LETTERS: AARP'S ENDORSEMENT REPRESENTS MEMBERS

To the editor,

On Aug. 10 AARP President Lehrmann recommended AARP members support the health care reform bills sponsored by Gephardt and Mitchell. Lehrmann said, "Although neither bill is perfect, after careful review, we conclude that they provide the foundation for comprehensive health care for all Americans."

This recommendation to AARP members is what salaried AARP leaders get paid to do: To research and recommend action that benefit not only senior Americans but benefit all Americans. Remember that Lehrmann recommended a course of action after careful review. In your editorial you pointed out that "They weren't polled." AARP members, potentially 32 million-plus, constitute the most polled and surveyed group in America. The results of tens and tens of thousands of AARP members surveyed established health care reform goals held in high priority by AARP members.

The action taken by AARP board members and announced by Lehrmann came about when viable health care reforms (those left from over 70 proposals) were weighed against the goals established by AARP members over the past four years. Only two plans, the Gephardt and Mitchell reforms, provide a solid foundation for comprehensive health care reform for all Americans, protect American families from losing health care coverage and provide for an affordable set of high quality health care benefits, including prescription drugs and a beginning on home and community based long term care.

Nearly four years of surveys and polling of AARP members via Modern Maturity and The AARP Bulletin (reaching over 32 million AARP members), telephone surveys, mail surveys, field hearings and forums established AARP health care goals. These goals are universal coverage, long term care, prescription drug benefits, fully funded health care affordable to all Americans, the protecting and strengthening of Medicare and controls that rein in skyrocketing health care costs. These basis goals were well established by 1992 and reinforced by surveys and polling that came after 1992. These goals are what AARP leadership used to make the recommendation to AARP members to support the two reforms. Notice that the recommendation is a course of action for its members, not a blanket approval by the organization.

Your editorial says, "...who will pay for this onerous plan to turn one-seventh of our nation's economy over to federal bureaucrats." You are wrong on two points. First, your adjective "onerous" should be in front of "one-seventh of our nation's economy." It is onerous that health care takes over 14 percent of our dollars. It is more onerous that if nothing is done to reform health care we will be spending 20 percent, one in five dollars, by the turn of the century. Now, that is "onerous" when you realize that it is the middle income American who will be paying the lion's share of this great increase.

The second point where you are wrong is this. Neither plan calls for a one-payer plan such as Canada but rather place the responsibility of regulations on our government. Without comprehensive reform, health care decisions will remain with the special interest groups that have brought to the crisis we are now in. So more of the same is going to be good for all Americans? I think not.

A few more items for thought. The reforms require that at least one fee for-service option and at least one HMO option (this means you can retain current providers if you want to) be offered. At least one-third of those receiving long term care would be under 65. A systems of home and community long term care would not only benefit the patient and family but would also reduce costs greatly (and it would generate local jobs). Prescription drug benefits benefit all ages (the great advances in medicine don't mean a thing if you have the prescription to relieve pain and restore health if you don't have the money to pay for that prescription.) Medicare cost savings ($340 to $480 billion) would be turned back into funding health care reforms.

The cost of not doing anything today will be a great increase in our health care costs tomorrow. The decision between accepting the inevitable by not doing nothin' and enacting comprehensive health care reforms today is important to all Americans. Yes, many AARP member oppose health plans (which you pointed out.) But many AARP members support the health plans (which you did not point out.) Many Americans live in fear of losing health care should their job be lost. Many Americans are sick because they can not afford medical care or prescription drugs since they are "too rich to be poor" and "too poor to be rich."

Your editorial board might spend some time exploring the "many" that will benefit from comprehensive health care reform. AARP members through their polling established priorities that benefit all Americans. The time for decision is now. Will special interests and greed rule the future of many? Lehrmann and AARP leadership speak for me and many AARP members (you didn't really expect a unanimous agreement with 32 million, did you?)

The AARP request was for its members to support two less than perfect health care reforms in order to correct a crisis that affects all of us. Call your congressman and senators. Work for true reform. And if you don't agree with the AARP recommendation, call your congressman or senators. It's the American way.

CARL PATTERSON

State Coordinator for Communications

American Association of Retired Persons

Cape Girardeau