In his letter to the editor (“Scott Tipton is excellent on healthcare,” Oct. 31),Dr. William G. Plested said that “Scott Tipton’s positions are best for patients and their physicians.” This is a mistaken belief.
The Affordable Care Act was flawed as a result of compromises required to pass it, but it enabled 20 million Americans with pre-existing conditions to get adequate coverage. After years of complaining about how horrible the law is, Republicans couldn’t get the votes to repeal it even after Trump became president and they controlled both houses of Congress. That’s because most people, including some Republican legislators, Scott Tipton not among them, understand that the ACA is a step forward toward the far more economical and inclusive health care other advanced democracies provide, but we don’t. “The more historically proven private system” that Dr. Plested longs for was proven wrong.
Under Trump, instead of trying to devise a superior health care regime, Republicans have been undermining the ACA with the goal of making it unpopular enough so they can repeal it. We spend twice as much on health care as other developed democracies that cover all their citizens. We could save a lot by trimming the role of insurance companies. We could negotiate with pharmaceutical companies for better prices. We could reduce costly emergency services by providing more widespread preventative care.
It’s too expensive morally and economically not to have Medicare for All. It’s a goal we should strive to reach.
Edward Packard
Durango
