Congress is out of touch with health care realities
The American Health Care Act is not a replacement or an improvement on the Affordable Care Act. The Republican plan removes important and necessary protections for ordinary people like me. That plan enables insurers to discriminate against senior citizens and persons with pre-existing conditions by charging more for coverage while reducing the actual coverage that is provided. It does not preserve the out-ofpocket maximum that can be charged for necessary health care.
The president says that under the Republican plan, everyone will be able to obtain health coverage. But listen for what he doesn’t say. He does not say that coverage will be affordable or that it will even cover basic services. What good is health care if you can’t afford it? His Republican counterparts do not have a plan for the millions who lose coverage with their plan.
Medicaid, our safety net, will be torn apart. I’ve heard Republicans say their Medicaid plan is just for the deserving and that safety net programs should be cut. They say success should be measured not be helping people who are in need but by how many people they can shove off the programs. Their solution? Get a job. Don’t they know that many jobs do not provide health coverage and that many of the working poor still need safety net programs?
Then there are the health savings accounts. Why don’t these privileged lawmakers understand that you have to have sufficient income and resources for a health savings account to be a sensible solution?
Our Congress is out of touch with the realities faced by everyday people. They are insulated from the burdens that the Republican plan will place upon us. We are watching the senators as to whether they vote for their party or for the people they represent. JOYCE SCHLAG
Banksville “Mylan’s Pay Policies, Directors Under Fire” (“Heard Off the Street” column). Why are they under fire? Mylan’s chairman was compensated last year a measly $97.6 million. I wonder what a company chairman does to warrant getting paid that obscene salary. I’m sure there’s a lot of golf to keep up on. Then there’s vacations to take. Is there any
involved? So while Mr. Chairman is rolling in the lap of luxury, thousands of less fortunate, sick individuals, who rely on Mr. Chairman’s products, gamble every day on whether they live or die. Something tells me this is not ethically or morally right. Do you agree ? DAVID BYERS
Cranberry
I wish to express my support of and join with the efforts of Fair Districts PA, the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania, the Public Interest Law Center and the legal counsel at work on fair legislative redistricting. The ultimate goal is an independent commission to redraw the district lines. It is the best alternative to our current partisan process.
Gerrymandering works against the voters in not providing a fair and unbiased field from which to make our wishes known through our votes. It must end. It serves only partisan interests, not those of freedom of expression, freedom of association and equal protection as guaranteed by provisions of the Pennsylvania Constitution. ALISON MINER Mt. Lebanon