YOUR VOICE: The average Jose is proud of his country's health care

I strongly support the kind of public health care option that exists in other industrialized nations. These other nations have come to the conclusion that universal coverage for all is a common good for society.

The reasons for having such a system are so many, from purely economic reasons to moral ones, that they should be drowning out the disingenuous rhetoric of those who wish to keep this bankrupt U.S. system in place.

I know what I’m talking about. I’m an American citizen who has lived in Spain for the past eight years.

Here I am fully covered, I have my own doctor and I don’t pay a cent out of pocket.

Fortunately, in these years I’ve only been to the doctor twice, but I’ve always known that my personal doctor is there for me, that for any emergency, for any chronic condition that may develop, I’ll receive the attention I need for free.

I’m convinced that this peace of mind has in fact kept me out of the doctor’s office. During these years I’ve paid into the system like everyone else. And it’s a system that works.

In the U.S., the situation for the uninsured would be “knock on wood and count your blessings.” I worked after my university studies as a self-employed fisherman in Alaska with just this reality and just this mentality. It’s not pleasant.

That stress is nonexistent here in Spain. The doctor concentrates on the patient, and if necessary refers him or her to a specialist.

Although I’ve only seen my doctor a couple of times, my wife recently became pregnant. Having what’s considered a high-risk pregnancy because of her age, she has had four ultrasounds, two blood tests, one amniocentesis, two consultation visits with a midwife at the hospital and access to her own midwife at the neighborhood clinic. She will continue with the monthly ultrasounds, the exercise/breathing classes to come, and will deliver our child here around December.

For all of this she will pay a little over one euro a month for the potassium/folic acid supplement she takes daily.

Spaniards are downright proud of their health system. And it doesn’t matter from which end of the political spectrum they come. They support it, and they’re willing to defend it.

Unfortunately, just after hamburgers we Americans are famous for our lack of health care. This absolutely baffles the Spanish.

I’m often asked, “How is it possible that the richest country on earth can’t provide for its citizens?”

I wish every American could have the same coverage and tranquility when it comes to health care that I do. Moreover, I wish I could live in my own country and enjoy the same rights as I do here, regardless of my employment status. Health care should be a right, just as a child has the right to learn, or a U.S. citizen has the right to bear arms.

The average Jose in Spain is a staunch supporter of his public health system, and the average Joe in America would certainly become one if allowed to; he just doesn’t know what he’s missing.

Meanwhile, he might try laying off those burgers a bit more.

David Hartwig graduated from Gig Harbor High School and the University of Washington. For the last eight years he has been teaching English in Madrid, Spain.