Dear Editor:
Our country has conquered many difficult problems and accomplished much. We have created Social Security and Medicare to rescue many seniors from poverty. We defeated the Nazis in WWII. We built the Interstate highway system. We have had the most robust economy in the world. Yet we cannot fix our unequal access to affordable health insurance. We have the most expensive health system and the worst outcomes of any developed nation. Why is this?
I think we just don’t have the will to do it. The Democrats in Congress have been trying to and have partly succeeded in expanding coverage. Just as the number of people who are uninsured is dropping, the Republicans have pulled the rug out from under the Affordable Care Act by refusing to extend subsidies to middle income families. Many of the 24 million people who get their insurance through the ACA will no longer be able to afford it. These are people who are self-employed, or own small businesses, or work for small businesses that cannot get affordable group coverage. Additionally, the Republicans have added so many requirements and red tape to qualify for Medicaid, that many who do qualify will not be able to negotiate the red tape. The Democrats have been asking since HB1 passed to negotiate continued subsidies. The Republicans, including Mr. Trump, have refused to even talk about it. Instead, they dared the Democrats to shut down the government. The Democrats were left with no choice. Could this problem be solved? Of course it could. The Republicans are repeating the tired old mantra, “It costs too much money!” The thing that costs too much money are the extension and expansion of tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations. Is not increased health insurance premiums a tax? Is not having to pay for all medical care out of pocket also a tax? The Kaiser Family Foundation has estimated that the average increase will be about $700 a year. If your family is making $30,000 to $40,000 a year, $700 is a lot of money. If you are in your late 50s or early 60s, your increase could be up to $10,000 a year, more in certain parts of the country. You may not personally need Medicaid or the ACA, but you may need the Pagosa Springs Medical Center for an emergency. Without people with health insurance, PSMC is in jeopardy of closing or being sold to a large for profit system. PSMC is partly supported by our taxes. If we need to increase our taxes to help keep it running, in whose world is that not a tax increase?
Our representative, Jeffrey Hurd, has proposed a bill to restore ACA subsidies. Unfortunately, that is a performative action. It has no chance of passing. Hurd said he was in favor of keeping Medicaid and its support of rural hospitals. If a bill has so many things wrong with it, why vote for it in the first place? Ask him. (202) 225-4676.
Lynn R. Frederick
