— To the Editor:
First District Rep. Tim Walz, I have several questions on the health care bill that I would like to have you explain.
Would you explain just how the bill saves money on health care when you add 50 million to the number to be taken care of. Do you ration the use of tests or procedures, expensive drugs, etc.? Joe Califano, former Secretary of Health in the Carter cabinet, indicated recently that people forget how much health care has improved with organ transplants, Magnetic Resonance Imagining, etc. Few countries with government health care offer this quality of health care because they simply cannot afford it.
We are told that insurance companies are the ones to blame for the high costs of health insurance. Then why do we require everyone to purchase health insurance? What are the penalties if a person wants to self insure? Today we can buy any type of insurance we wish, high deductible or complete coverage, but under the bill we will be forced to buy the type determined by Congress.
Certain Senators and Congressmen were given extra incentives to vote for the bill. What incentives were you given and if not, why not? We are going to have to pay for their bribes as well as the full cost of the new bill.
Several committees including one by ex-Sen. Daschle and ex-Sen. Dominici have organized an ad hoc organization to study the impact on the towering debt that this nation is facing. Aren’t you worried about this as well?
I think that many of our neighbors should know your thoughts as well as the few individuals who will reply to your request.
Al Schumann
Eyota
