By GREG JORDAN
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
— BLUEFIELD – While lawmakers in Washington, D.C. debate the best ways to reform how Americans get their health care, people in both the Virginias have their own ideas about getting the services they want.
Shoppers and workers at the Mercer Mall were asked if Congress should proceed with President Obama’s plans for health care and whether they had any ideas of their own. One person felt that much of the money being spent overseas should be used to address health care reform and other issues in the United States.
When asked what she wanted in the form of health care, 47-year-old Deborah Cutlip of Rock replied: “Health care for everybody. It’s ridiculous, all the money that goes elsewhere. New Orleans is still struggling. It’s like we turn a blind eye to the country. This is where the aid needs to go and not everywhere else.”
Too many people are caught in a middle area where they cannot afford to pay for health care themselves, but earn too much money to receive assistance from the government, said Cutlip, who added that she works, but does not have coverage.
“There’s nothing for the middle class, so to speak. You can’t afford to pay for it out of your own pocket, and you’re not poor enough,” she said.
One Giles County, Va., resident who lives on a fixed income said he was concerned that Congress would change Medicare payments in order to help finance health care reform.
“I’m on Social Security,” said William Poole, 73, of Black Gate. “I’m worried they’re going to cut back on Medicare.”
Poole said he would like to see everybody get medical coverage, but reducing Medicare or Medicaid benefits “wouldn’t sit well” with seniors.
Mary Kessler, 50, of Princeton agreed that seniors need more assistance.
“Well, they need more for the elderly, especially those who just have Medicare,” she said. “The supplement (they have to pay) is so expensive; and the drugs, even with Medicare, after you spend so much, you’ve got to pay 100 percent of it.”
Kessler said that her parents are retired, and that paying for prescriptions takes most of their retirement and Social Security.
“Can’t even afford to buy a new car,” commented Kessler’s mother, 75-year-old Ruth Leake of Princeton.
Another Mercer County resident felt that consumers should be able to shop more for medical coverage. But first, Congress should take a step back from current plans.
“I think they (Democrats) should start on a new plan and work with the Republicans,” said Pamela Helmandollar, 46, of Bluefield.
Consumers should be able to go across state lines to find affordable health coverage, she said.
“You can go across the lines and get car insurance, why not health insurance?” Helmandollar asked.
One Princeton resident, Ann Fuller, 53, said people should not have seek health insurance in other states.
“You should have affordable health insurance in your state,” she said. But too many people have to spend hundreds of dollars a month for medication and care, she added.
Fuller said her mother-in-law, who had diabetes and used a heart pacemaker, ends up spending up to $800 a month for medications even with Medicare.
“Two hundred dollars for groceries and her medicine is $800. It’s ridiculous,” Fuller concluded.
— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com
