I’ve been watching and reading about the “debate” on national health care that’s going on in the US as someone who’s waiting for it to boil out of control or for someone to actually have a debate and stop screeching at the top of their lungs at every opportunity.

I’ve seen the folks who are disrupting meetings no matter what side they land on be it pro or con. This is not the way to get your point across people. It makes the opposing side look at you sideways and secretly signal for security to sweep you out the door.

I titled this the privilege of having health insurance because I was gobsmacked at how much drugs cost when you don’t have insurance yesterday. I say gobsmacked because I’m not someone who has to take meds constantly or has had serious medical issues in the 36 years I’ve been on this planet. I recently decided to get back on the Pill and I’ve always had insurance so I’ve never thought much of the $10, $15 or even $20 co-pay that I’d shell out every month. This time around I switched to Seasonale, a 3 month on, 1 month off extended cycle Pill and the first time I got it the pharmacy gave me the Generic Quasense. That only cost me $35, I went on my merry way for the next 90 days.

This time I asked for the name brand because of side effects and had to shell out $65. What stopped me cold was the cheerful information at the top of the prescription bag telling me I’d saved $195.00 because I have insurance. I had to text my partner because I just could not believe something as essential as a contraceptive could cost so much for an uninsured woman. Who the hell can afford to shell out $256 every three months in this day and age? Maybe a married woman, but she’s likely to have insurance from her job or her spouses job. The average person who is uninsured likely does not have that kind of money for medications, what the hell is wrong on this country when pharmaceutical companies can charge that kind of money for medication that is essential to some women.

But this makes me wonder about the woman who needs the Pill to stave off Fibroids, regulate her cycle or other reasons that aren’t purely for contraception. What about the woman who’s barely making a living wage from a job that may not offer insurance or may not cover something like contraceptives? What about the woman who may need to make the choice that month between the Pill and the electric and gas bills?

It sickens me that the drug industry has gotten to the point where they can charge such outrageous sums of money for drugs that the public needs. As for drugs the public wants, that’s a whole other story. When I read that triple digit number on my pharmacy bag, it firmly cemented the need for health care reform in this country. Those that want to keep the status quo are probably the ones benefiting the most from it.

If you haven’t made up your mind on this issue, I ask you to look into what it costs people who have no insurance for care or medication. Think about what you have and how lucky you are to have it; but also think about how it can be better for everyone in this country to be able to get health care when they need it and not only those with the privilege of being a card caring insured member of society.

Published by cypheroftyr

Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers, attendance at the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make the industry better and more inclusive for everyone. She’s part of the Rivals of Waterdeep actual play stream on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep, a partnered Twitch variety broadcaster; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics online, at conventions and as a public speaker.. She’s also contributed to publications at Green Ronin, Paizo and Monte Cook Games and is the co-developer for the Fifth Season RPG based on N.K. Jemisin’s three time Hugo award winning Broken Earth trilogy. She’s the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a Twitch supported RPG and Actual Play stream, airing weekly on her channel, twitch.tv/cypheroftyr. Additionally, she is a Senior Annenberg labs Civic Media Fellow at USC. She’s also the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a new sci fi afro-futurist RPG developed with a team of all POC and Black creators; live streamed on her twitch channel, /cypheroftyr. She’s named as one of The Game Awards Future Class 2020, a diverse group of builders, thinkers and dreamers whose voices elevate and diversify our artform. It recognizes individuals around the world who represent the bright, bold and inclusive future for video games. She was also named as one of Gamers of the Year 2020 by Kotaku along with three of her contemporaries. She was also invited to the Xbox MVP program in February 2021. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021. Tanya is the programming & diversity coordinator for OrcaCon and GaymerX. She also serves on the Board of Directors for OrcaCon and was named the Chair for Take This in January 2023. She often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications. She’s the editor of Game Devs and Others: Tales from the Margins (2018, CRC Press) and contributed to The Advanced Game Narrative Toolbox. (2019, CRC Press) Writer Bio for pubs: Tanya is the Founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago. She’s part of Rivals of Waterdeep, an actual play D&D show on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep; the programming coordinator for OrcaCon & GaymerX; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. She’s on the Board of Take This as well as a Stream Ambassador, and was part of the inaugural cohort of The Game Awards Future Class. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.

2 thoughts on “The privilege of having health insurance”

  1. Got some data to back that up “insurance”? Come back when you have some meat to your claims.

  2. President Obama on Friday promised a new era of protections against insurance companies that drop customers when medical crises hit and said people who already have coverage would be among the biggest beneficiaries of his plans to revamp the health-care system.

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