Letters: Blame the illnesses, and not the patients
Heaven forbid either Steven Conn ("Homer, health care, and you") or Liya Palagashvili ("Encourage consumer choice") ever get sick (Tuesday). It is disingenuous to imply that all sicknesses are caused by "conscious decisions to overconsume food, alcohol, tobacco, or illegal drugs."
According to research published in the American Journal of Medicine, 62.1 percent of all bankruptcies in 2007 were medical, and 92 percent of these medical debtors had medical debts over $5,000, or 10 percent of pretax family income. Most medical debtors were well-educated, owned homes, and had middle-class occupations. Three quarters had health insurance. Using identical definitions in 2001 and 2007, the share of bankruptcies attributable to medical problems rose 49.6 percent. This is precisely the situation that we are currently attempting to ameliorate through increases in government spending (i.e., debt) for economic stimulation. Who cares if we support our countrymen through mandatory health insurance or direct economic boosts? It's the same pocket, and Palagashvili and her generation will be stuck with the bill.
Amy Rand
Cochranville
