Healthy, but wary of ‘what ifs’

Kathy Paladino is a fierce believer in health-care reform. Her support for it comes from personal experience with private insurance companies.

Sixteen years ago, when she and her husband, Frank, were preparing to welcome their son, Nate, into the world, Paladino experienced complications with childbirth. She was in intensive care for five days, and Nate was in neonatal care for two weeks.

At the end of their hospital stay, the medical bills reached more than $50,000, even though the couple carried health insurance.

They paid the bill eventually, but the experience left an indelible mark.

“It was a really difficult time for us,” Kathy Paladino, 58, said. “I had a new baby and I was recovering, and then all these bills started to come in.”

Paladino, a theater director, took part this week at a rally in Costa Mesa for health-care reform organized by MoveOn.org.

She said the kind of universal health care that President Obama has pledged to pass — sparking off a furious nationwide debate — is a must.

About 80 people showed up for the protest, including 12 opponents of health-care reform.

David Smithey was one of those who stood on the opponents’ side. He was there to support the Constitution, he said.

“The Constitution delegates this issue to the states,” he said. “Clearly, there are people who are passionate about this. But I think this should be in the hands of the states. The states know their people better than the federal government.”

After delivering Nate, Paladino faced more problems with insurance companies.

When Frank Paladino decided to start his own business, the family sought a private insurer. Kathy Paladino was rejected.

“I was turned down numerous times due to my previous ‘condition’ and the fact that I occasionally had migraines,” she said.

When she finally found a company that would insure her, the cost was $1,200 a month with a $5,000 deductible.

“I don’t see how we can be living in a country that denies health care,” she said.

The Costa Mesa family now has health insurance through an employer, but Paladino worries about what could happen if a member of her family becomes ill.

“I try not to think about it, but when I do, I worry,” she said.

Insurance companies and those opposed to government intervention in health care argue that a public option will result in inferior health care and eventually crowd out private companies.

Keith Hall, who stood on the other corner of Bristol Street and Sunflower Avenue to protest the rally, says health-care reform is just a way for the government to take over.

“They are going to force us to go through the government to get insurance,” Hall said. “It’s the biggest way for them to take control of our lives.”

When asked of his reaction to stories like the Paladinos’ and others like them, Hall, 64, said, “there are a lot of stories, but I don’t see why we have to destroy our insurance programs for just some stories.”

The Paladinos don’t believe that a public option will stand in the way of insurance companies’ survival.

“This is not going to take business away from insurance companies,” Kathy Paladino said. “And if it did, it will be because the public option is a better option.”