According to a 2008 study by the Urban Institute, more than 10 million American young adults between the ages 19 & 26 lack health insurance coverage. Yours truly is included in this statistic. Voters under the age of 30, Obama's biggest support base, are crucial to the passing of health care reform. Looks like that support will have to be more than verbal. A Washington Post article looks at this issue:
"According to a Washington Post-ABC News poll last week, young adults are more optimistic about the outcome of health-care reform than those age 30 and older, but they are evenly divided on the cost implications, with 32 percent expecting their costs to decline and 27 percent expecting an increase.
About 52 percent of young adults support the idea of the individual mandate, about the same proportion as in other age groups. But in terms of the overall package, the under-30 group broadly supports the Democratic effort, with 60 percent favoring the proposed reforms vs. 42 percent among older adults.
And while the number is down from its high point, 63 percent of under-30s approve of Obama's overall job performance, significantly more than in other age groups."
"According to a Washington Post-ABC News poll last week, young adults are more optimistic about the outcome of health-care reform than those age 30 and older, but they are evenly divided on the cost implications, with 32 percent expecting their costs to decline and 27 percent expecting an increase.
About 52 percent of young adults support the idea of the individual mandate, about the same proportion as in other age groups. But in terms of the overall package, the under-30 group broadly supports the Democratic effort, with 60 percent favoring the proposed reforms vs. 42 percent among older adults.
And while the number is down from its high point, 63 percent of under-30s approve of Obama's overall job performance, significantly more than in other age groups."
I'm not sure I fully understand the statistics, but here is what worries me: it appears that the power voters, the 30-and-under, are fearful that mandatory healthcare will harm their incomes.
ReplyDeleteI understand their fears. But as a 46 year old woman, a mother and a daughter, caught between the old and the young, I see that universal healthcare will protect all of us and be worth the inconvenience. It is devastating to need healthcare for your parents or your children or yourself, and to find that it is not available or affordable to you. It can ruin an otherwise good and "self sufficient" life.
I know the young will think I speak without care about their tax dollars--but that's not true--I want the best for you all, for our next generation. But you too will someday face these health issues with your parents, your children, or god forbid, yourselves. We are smart enough and rich enough as a society to take care of those in need. We have that power. We are richer than so many other worlds who already know how to take care of their own.
If you are young, and angry about the Obama healthcare initiative and what it might mean to your paycheck, I ask you to look into the future and ask yourself what it might mean to your loved ones and yourself someday in the future.
Because getting older is about doing that, looking down the road a bit, worrying about whether things we've seen before will happen again, or whether we'll be well set to face unforeseen issues in the future. Preparing, hoping, and praying, that we'll all be safe in the future. It's not as romantic as the movies, but it's real life, it's really all of us.
I hate being middle age. I really liked being 20-something and 30-something. I enjoyed being carefree. But the good thing about being middle age is that you can see over a bit of time and space and hope that with good choices, we'll all do better in the long run.
Sharlina has got a good, strong logic going here, I hope to read more of her very important work and writings.
Tamara