Email letters, July 6, 2012

By Staff
Friday, July 6, 2012

A mother’s medical struggles illustrate Wagner’s erroneous view

Rick Wagner’s smug view of freedom of choice, especially regarding health care riles me. Maybe someday fate will dose him with the reality of freedom and choice my mother faced.

Born in 1914, she had rheumatic heart disease and epilepsy by the time she was six. No insurance company would accept her. Ever. But she wasn’t a victim even when losing her driving privilege from the epilepsy or paying off exorbitant medical bills from collection agencies.

Never once did she display a “poor me” attitude. Never once did she renege on a bill. When she was 52 and shortly after my father died, her heart began to give up.

Her doctor had to scold St. Mary’s to admit her because we didn’t have money upfront to pay. Good Catholic that she was, even her own charity hospital didn’t think she was worth anything.

This was all before Medicare and Medicaid became a reality. But, hey, National Jewish Hospital, the one charity that cared, offered to help. She had open-heart surgery for the cost of two pints of donated blood.

Always cheerful, never complaining, she lived her life the best she could under the circumstances and died when she was 81. Yes, she had Medicare and Medicaid eventually.

If Rick Wagner ever experienced what she faced with more grit, backbone and courage than anyone I’ve ever encountered, he’d be curled in a corner sucking his thumb. His “free market health care” doesn’t offer choice—never did.

Freedom, liberty, choice, my foot.

EILEEN O’TOOLE
Grand Junction

Declaration of Independence poll prompts another poll

How do you think subscribers to The Daily Sentinel would feel about the July 5th “poll” on the paper’s website?

• Good humor, gave me a chuckle.

• I can’t believe you think your readers are this idiotic.

• You went too easy on the liberals who hate our country.

• The signers of the Declaration of Independence are rolling over in their graves.

CHARLIE QUIMBY
Grand Junction