In the past two years, I have had a great deal of personal experience with the wonders of medical science. These experiences reinforced my belief that the incentive and competition that drive the free market are to the benefit of all of us and have resulted in an outstanding level of medical care available in this country that we should be working hard to preserve and not dismantle.

On April 9, 2010, my son was injured riding a Quad in the desert. He was airlifted to Loma Linda Medical Center.

I drove from Orange County to Loma Linda in San Bernardino to meet him at the hospital. As I drove down Waterman Ave., I saw the helicopter just taking off from the roof. I parked my car and sprinted to the Emergency Room entrance. By the time I cleared security and made it to my son’s bedside, he had already been assessed by every relevant professional on the trauma team.

I was greeted by a literal parade of doctors. I can only describe it as seeming like synchronized swimmers. Each professional had an intern, so they appeared in pairs. First the trauma team, they were the lead treating physicians. Then the bone doctors, neurologists, and internists appeared in turn. They each briefed me, explained the tests they had already conducted, answered my questions, allayed my fears and concerns, assured me they were doing all they could, explained the medications and treatments that were already in place and completed as well as the prognosis and forward considerations. As each one completed their discussion with me, the next team appeared on cue. All of this occurring within 30 – 45 minutes of my son arriving at the hospital by helicopter.

After a few days in the hospital with him, I was awakened one night after midnight by hospital staff who advised me that my son’s most recent brain scan showed a blood clot in his jugular vein. An immediate additional scan was going to be performed to determine the scope and severity of it.

The amazing pictures that resulted from this midnight scan showed literally all the arteries and veins in his head and neck and the blood flowing through them. The blood clot was clearly seen as well as the severely restricted flow around it. It was determined that treatment of the blockage could begin.

He stayed in the hospital for three more days and we were then sent home after instruction on how to inject the blood thinning medication at home for the next thirty days. Ultimately, the blood clot dissipated. The broken bones, concussion and bruises healed. He returned to school and the life of a normal teenage boy.

Thirteen months and ten days later, he was in a trauma center again with a different, unrelated injury.

On May 19, 2011, he was playing Little League baseball, and took a high fast ball to his left temple while at bat. It knocked the helmet off his head and knocked him to the ground. He sustained a skull fracture and his brain was bleeding. After assessment at the local ER, they placed him in an ambulance and transferred him to the UCI trauma center. About 16 hours after the injury, he was in surgery to alleviate the brain bleed and repair the fracture. The fracture was repaired with titanium plates which were secured with nylon screws. After 3 days in the ICU, he returned home with 34 stitches and a freshly shaved head. Eight months later he is again playing baseball, and riding motorcycles.

Spending so much time in hospitals with a seriously injured child gave me a new and tremendous gratitude for the outstanding medical treatment, highly trained professionals, procedures and amazing products we have available to us. I confirmed my strong belief that, among the many freedoms and privileges we possess as Americans, one of the greatest is the opportunity to be treated in the most well maintained, and readily available medical facilities in the world, equipped with the most advanced technology and the most competent specialists and professionals.

As much as I would rather have not had those dark moments in my life, I would not have wanted to be anywhere else. The precision and compassion of all of the professionals I encountered at each of these facilities were nothing short of awe inspiring. Each day I am thankful for his remarkable recovery, the professionals who treated him, as well as those who created the medications and devices that helped them put him back together.

The medical system in the United States may not perfect, but it is not by any means in need of government intervention or repair. As Reagan said, the most frightening words in the English language are: “I’m from the government and I’m here to help”.

Aside from the devastation that Obamacare will certainly wreak on our already fragile economy, it will choke the creativity and life out of the entire medical system. Obamacare targets the drug companies, healthcare insurers and manufacturers, disincentivizes pre-planning by patients, and increases taxes on income and capital gains. We need this kind of change like New Orleans needed the levies to break after hurricane Katrina rolled through. 

It might not have been broken, but once they are done fixing it, it surely will be.