I just called Lynn Westmoreland’s office to find out when and where he is holding events during the recess. According to the person I spoke with he has no events scheduled, and isn’t planning on holding any!
In the midst of a debate in DC on one of the most important issues facing our citizens, Lynn Westmoreland is going to "represent" the constituents of his district without even speaking to them.
As Conservative commentator Bill Kristol has noted, the Government can provide a "first class" health care system to the citizens of this Country. Westmoreland has decided to be an outspoken supporter of the status quo health care system that is breaking the budget and forcing citizens to make tough decisions–are you going to pay the electric bill or buy the medication you need this month?
Granted, Westermorland has government provided health care so he probably hasn’t heard of the struggles that everyday citizens face. I mean he might not know that our health care system is broken!
Everyday, citizens of the 3rd district are struggling to pay for their health care and Westmoreland isn’t interested in hearing about it. We ranked 37th in the world for health care according to the world health organization–spending two to three times as much as other industrialized nations and getting worse care for it! We have Republican politicians like Westmoreland who think that the American citizens should just sink or swim–if you can’t afford that medication, oh well...
All the while, people like my best friend Tonja die because they can’t get the treatment they need. There are reforms that can provide quality affordable care, and keep insurance companies honest, but Westmoreland doesn’t want to roll up his sleeves and work on that bill. He wants to be a do nothing congressman who is trying to keep Obama from being seen as successful. Shouldn’t he prioritize the interest of his constituents over political tactics? The US system is uniquely inefficient, but the reality is that those inefficiencies are profits that health care lobbyists are spending millions every day to protect at the expense of citizens.
Westmoreland’s opposition to health care reform proves the vacuousness of his claimed "concern" about the deficit (or worse... maybe he just lacks a fundamental understanding of the important issues he faces every day...). Anyone who claims to care about the long-term deficits will want to reform the health care system, anyone who wants to protect rent-seeking companies will want to protect the status quo health care system. Westmoreland has decided who he’s looking out for... and now he wants to keep from having to explain himself to his constituents.
The reality is, if we don’t get control of health care costs we can’t take on the long term budget problems we face–the private sectors costs are rising faster than the medicare costs by the by. The IOUSA Budget Deficit Calculator allows you to see what the projected U.S. budget deficit would be, as a percentage of GDP, if the United States had the same per person health care costs as various other countries which enjoy longer life expectancies than the United States.
The only way we can address the deficit is to get health care reform--bring competition to the marketplace. Giving citizens the choice of a government plan keeps insurance companies honest, pushing down costs, and forcing insurance companies to provide a better service. As Republican Michele Bachmann has noted, a Government plan would "offer equal or better benefits than any plan — but cheaper."
That’s why Lynn Westmoreland and his buddies in the insurance industry want to stop health care reform in its tracks. Westmoreland wants to keep citizens of his district from being able to access the quality affordable care that Bachmann spoke of, because there are profits to be made from the broken system.
Even better, he’s going to do it without even speaking to, or hearing from, citizens in his district! Conservative Republicans like Lynn Westmoreland are the reason why I decided to run for State House–if you can’t represent the interests of your constituents you should find another job.
We need health care reform in this country and we need to clean house of elected officials who want to protect the massive profits being made without forcing companies to compete with a government plan that would provide, "equal or better benefits," and would be "cheaper."
Don’t let Westmoreland get away with it! Well you can–he’s proving that–but you get my point...
Call his office and ask him to hold events in his district during the recess–you can’t claim to represent your district if you haven’t heard from them.
Washington, D.C., Office
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: 202-225-5901
Fax: 202-225-2515
Office Hours: 8:30 am to 5:30 pm M-F
Third District Office
1601-B East Highway 34
Newnan, Georgia 30265
Phone: 770-683-2033
Fax: 770-683-2042
Office Hours: 9:00 am to 5:00 pm M-F
For more see some of my recent posts:
Why Markets can't cure health care costs...
Michele Bachmann on Health Care Reform: It would work...
Health Care Costs Part Deux...
Bill Kristol admits the obvious on health care...
CBO Chief Says Health Care Legislation Won't Lower Health Care Spending Rates....
James Wimberley asks a question about health care reform...
"There were 18,000 unnecessary adult deaths because of a lack of insurance"
New Rule: Not Everything in America Has to Make a Profit
Massachusetts doesn't hold the health care answer...
Health Care Reform Reality Check
http://jimnichols.posterous.com/on-the-health-care-frontOn the Health Care Front
they claim they love competition...
Is it rationing if my insurance company does it?
One last thing... health care crisis....
The Two Trillion Dollar Solution
Orszag on Health Care and deficit...
Baker on deficits from health care reform
Public Option and the fixation.... Health Care Reads...
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