does not have health coverage. It really struck me. Here is a person who has worked extremely hard to get into nursing school so that she can provide care to others and she does not even have health care for herself until she finishes school and gets a job. This is crazy to me!
Our health care system is broken and it is unsustainable—I believe health care is a basic human right not a privilege. It is staggering and appalling that we do not take care of our students—our sisters and brothers—our sons and daughters—our parents and grandparents.
Even our sisters and brothers who have health coverage today have huge stress and worry regarding the delivery and billing of care in our country. We have a system full of barriers and a lack of transparency that puts a tremendous burden on the patient and the patient’s family
I cared for a 26 year old patient the other day at the hospital, who was having a routine but very necessary surgery. His procedure was delayed several hours due to complications in the Operating Room. He actually had insurance but had a very high deductible, and he was concerned that the added time spent in the hospital would mean added cost to him—something he could not afford. So, here was a patient with normal pre-surgery anxiety AND the added stress of uncertainty and financial burden. This is a reality for so many patients.
Jeff Merkley has been a leading advocate for nurses and health care in the Oregon Legislature. He has listened to my stories from the trenches and the front lines and I believe if elected, he will be the only US Senator married to a nurse...it is time we had that voice in Washington!!!
Jeff Merkley has always stood with and for nurses and our working families—it is my privilege to invite you to join me in standing with him—fighting with him—and spreading the word that this US Senate race in Oregon truly matters.
Let’s come together and elect my husband Jeff Merkley who will fight for health care reform and access for all of our children, communities, and families.
All my best,
Mary
P.S. There are 19 days to go. Please consider making a donation to the campaign and if you live in Oregon, you can help by volunteering.