Uninsured Ex-Sheriff Who Fought O-care Struggles To Pay Medical Bills

[DonViejo]

Former Arizona county sheriff Richard Mack, a fierce opponent of Obamacare and a leader in the "constitutional sheriff" movement, is struggling to pay his medical bills after he and his wife each faced serious illnesses. The former sheriff and his wife do not have health insurance and started a GoFundMe campaign to solicit donations from family and friends to cover the costs of their medical care.

"Because they are self-employed, they have no medical insurance and are in desperate need of our assistance," reads a note on Mack's personal website.

Mack, the founder of the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, suffered a heart attack in January and is in recovery. His wife fell ill late last year. Mack is on the board of Oath Keepers, a right-wing fringe group made up of police and military veterans, and is known for supporting Cliven Bundy in his standoff against the federal government. He is also an ardent opponent of Obamacare.

"The States do not have to take or support or pay for Obamacare or anything else from Washington DC. The States are not subject to federal direction," he wrote on his website, outlining how state governments can block President Obama.

more
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/sheriff-mack-gofundme-medical-bills

[stillwaiting]

1. I just don't get it (them). So brainwashed they hurt themselves, and they hurt themselves badly. nt

[riversedge]

6. and now begging for $$ from supports-like he is entitled.

[nxylas]

52. Actually, that's quite in line with conservative "philosophy"

They want private charity to replace government wherever possible. It's not in my nature to wish harm upon anyone, so I hope he raises the money he needs. But I hope it's enough of a struggle to give him some sort of insight into the gap between conservative ideology and reality's well-known liberal bias.

[CTyankee]

66. well, I hope some of his private givers tell him he needs to get Obamacare .

Somebody has to give him the TRUTH. Somehow, someone has to tell him "look, buddy, we can only do so much...get yourself on Obamacare....jeez"

[Aerows]

71. I wouldn't pay 5$ (minimum donation)

to piss on him while he's on fire.

[MineralMan]

2. Maybe his "constitutional sheriff" movement folks

and the "sovereign citizens" will chip in to pay his medical expenses. You think? He could ask Clive Bundy and the Oath Keeper folks to chip in, too. I'm sure they'll respond with big donations.

[leftieNanner]

56. Cliven can pay!

He has all that cash hidden away that he hasn't paid to the BLM for the grazing rights.

[Faux pas]

3. Oooo that karma

she's a bitch.

[ScreamingMeemie]

4. The comments on his GoFundMe are golden...

[stillwaiting]

9. "Conservatives" aka reactionaries will fund him more after those comments from...

... the big, bad, EVIL liberals.

Although the comments are certainly true.

[DonViejo]

12. There are 11 comments (so far) on that page, two are supportive....

the remainder mock him. On the right side of the page is a list of donations being received and from whom. This is the latest:

$5
Blair Rowe
37 mins ago
This would be covered by Obamacare ! I wanted to give $0.01 but I could not.Could you refund $4.99

[kelliekat44]

5. I bet he won't refuse unemployment insurance or SSI? nt

[KingCharlemagne]

7. Schadenfreude - it's not just for Germans anymore! :) I am sorry about his wife. God knows

what an Old Testament-y horror that marriage probably is.

[on point]

8. Mean I know, but perhaps teahadist advice applies: FO N die

Take your own medicine

[Lifelong Protester]

11. Sounds about right.

Hate to say it, but isn't that their plan?

[onecaliberal]

10. Maybe Bundy could pay the medical bills for him

Or the church. I thought the church was supposed to pay for everyone who needs charity.

[Newest Reality]

13. Sorry to hear about their difficulties...

It seems they are getting the results of what they have stood for, though.

What are good responses to this? Go ask Ron Paul for help? Get lotsa' jobs and pay of that debt slacker? Sell everything you have and make sure to fulfill your financial obligations? Try harder! See those boots? Pull on that strap there!

[jwirr]

25. Simply tell them to apply for Medicaid and follow it up by applying for Obamacare in the next open

enrollment period. The truth in this instance is the best.

[Iliyah]

35. Bite your tongue. Obamacare = Death Panel, don't ya know.

GOPers have no plan, if or when their counterparts re: US Supreme Court 5 asshole justices render death panels to over 8 million which a large portion of which are their constituents. As CPAC goes on this weekend, they have no plan but only to bash Pres O, minorities, and in the foot steps of WW2, get their rabid constituents all riled up against Middle Easterners.

[Tanuki]

39. And reassure them that their pre-existing conditions won't shut them out of getting coverage,

thanks to Obamacare!

[phantom power]

14. I see this with school donations....

the same people who donated $100 or $200 to this one guy would probably throw a total shit-fit if you suggested they pay an extra $5 in taxes to support coverage for *everybody*.

[atreides1]

15. F**k them!

Get his Oathkeeper mouth breathers to bail his miserable ass out of medical bill hell, better yet where's his friend Cliven Bundy?

And no I'm not going to be the better person, this useless pus bag wanted to use women as human shields and was all for pointing guns at federal law enforcement officers!

[Pacifist Patriot]

16. I am very sorry for their ill health and don't wish that on anyone.

However, and you knew there had to be a however, the phrase "you reap what you sow" immediately springs to mind.

[phantom power]

17. He's likely to raise what he's asking for, and see this as proof he's right.

Some guy just spent $100 to help this guy stand up to the big bad gubmint and show them who's boss.

[jwirr]

26. No matter how much he raises - their illnesses are ongoing - the bills will continue to come in.

This Gofundme request will never continue to cover him indefinitely. Sooner or later he and his wife will need to apply for something or accept the R plan - die fast.

[tularetom]

18. He's living out a libertarians dream

He just happens to be on the wrong side of it.

Sucks to be him.

[procon]

19. No sympathy - Where's this deadbeat moochers vaunted "personal responsibility?

Fellow has a wife and 4 young kids and no health insurance? Maybe he couldn't afford it or made too much for Medicaid, and I won't even carp on his self-destructive decision to forgo Obamacare, but he isn't entitled to a free ride. At some point the taxpayers are going to have to pay for his poor decisions.

Instead of self indulgently involving himself in so many nutty rightwing causes, maybe he should have found a nice (union) job with good benefits and medical coverage to take care of himself and his family. I wonder how he justifies his existence as a reviled "taker" and a worthless leech?

[elehhhhna]

20. Mack's the jeerk who wanted to use women as human shields against the feds -

“We were actually strategizing to put all the women up at the front,” Mack said in a Fox News clip pulled by The Blaze. “If they are going to start shooting, it’s going to be women that are going to be televised all across the world getting shot by these rogue federal officers.”

[libdem4life]

29. He doesn't look healthy in that clip...but it did make me want to "toss my cookies". Cretin.

[n2doc]

21. Well, then, go bankrupt

That's what he would wish on us all. Live under a bridge you POS.

[Fantastic Anarchist]

44. We'd still end up covering a portion of the cost.

He declares bankruptcy, the hospital eventually just passes the cost on to the rest of us. So, in essence, he gets "socialized" care.

Ain't it grand?

[n2doc]

51. Yeah, but there is no alternative at the moment

And he would be (and likely will be) hounded by bill collectors for the rest of his miserable life. Karma.

[Fantastic Anarchist]

54. Indeed.

He did reap what he sowed.

[jeff47]

22. It's almost like the crazy liberals had a point. (nt)

[crazylikafox]

23. Why doesn't he go to the emergency room???

I hear that you can get all the care you need for free there.

[phantom power]

24. Important to remember: guys like this won't see any inconsistency or hypocrisy...

because they see themselves as people of the correct skin color, and therefore deserving of help, not like those "urban" takers.

[TrogL]

45. Correct. They have no concept of cognitive dissonance

[BlueCaliDem]

55. Exactly! As you can see by the donors, they have no problem donating $100 or more to WHITE

people. It's the fact that under the Federal Gov't, every American citizen is entitled to good health care even if they can't pay for it, which means, PoC are included under that umbrella, and White racists lose sleep over that idea alone. Sad, isn't it?

[PasadenaTrudy]

27. He could buy his own ins...

I'm self employed, I buy my own....

[Tanuki]

31. Absolutely! The ACA has been a real boon for the self-employed.

This guy could have purchased a plan for himself and his wife but chose not to. Worse yet, he wanted to tear down everyone else's options by eliminating Obamacare. He gambled and lost, and now he wants everyone to cover his losses. "Gofundme?" He can go fund himself, as far as I'm concerned.

[Blanks]

62. "He can go fund himself". Hmmm, that's not quite what you mean, is it?

[Agnosticsherbet]

28. This is a very sad story.

After reading it, I remain absolutely committed to see the ACA implemented for all people, and improved so that it better serves those in need.

[shopgirl]

68. You're a much better person that I am

I cannot stand the hypocrisy. A woman I used to work with is a conservative with a capital C. However, she worked part-time (her choice) and couldn't afford to buy private health insurance. So, she was on "Romney Care" (this being Massachusetts) and used to go to tea party rallies when Obamacare was passed. Yep, there she was protesting with all the senior citizens in wheelchairs telling the government to get out of their health care. At one point, she told me that, even though she was on subsidized health care (paying approximately $50 per month for the EXACT same coverage that my husband and I had and for which we paid $800.00 per month), she thought she should actually pay less than $50 because she didn't make much money and she was sure that others who made more were paying about the same. No irony whatsoever. I decided that, because she came from an upper-middle class family in a very wealth community, she considered herself "better" than all those other unfortunates who, through no fault of their own, found themselves on hard times. The level of selfishness is breathtaking. When they're healthy, they couldn't care less about people who can't pay their medical bills. But when they're sick, well, all bets are off. Someone, anyone, better come forward and take care of the problem. Time to cue up the GoFundMe website.

Bottom line, this attitude sickens me.

[Agnosticsherbet]

69. The man and his wife are paying for their choices.

There ae a lot of people who are convinced by bloviating assholes to take the wrong stand. I would like to see a system where they don't have to suffer that way.

[appleannie1]

30. He probably blames Obama for his ill fortune.

[DhhD]

38. There is a penalty for not having insurance. Reckoning ends April 15, Tax Day. He is likely to go

to jail unless he sells his house for the money to pay his taxes. Up thread is a reply about living under a bridge. There they can examine if sovereignty is worth it. Collective protection from ACA may never be their choice, but it is the law.

[Fantastic Anarchist]

53. I thought the tax portion was unenforceable?

If this is true, that's barbaric. That in this country, people still can't afford insurance, and will go jail?

[sinkingfeeling]

32. I see they have already gotten over $16,000. I guess the idea is to only

pay medical expenses for a select few. I'd rather see a raise in my income taxes so that ALL are covered.

[phantom power]

43. but then the wrong sort of people would get help too

and they can't abide by that

[LittleGirl]

33. They have raised over half

of the 30k they are asking for but the comments are sweet.

[vankuria]

41. They'll never get ahead

Both he and his wife will need ongoing care, testing, medications etc., not to mention if they get any new illnesses. When my brother had a heart attack a year ago his medical bills were over 40 grand, however thanks to excellent medical insurance he only had to pay a very small fraction of that. He retired early and is now receiving insurance through the ACA at an affordable price and is just as good as the policy he had when he worked.

People that don't take advantage of the ACA are stupid and deserve whatever hard times befall them.

[Bandit]

34. Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps and quit begging for others to help you.

You made your choice now live with it or die with it...

[City Lights]

36. No pity.

[johnnyreb]

37. Sympathy is irrelevant; karma has taken control.

[libdem4life]

40. One comment 22 days ago, one 14 days ago and then 2 hours ago it obviously went viral.

Conversion from "bootstraps" to "It takes a Village" can happen nearly overnight. But then, the Right only "gets it" when it is one of their own. Deserving, you know. Perhaps he'll have a moral awakening, but wouldn't put any funds in on that one.

[Historic NY]

42. He should stick to the GOP plan (let them die)

[A Simple Game]

46. No, No, No! I will not rethink my position on debtors prisons! Well maybe just this once. n/t

[oldandhappy]

47. Hope Oath Keepers will take care of them.

And hope the Oath Keepers will SEE what happens when you have not health insurance. Argh.

[Tom Rinaldo]

48. GoFundMe might work for a high profile "leader" of a movement with followers...

But what about his average follower without any degree of "celebrity" who buys into his world view and doesn't enroll in "Obamacare", and then gets seriously ill? What are the odds that GoFundMe will bail them out? I suppose they cold apply to KochsFundMe and see if they have any luck.

[snort]

49. I've never missed having a Facebook acct..

until now.

[LiberalArkie]

50. Karma,got to watch that stuff.

[catbyte]

57. Boo freaking hoo. I have absolutely no sympathy for willfully ignorant people.

[UtahLib]

58. Shining example of the abominable hypocrisy of the right.

Sadly, he will probably learn absolutely nothing from this experience.

[Shrike47]

59. From the information about him on Wikipedia, he is a vile, despicable man who should still get care.

The system he opposes so much would help him but he'd rather beg, because that's freedom and liberty.

I might feel a little sorry for him after he goes through bankruptcy.

He's in his early 60's. In a few more years, he'll be eligible for Medicare, which I'm sure he'll use, even though it's another gummit socialist plan.

[oldlib2]

60. Now he expects

his rich right wing friends to pay for their medical expenses. He apparently is ignoring the fact that poor individuals, without his connections, do not have the same opportunity. Hopefully, the friends that he is counting on, will not come through, and he will suffer, like anyone else, without medical insurance.

[Release The Hounds]

61. Donating money will only make it worse for him.

Because that will cause dependency!

[phantom power]

63. Tons of people donating, and leaving pro-ACA notes

I wonder what he's thinking about that.

[tabasco]

64. Probably a fucking scam

Puke bastards like this one have no shame.

[hifiguy]

65. Karma is one damned tough, and ironic mistress.

[Hepburn]

67. Karma...she's a bitch. n/t

[Aerows]

70. Excuse me while I quote Nelson Muntz

I have not an iota of sympathy.

[Vinca]

72. Sorry, Charlie, that was the point of Obamacare.

If "your freedoms" mean going it alone, quit begging for people to pay for your care. Man up and sell the house, car and other possessions.

[titaniumsalute]

73. Fuck them

I don't care. You reap what you fucking sow.