LETTER: Need government to correct problems

I ask the question: what is the real purpose of government?  Is it to try to fix the problems facing the country or sit back and ignore them.  President Obama and the Democratic Congress are trying to fix the problems while the Republican party of “no” is trying to keep the country from moving forward since they oppose helping the people who need these programs. According to an article in the Courier-Journal March 23, Rand Paul and his tea bag followers are also against helping those in need.

I am proud of Congressman John Yarmuth who stood up with his “yea vote” to help pass the Health Care Coverage Bill.   Congressman Brett Guthrie will have a lot of explaining to do as to why he is against programs to help the sick and truly needy.

Thirty-two million uninsured people will now have access to affordable insurance.  A few more important examples:  starting this year insurance companies will no longer be able to place lifetime limits on health insurance; deny children or adults health insurance because of pre-existing conditions; young adults will be covered under their parents’ insurance until age 26 (this will be helpful to those unemployed due to the slow economy); help seniors by eliminating the donut hole under Medicare; insurance will not go up because you have to use it; and small businesses will be helped in order to provide health insurance for their employees.

There should have been a public option in this, but it was removed.  Therefore, there is no government takeover of the insurance program. There would be no need for government interference if the insurance and drug companies would do what was right.

You ask how are we going to pay for the above?  Eighty to 85 percent of each dollar spent for insurance will go for claims instead of the current amount.  Everyone being in the program will bring down the cost.  Bush’s tax cuts for the rich should be eliminated.  Trillions of dollars wasted on Bush’s unnecessary Iraq war.  Cutting high bonuses and salaries for insurance and drug CEOs, insurance and drug companies quit giving billions to politicians to vote to keep the status quo and eliminate them from running costly false “anti” ads would bring down the cost of insurance.

If we did not have the government to correct these problems, then who would.  The party of “no” had eight years to correct them, but made no effort to do so.

 Owen D. Humphress

Simpsonville