I just read one of the most infuriating paragraphs imaginable. I know in this very moment that is difficult to fathom, but let’s see what you think. In a Time Magazine article titled “Selling Out To Growth” author Kathleen Kingsbury (whom you may recognize from Time’s Gloucester “pregnancy pact” article) profiles non-profit turned profit RealBenefits. RealBenefits is a softaware company started as a resource for low income people and/or families.
The article begins:
About one-third of Americans who qualify for public assistance haven’t signed up. That amounts to millions of people needlessly going without food stamps, low-income housing or health insurance.
I doubt I am the only person who reads this and says, “What The Hell”? I had to read it several times, did it really just say “millions of people NEEDLESSLY going without food stamps, low-income housing, or health insurance”? Now, continuing to read gave me a little better insight into the company’s current focus. No longer a “non-profit” enterprise, RealBenefit is now using technology to flag patients in an ER who could qualify for Medicaid and such. This gives the subscribing hospitals a way to be paid for services rendered. By using RealBenefits one hospital reports a 50% increase in Medicaid reimbursements. I understand that, for the profitability of a hospital, this is a no brainer. I still have issues with making sure more and more people know they are “eligible” to take my money.
I can’t get past the first paragraph and the fact that their original purpose was to make it easier for more people to obtain food stamps and low-income houseing. These people started a business to make the hoops easier to jump through. Most people will agree that not enough hoops are in place, nevermind making the ones there easier. It is my belief that the people who need want this assistance bad enough will bend over backwards to get it. God forbid they have to work for it! Talk about living in the Age Of Entitlement!
Let’s not profile an organization doing job placement assistance, helping people to depend on themselves and not taxpayers. I am shocked she was able to write this sentance “That amounts to millions of people needlessly going without food stamps, low-income housing, or health insurance” without throwing something (or throwing up). It is not my job to buy food and provide housing to others. I am not heartless, there are situations where people do need short term assistance. There are also disabled and elderly people who may have no other opion. While I recognize that fact, I believe they are the exception, not the rule.
You have to work harder, and smarter, in this economy to find a paycheck but it can be done. There are job openings all over the country, I have done some random searches today. People may have to step back and not have their “dream job” right now but work is out there, the question is what people are willing to do. I would say that 1/2 the paycheck you are used to is better than none at all. It is certainly better than a perfectly healthy individual expecting a handout. If you ask any business owner, particularly small business owners, they will tell you that surviving in this economy is about thinking outside the box. The same idea applies to job seekers as well. We are still in the land of opportunity (at least until the Obama/Pelosi circus decides to take that away from us) and for creative thinkers now is a great time to thrive. I guess that is what the founders of RealBenefits have done. They saw a need and created a solution. As infuriating as that may be, it is the definition of success in America.
