My letter to the editor of the Syracuse Post-Standard

[eilen]

Thank you Congressman Dan Maffei, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Senator Charles Schumer


I am a registered nurse in this city and have seen first hand the difficulties and stress my patients have experienced when faced with a terrible diagnosis of cancer or heart disease and the costs associated with treating and living with them. I have seen patients refuse to be treated at the hospital for fear of high fees because they were uninsured. I have seen people suffer with unbelievable pain because they simply did not have the money to fill their pain medication prescription entirely and could only fill half the prescription. I have seen patients having to be admitted to the hospital even though outpatient treatment would have been cheaper in the long run if they had been seen sooner or had had diagnostic tests run earlier; their disease would have been managed and their mortality risk reduced.

The health reform bill is not exactly what I would have chosen as I am a single payor advocate, however, the access to care that this reform provides is much greater than we have now and will improve patient outcomes overall. I would like to formally thank our elected representatives for braving threats and misinformation and looking at the big picture, beyond the current economic crisis and setting the path for fairness in health coverage and access for all. I am particularly fond of the increased funding for community health centers. No one should go bankrupt due to a health problem. While the word historic feels kind of corny to say now, I am certain we will look back at this time and truly believe we were a part of history and wonder at the stalwart determination of the Democratic Party in seeing to a basic integral needs of the people. I encourage all good citizens to continue to lobby for cost control and a true alternative to for-profit insurance.

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I am used to writing the representatives, not the newspapers. What do you think? I hope they publish it tomorrow as the Teahadist Express is due. There will be a counter-protest but I have to be at work.

[yankeepants]

1. Great LTTE

I'll look forward to reading it in the PS. I live North of Syracuse. My congressman Bill Owens also voted for HCR. We need to keep pushing this forward.

[dmr]

2. It's an excellent letter! I'm sure it will be published.

:thumbsup:

[NanceGreggs]

3. Absolutely FANTASTIC letter!!!

:kick: & REC'D!!!

:patriot:

[pinboy3niner]

4. Great letter!

It will make a nice welcome to the teabaggers when it's published tomorrow. Thanks for keeping us "infromed".

[KT2000]

5. Excellent!

well written and you are introducing much needed sanity to the topic. :thumbsup:

[raccoon]

6. You rock! Rec'd. nt

[glaeken777]

7. pray / send good thoughts to my father

My dad has abandoned reason and will be attending today's Tea Party. I've done all I can to convince him otherwise. I don't know what more to do except hope he doesn't get dragged into anything foolish while he's there.