A Tale of Two Healthcare Systems

Last updated on August 10th, 2014 at 05:12 pm

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My wife was recently diagnosed Colon Cancer. Caught in what we thought were the early stages, we were faced with two options.

You see, I’m a kiwi ex-pat living in a small, developed South-East Asian country (you will forgive me from being more specific than that, but I do want some privacy). My wife is a local. I work for a company that employs a large number of ex-pats, and as a result offers healthcare through an American company that has expanded into the area.

My wife, on the other hand, receives coverage as a citizen, as do our children. I was naturally concerned. If this was the New Zealand healthcare system, I may have breathed easy, but I have heard the horror stories; long waits, incompetent doctors… you know the deal.

So we pursued both options.

Through my wife’s medical coverage, she went straight in for tests. They recommended checking her in for an operation within the next week, followed by a period of chemotherapy. The operation was done within a week, but my wife was kept in hospital for a further week to monitor progress.

Contacting my medical coverage, I was told that she might not be covered, as it was a pre-existing condition, owing that she was hospitalized for anemia during her pregnancy last year. This, in retrospect, was the first symptom.

The surgery went as well as could be expected, as they cut a section 5cm long out of her colon. Further tests discovered that the cancer was more advanced than they expected, so the length of chemotherapy was extended and a period of radiation therapy was added to the treatment.

They are still checking the paper work on my medical coverage. My wife’s radiation therapy is due to finish next week.

Don’t get me wrong; this is not a perfect system. The lack of transparency from the doctors can be frustrating. Trying to get a copy of reports to get a second opinion has been a lesson in frustration.

But so is the insurance system I’m covered by, and the difference is that my wife is being treated for cancer as we speak.

You may ask why a foreigner like me is even bothered by your healthcare debate. Well, like most American ideas, this is one you are exporting. Back in New Zealand, I would face bosses who believed that the union I belonged to was a satanic institution, backed by their dog-eared copies of “the truth according to Jack Welch” or something like that.

Now, the company I work for buys it’s insurance from an American company. If it were me instead of my wife, we would be moving back to New Zealand right now.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association