Dear Mark:
Thank you for contacting me about reforming our health care system.
Recently, a number of Montanans have taken time to share their personal stories about health care with me. These situations are often frustrating and emotional, but they reinforce the need for significant health care reform. I deeply appreciate your willingness to share your story with me.
Some of the letters I received have come from uninsured Montanans. Today, nearly 154,000 Montanans do not have health insurance. Other letters come from folks who are dangerously underinsured, who are paying more than they can afford, or from folks who are worried about loved ones losing jobs. Montanans concerned about health care come from all walks of life.
I firmly believe that all Americans should have access to quality, affordable health care without discriminatory practices. I believe proposals to fix our system should maintain patient choice, emphasize preventative care, and control costs to consumers and the government.
The Senate plans to take up this important issue in the coming weeks. In fact, we are already evaluating a number of competing proposals. I will look closely at all of them. Moving forward, I will keep your views in mind because personal stories like yours are the best evidence of the need for reform.
Please do not hesitate to contact me again in the future if I can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Jon Tester
United States Senator
Piece of Mindful 
My reply was almost the same. But, I submit to you that a US Senator owes you no promises. Whether we like it or not, this is one of those cases where we have to wait for the deeds to evaluate the words.
But hey, unlike Baucus, his office at least responded.
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I don’t know how many times I’ve written to Baucus and gotten nothing back. Likely a dozen or so. I’ve never received a response from his office.
Oddly, and this is not any form of an endorsement of the man and never voted for him, I wrote Conrad Burns a few times concerning laws that summarily screwed small operators (like myself) and subsequently I would get articles and bits of information out of the blue from the guy. When I complained about the rules where single operators had to pay the same price for the “no call list” as does Citi for their entire marketing staff I got three follow-up bits from Conrad – two of them directs clips from news papers – signed “Dave, I thought you might be interested in this – Conrad”.
So for what ever his many, many failing were, at least he did that.
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Tester’s close attention to Vets and VA matters might narrow the question to him: If VA works well, and is cost-effective, why don’t you advocate a similar program for the 154,000 with nothing, the underinsured and financially stressed? If you have heard of a better idea, please do share.
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Tester’s choice of words, “access to quality, affordable health care” is a misnomer. Obama’s plan will do neither. In fact judging by the MA (not Canada) example wait times and costs will rise.
http://politicalmath.wordpress.com/2009/07/04/obama-health-care-reform-and-wait-times-visualization-in-lego/
Take time to read the whole post Mark, including the comments. It would be interesting to hear your response.
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Swede – I don’t like the Romney plan in MA, nor do most people who want national reform. It’s not a good model because it relies on private insurance but subsidizes it and does not regulate it. Since I beleive that private insurance is a large part of our problem, I think it safe to say you and I agree that we don’t want to imitate the MA plan.
But Baucus does.
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Fair enough.
What plan then, do you endorse, and how would it be paid for. Keep in mind the Canadian system still uses private insurance supplements.
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Since I won’t get what I want, I would settle for a plan that continues with private health insurance in the workplace, but transferable at will when the employee leaves employment to a public plan or another insurance company with guaranteed coverage at the same rate. (Employees should not be married to their insurance plan.) Private insurance seems to work OK in the workplace, as employees are already “cherry-picked” in essence, since employers tend to hire healthy people. In addition, insurance companies cannot rescind coverage when someone gets sick or turn down coverage due to preexisting conditions. SO we have a workable system there.
Outside the workplace, I’d like to see a public option. Private insurance companies cherry-pick that market like crazy, and rescind coverage when people get sick. They don’t do a good job at all.
And, of course, subsidized coverage in a public plan for people who cannot afford coverage.
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As a satisfied member of our current plan, I’m afraid that neither of us will be happy with any outcome.
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Just don’t get sick.
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