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November 20, 2008
Tom Daschle Speaks on Senate Floor in 2004 about SiCKO's Larry & Donna Smith
March 22, 2004
Mr. DASCHLE: Mr. President, we spend a lot of time here in the Capitol talking about the abstract effects of policy. But when we go home, we see firsthand the challenges and pain so many of our constituents are facing.
I spent the last week in South Dakota. We have a higher percentage of our National Guard and Reserve units activated than almost any other State. South Dakotans are united in our support for all the men and women who are risking their lives to defend our freedom. We are proud that America looks out for other nations.
But we need to look out for people here at home, too. We need leadership that fights for American workers and families, not against them. That is what I heard, over and over again, from people in South Dakota.
Last Tuesday, I held a town hall meeting in Spearfish, in the Black Hills. Among the people who came were a couple I have known for years.
Donna Smith is a newspaper reporter for the Black Hills Pioneer. She is one of the best journalists in my State; I have tremendous respect for her skill and fairness.
Over the years, I have seen Donna at many meetings. But this time was different. This time she was there not as a reporter but as an American who needs help.
Donna and Larry Smith have been married for 29 years. They have six children.
Larry Smith is tall and athletic. He takes good care of his health. Unfortunately, he inherited some bad genes; his arteries clog. He had his first heart bypass surgery when he was 47 years old and his second one a year later.
Everything was fine for almost 11 years. Then, about a year ago, Larry started feeling constant, debilitating pain in his legs and hips.
Larry works at a casino in the Black Hills. He was a machinist all his working life, but he switched to cashier because he couldn’t take the walking involved in his old job; it hurt too much.
Last February, he had a stent placed in his heart. His doctors determined that the pain was being caused by a build-up of plaque in Larry’s arteries. They said the only place he could find a vascular surgeon skilled enough to clear the blockages was at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.
Larry had that surgery. He was at the Mayo Clinic nearly a month. Donna was with him the whole time. Their insurance company paid most of the hospital bills.
But there were lots of out-of-pocket costs insurance didn’t cover:
The lost income from the time both Larry and Donna had to take off from their jobs; the cost of getting to and from the Mayo Clinic; the cost of Donna’s motel; the $2,000 annual deductible the Smiths had to pay before their insurance coverage kicked in; the $200 they spend every month on the prescription drugs Larry takes to control his blood pressure and other health conditions.
In addition, Donna is a diabetic and a cancer survivor. They spend another $150 a month on her prescriptions.
Then there are the health insurance premiums: $270 a month for Larry and $180 a month for Donna. Add it all up and, suddenly, a couple who had worked hard all their lives and put six children through college is drowning in a sea of medical debt— $18,000 in debt.
Larry and Donna Smith have done everything they can to honor their debts. They sold their home. They now live in a smaller, rented house. They have borrowed money from friends. They have even borrowed money from their children. Talking about that is one of the few times Donna cries. ‘‘How demeaning,’’ she says, ‘‘to have to ask your children for money. We’re at a time in our lives when we ought to be showering our grandchildren with gifts, but we can’t. We can’t even pay our bills.’’
Creditors started threatening lawsuits. Bill collectors called at home and work. They garnished Donna’s wages. In January—less than a year after Larry’s surgery at Mayo—the pain in his legs came back. It’s worse than ever now. It hurts him to lift the bags of coins at the casino. It hurts him just to walk. But he still works five nights a week; he can’t afford to take time off.
Two weeks ago, Donna decided there was nothing else they could do, no one else they could borrow money from. So they filed for bankruptcy.
On April 6, Larry Smith is scheduled to go back to the Mayo Clinic to see if there is anything else that can be done. Donna says they have no choice. Without medical help, Larry is at increased risk of a heart attack or stroke or amputation.
The people at Mayo have generously offered to ‘‘work with’’ the Smiths to meet the $2,000 deductible. Donna doesn’t know where she’ll stay this time. She says maybe she’ll sleep in the car.
There’s something else Donna Smith doesn’t know. As she puts it, ‘‘I don’t know how to give up. This is my husband. This is the man I’ve spent my whole life with, the man who fathered my children, and who worked hard all his life to support us.
She said, ‘‘We know that there are hundreds of thousands of other people going through this, too. You pay for health insurance and you always believe that everything will be covered, but it is not. The safety net is not there and suddenly you have nothing. ‘‘If people are just supposed to give up, how do you do that?’’ Donna asks. ‘‘How do you just give up on the life of someone you love?’’
Larry Smith and I talked for quite a while last week. I found out later that he spent 48 hours thinking about exactly what he would say so that I would understand how fragile economic security has become for so many middle- class families.
All over this country, people who have done everything right—people who have worked for decades, bought their own homes, put their children through college, saved for their retirements—are finding they are just one medical emergency, one pink slip, one bad break away from serious economic trouble. The social and economic safety net that used to protect families is being shredded. Health care costs that used to be manageable are bankrupting families and businesses. ...
A week ago today, Lead-Deadwood High School held its annual Government Day. Students at the school spent the day shadowing local government officials, observing firsthand how democracy in America works.
In a story about the program, on the front page of the Black Hills Pioneer, the students talked about how interesting it was to see Government work for people. That story was written by Donna Smith. Despite all of their struggles, she and her husband still believe Government can be a force for good.
They, and millions of other Americans, are looking to us for help. As we begin this next work period, let’s vow not to disappoint them. I yield the floor.
