rantlust

Posted by sselis on July 25th 2007 in Health & Fitness, Movies, Politics
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Reflections on “Sicko,” collective compassion, and (fantasies of) quitting the corporate world

I finally saw “Sicko” last week, and it had a strong impact on me. That’s not surprising if you know how susceptible I am to the emotional pull of movies — and if you consider that Michael Moore was “preaching to the choir” in my case, since I’ve long been an ardent supporter of government-financed universal health coverage (my last job was as the communications coordinator for a health policy research center).

A caveat: I fully acknowledge that “Sicko” has its share of flaws and oversimplifications. For example, Moore makes a big deal of how the evil health plans deny patients’ appeals for medical services. While health plans have certainly denied many legitimate, needed treatments, it’s also true that — given the need to use our limited healthcare resources wisely — not all treatments for all medical conditions can or should be covered. Also, we never hear even a negative peep about the healthcare systems of France, England, Cuba or Canada (but Michael Moore is not exactly about balance!).

That aside, what really disturbed me about Sicko was not just the stories of suffering and hardship that sick people have endured because of our refusal to provide universal health coverage (although that was part of it — I cried when confronted with the Sept. 11 volunteer rescue workers who gave selflessly to their country, then couldn’t get decent care for the resulting ailments). What disturbed me even more was the broader point Moore makes (effectively I think) when he asks the question, “Who are we as a society?”

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