Lafayette Ave. Presbyterian Church

The homeless alliance asked what would happen if I had to budget for health care emergencies, car breakdowns, or unexpected absences from work.

In short a person living on the budget that I have for this challenge cannot budget for such things.

I deal with the health care thing through insurance.  It is very expensive, but my employer (Lafayette Church) pays it, in part because they are required to do so by the denomination.   Right now, I am the only full-time employee of the church, and thus I am the only one who receives full coverage through our plan, even though everybody needs coverage.

For auto expenses, I depend on savings.

Work absences are handled either by flexing days, using vacation days, or–if I were laid off, accepting unemployment benefits through the government.  Hourly employees, of course, don’t have the same luxuries that I do.

I think, practically, that if the nation made it a priority to make sure that every person had access to healthcare, it would happen.   Same thing for people in an unexpected transition.  We can also find new ways of making sure everyone has access to good transportation (smart planning, mass transit, and car share programs for the times when a person MUST have a car.)

However, another option, which is BETTER than insurance is belonging to a committed spiritual community (plug, plug).  When the church lives up to its calling, no member within it goes without.   We can count on brothers and sisters to meet our needs, and we take care of our brothers and sisters when we have extra.  In the early church, Christians took their call to care for one another so seriously that they sold property and fasted to raise funds when there was a need.