I retired from the Navy in 1990 after 23 years, and went to work for a defense contractor. I had health coverage through this contractor, but was also eligible for retired military care. Since I was used to the military, I continued to use their health care for routine doctor visits, etc.
In 1997, at the age of 50, I developed some heart problems. I couldn’t mow the lawn, or exert myself at all without having chest heaviness and soreness. Using my military option, I went to the Navy clinic at Patuxent River, MD. They attempted to schedule me for a treadmill test, but I was told the equipment at Naval Hospital Bethesda was out of commission and I couldn’t get in for 6 months. They told me they would call me when they could get me an appointment.
Being a good sailor and following orders, I stupidly accepted this advice and settled in to wait for the appointment to materialize. Some good friends told me that if I waited, I could end up in real trouble, so I used my civilian health care and went to a civilian doctor. He immediately started me on various medications, and within the week I was on a treadmill at Washington Adventist Hospital. It was determined that I had multiple blockages and within the month I had a quadruple bypass at Washington Hospital Center.
The point is: Retired and Dependent Military Health Care is very much like socialized medicine. You seldom see the same doctor. They are overcrowded. You have to wait weeks for appointments. Some doctors are very poorly trained.
My wife has had similar experiences. My company health care is free to me, but expensive to add a spouse. She is covered by the military system - Tricare Prime. She is diabetic and asthmatic. We recently lived on the Gulf coast and she was assigned to an Air Force Hospital for her care. The diabetes started acting up after years being under control. In 6 visits to the AF hospital, she saw 6 different doctors, some military, and some civilian contractors. None of these doctors would read her record to see what the previous one had decided as a plan of action, and her medications were changed at almost every visit. The result was a visit to the emergency room and a night in the hospital when her blood sugar got dangerously low because of incorrectly prescribed medications.
Don’t misunderstand me. Military Health Care is a good system for military folks who move around from place to place, and are mostly young and don’t get sick very much. But I don’t think it, or a system like it, works well for civilians, especially those of us who are older.
But if you want a system that promises to be even worse, then support ObamaCare.
