This archive report was first published on 18 September 2019.
When I was 14, I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease that requires constant insulin injections to survive. Ten years later, I'm still fighting for access to the care I need.
My parents had to choose between comforting me and spending hours on the phone with our insurer, a decision that set the tone for our tumultuous relationship with the insurance industry. Without careful monitoring and daily insulin injections, Type 1 diabetics risk blindness, kidney failure, and death.
As an American diabetic, I'm not alone in my struggles. Young adults with Type 1 diabetes suffer life-threatening diabetic ketoacidosis at much higher rates in the United States than in Canada, where a single-payer system provides seamless, lifelong coverage.
My story is a testament to the failures of the US healthcare system. I've had to take out thousands of dollars in extra student loans to buy insulin and diabetes supplies, and even with insurance, I've faced delays and denials of coverage. The worst part is that my experience is not unique.
Politicians often claim that Americans love their private health insurance, but I know that's not true. We're grateful for any coverage at all, but we need care that is lifelong and portable, covers all medically necessary services and drugs, and is accepted by all doctors and hospitals. Only a single-payer system can guarantee coverage to everyone in the United States and eliminate the greed and administrative waste of private insurance.
