I've been following the HCR debate closely, and living in Mississippi, I've had conversations with lots of people who are victims of the system. Even though our elected officials are fighting HCR reform tooth and nail, and even though the current bill that looks to be the one to pass is watered-down and leaves a lot to be desired, the people of Mississippi have a lot to gain from it.
Mind you, I have insurance through my employer. I'm not writing this out of some personal concern for myself or my own interests, but on behalf of the quarter of a million people in the unhealthiest, least educated state with the lowest per capita income, who lack health insurance.
It's short, simple, and to the point. I welcome all discussion, comments, and/or debate.
I also encourage anyone who feels strongly about HCR to write a similar letter to their editor. Politicians will be using the break to gauge public opinion through the local media, and they need to hear from us on why health care reform is so important. It will only take you a few minutes, so write what you feel and send it to your newspaper, wherever it may be.
Right now, there are 250,000 Mississippians who have no health insurance. Many of these are hard-working men and women with jobs, homes and families to feed. They do everything expected of them by society to be productive citizens, but they still have no legitimate access to health care in spite of that. And in Washington right now, there are still a few bold souls willing to fight for what's best for these families.
They're fighting for a strong, trigger-free public health insurance option that would directly compete with the insurance companies that have monopolies on the state market. This would give uninsured Mississippi families the chance to see the doctor and not have to pay for it out of pocket, or dig deep to pay a huge deductible even if they do have insurance.
An insured Mississippi means less cost for taxpayers, not the other way around as Cochran, Wicker, Harper and Taylor would like us to believe. When someone without insurance has to see a doctor and can't pay for it, that cost is passed on to the taxpayers. And we pay upwards of $850 million per year just in this state to care for the uninsured. A strong public option, a Medicare buy-in, or even subsidies to buy private health insurance would fix that problem.
Mississippi is the least healthy state in the union, and when that's combined with the country's lowest per capita income, that means there are lots of people who need to see the doctor but just can't afford to. To top that off, we have a Governor who wants to cut education and Medicaid, directly affecting jobs and health. And in times like these, these are two areas that must not be underfunded under any circumstances.
While things seem tough in our state with so many out of work and running low on hope, it's crucial that Mississippi's underserved not give up the fight. True, progressive health care reform is exactly what the taxpayers need and deserve from our government.
Even though our elected officials are out of touch with the needs of their constituents, Mississippi's 250,000 uninsured taking two minutes to call their congressmen and senators would show them that we cannot and will not be ignored. If we want things to get better in Mississippi, we need to make our voices heard.