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Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009

Oct. 29 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Longtime taxpayers suffer while irresponsible companies are bailed out

Those of us who live on Social Security will not be getting a cost-of-living raise for the next two years. So, while my hard-earned Social Security benefits are frozen, health care costs are going up.

My Medicare payments will rise nearly 30 percent. It is obvious to me that keeping more than 16 percent of the population healthy is not an objective.

Frankly, it is a misnomer to call Medicare a health care plan at all. “Health care” implies that preventive care is a primary element of the plan, and it isn’t. Regular inhalers for Social Security recipients with asthma are not covered. And although 75 percent of seniors require them, eyeglasses, dentures and hearing aids are also not covered by Medicare. Strangely, reproductive health exams are covered for post-menopausal women. In other words, I may go blind, toothless, deaf, and suffer asthma attacks, but I will be free of HPV!

Drugs are another expense that our lawmakers don’t seem to be addressing. The pharmaceutical industry is raising prices, and my prescription premium has increased by 25 percent. I had hoped that our legislators were negotiating better, not worse, deals with the medical care industry for next year. Yet, in the 2010 “Medicare & You” publication, every private drug company listed has raised its prices.

How can the Congress give themselves a raise and think seniors do not deserve a cost-of-living raise? Why are retired citizens making the sacrifices to bail out fiscally irresponsible companies? It appears that the only people benefitting from health care reform are the insurance companies and the lawmakers in their pockets.

ALFREDA PARDEE

Ocean Springs

Why create a new program when one is already in place?

We have an operational health care program now in existence — Medicare and Medicaid.

It seems logical and just common sense to expand Medicare to include everyone. It will provide affordable health care to everyone who needs it. A prescription drug benefit could be provided. It doesn’t make sense to reduce benefits under Medicare and Medicaid to help pay for a new health care program. This is robbing Peter to pay Paul, and it has an adverse effect on the welfare of adults over 65 years of age. These elderly cannot afford to have any preventive care or medical care taken away from them (as they age, they have more out-of-pocket medical expenses to bear). They cannot afford any additional medical expenses not covered by Medicare, and they need prescription drug assistance.