Health-care honesty

In March, before the canceled vote to overturn the Affordable Care Act, I called Rep. Steve Womack’s office. The aide I spoke with told me that he was “passionate” about keeping the pre-existing conditions provision in any new bill.

After reading the language of new proposals, I had serious doubts that this was true, so I called again this Monday.

The aide who answered the phone attempted to avoid the question, and when he couldn’t, said that the congressman supports handing preexisting conditions decisions to states. States could petition waivers for those in low-income brackets to be covered, but only in low-income brackets (which is essentially Medicaid and puts health-care legislation back to pre-ACA status quo). This would create 50 different health-care policies.

Someone making $35,000 a year is not in a low-income bracket. Yet they would not be able to afford cancer treatments, heart surgery, treatment for complications from AIDS, obstetrics for pregnancy if conception occurred prior to seeking coverage, or even sinus surgery for chronic sinus infections.

This position would force those with pre-existing conditions who do not have accumulated wealth into poverty to qualify for coverage.

I wish someone could explain the reasons for such obvious and intentional cruelty. It can’t be about discretionary spending when 54 percent of that goes to military and 6 percent goes to health care.

Steve Womack should be honest about his position and say that the country and the budget would be better off if sick people died faster. DANA COLLINS

Fayetteville