[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 81 (Thursday, June 23, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 23, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                    FACES OF THE HEALTH CARE CRISIS

 Mr. RIEGLE. Mr. President, I rise once again in my continuing 
effort to put a human face on the health care crisis in America. Today 
I would like to tell the story of Carol Kuiper of Jenison, MI.
  Carol will celebrate her 30th birthday this July. Like so many young 
people across our country, Carol has spent a significant proportion of 
her young-adult years without health care insurance. Her story will 
make clear why, under our current health care system, going without 
health coverage, and therefore, without health care, is a choice so 
many young people make. But this choice leaves all of us vulnerable for 
the costs of their emergency care.
  Carol entered Hope College in the fall of 1983 at age 19. She worked 
part time throughout her college years to pay for her education. As a 
dependent, she was covered by her parents health insurance until she 
turned 21. After that she went without health insurance.
  While she was in school, Carol began to experience migraine 
headaches. She did not seek treatment immediately because she could not 
afford to pay any additional expenses, including medical bills. Her 
college infirmary was available for minor medical assistance free of 
charge, but was not equipped to offer treatment for migraine headaches. 
The infirmary nurse advised Carol to seek the help of a neurologist. 
The severity of the pain eventually compelled her to make an 
appointment. However, she walked out without seeing the specialist 
after she was told she must pay $90 that day for a consultation.
  Other than experiencing migraines several times a month, Carol was 
healthy. She considered herself lucky because she did not get sick 
often. But if she had needed emergency treatment she could not have 
paid for it.
  After graduating from college with a degree in German in the spring 
of 1989, Carol held a series of part-time jobs which did not offer 
insurance. These included waitressing and working in a greenhouse. In 
September of that year she was hired as a full-time employee in a 
department store, preparing visual displays. She finally had affordable 
health insurance coverage at a cost of $70 a month with a $10 copay on 
doctor's visits and prescriptions.
  My colleagues may know that retail can be a very stressful business. 
After working for 4 years, Carol left the visual display job in June of 
1993 because she could no longer handle the high stress of the 
position. She had the option of continuing her insurance coverage under 
COBRA, but, without assured full-time income and in addition to her 
student loan payments, she could not afford the $160 a month premium 
plus the required payments.
  Not wanting to be completely without coverage, Carol did take out 
catastrophic coverage as a safety net. She paid $193 for 6 months of 
coverage. There was a $250 deductible for every catastrophic injury or 
illness. Although she now had coverage for a major accident or 
hospitalization, she was uninsured for minor illness or injuries and 
preventive treatment. Her migraine medication cost her an additional 
$70 a month, which she could not afford, she stopped treating her 
migraines. She has gone without normal medical visits when she had 
experienced tendinitis and sore throats.
  In September 1993 Carol again found a job in retail, working part 
time at minimum wage. Again, she was not offered, and could not afford 
to purchase on her own, comprehensive health coverage. While working at 
this part-time job, she continue her effort to find full-time work 
which provided health care benefits.
  In January of 1994, frustrated by the idea that she was paying for 
coverage that did not meet her basic health care needs, she opted to 
not renew the policy. Carol did this, knowing that if she were in any 
sort of accident or developed a more serious health condition, she 
would have no way to pay for her care.
  I am pleased to report that Carol has recently been offered a full-
time job which she will begin later this month. The position, again in 
retail, offers affordable health care benefits. But the benefits will 
not start until she has worked for 6 months. Although she must wait, 
Carol is happy to know she will have access to affordable health care. 
She is currently in the process of deciding whether to choose an HMO or 
a fee-for-service plan.
  Carol's story is not unlike that of many of our young people. They 
realize the importance of having health insurance, but just cannot 
afford the cost. We need to help Carol and other young working people 
obtain affordable health care coverage so that they are not subject to 
the constant worry of becoming ill or of being in an accident. I will 
continue to work with my colleagues in the Senate to craft a health 
reform package that covers everyone.

                          ____________________