THE BEAST

I have yet to witness anyone other than a politician speak favorably about the healthcare legislation currently working its way through congress. The best I’ve seen anywhere else is, “Well, it needs work, but it’s better than Obamacare.” Except for the fact that the new act helps LITERALLY NO ONE except the politicians whose pockets are lined by insurance companies that donate to their campaigns, and of course those very same companies, too. It’s a disaster that will leave our country way sicker than it already is.

But don’t take it from me, a relatively healthy man of decent means: take it from Jason Becker, the promising young guitarist (Cacophony, David Lee Roth) who’s been almost entirely paralyzed for TWENTY EIGHT YEARS following a diagnosis of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Becker, who by his own admission usually doesn’t get political in the public eye, felt impassioned enough to write a Facebook post expressing his feelings on the new legislation:

I usually stay out of politics, but people have asked me whether the American Healthcare Act (AHCA), if passed by the Senate, will affect me personally. I’m about music, not politics, but the fact is this one has me freaked out for poor and disabled people.

I have survived ALS to continue my work as a musician and composer for 28 years due to the care I receive through insurance and Medicaid. Without these supports my family can flat out not manage my care and my life and career will be in serious jeopardy.

When President Trump promised we would get better, cheaper healthcare that would fix the problems of the Affordable Care Act, I hoped it was true. Unfortunately, the American Healthcare Act promises giant cuts to the programs that I and every other poor, sick and disabled person have relied on for our lives. The Medicaid per capita block grants to states will mean bluntly that people with costly needs like mine will be too expensive to cover. The removal of limits on insurance premiums means that people with expensive medical care needs can be priced out of the market. I would certainly be one of those affected. Lastly, insurance companies will not be required to cover basic services, such as hospitalization. This means, for example, the next time I get pneumonia I would not be able to afford the intensive treatment I would need to survive it.

None of these reductions in benefits is offset by any other aspect of the bill. The only beneficiaries of these drastic cuts are the wealthy, who are set to receive a tax break if the bill passes. It breaks my heart that this country could forsake its own most vulnerable citizens in this way, placing no value on the lives of the poor and sick.

So I am asking you: please call and email your senators right away, telling them you want them to stand up for those who can’t by demanding a better solution for American healthcare and voting against the AHCA as it is currently written.

Do what the man says: call and email your Senators right away telling them they cannot allow this act to pass. You can find out who your Senators are, as well as their contact information,   right here . Phone calls and emails really do have an impact on how they vote! Do it.  [via   Blabbermouth ] and MetalSucks