By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
More than 20 local citizens crowded into U.S. Rep. Bob Latta’s office on Thursday to tell the congressman they are sick with worry over the looming repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Latta’s staff listened politely and said they would pass on the concerns.
But that wasn’t good enough.
“I really want to talk to my representative about the Affordable Care Act,” said Sheri Wells-Jensen, who organized the meeting.
Others joined in pushing for a face-to-face with Latta.
“Rep. Latta needs to have a public town hall meeting. I think he needs to listen to what’s going on locally,” said Laura Landry Meyer. “He needs to get out of Washington.”
His staff stressed that Latta has held close to 700 public events during his terms in Congress.
“I understand that, but things are changing by the hour now,” Landry Meyer said.
Tim Bosserman, Latta’s district representative, said he did not have a current schedule for the congressman. If a local meeting is scheduled, it will appear on Latta’s website, he said.
But the group was persistent, and continued asking for a commitment for a town hall meeting. Wells-Jensen offered condolences for the “poor staffers” in the Bowling Green office who weren’t equipped with the congressman’s schedule.
Melanie Stretchbery put the staff on notice that this is no longer business as usual.
“We are voters. We are taxpayers and we’re not sitting down anymore,” she said.
“We want to be heard,” Landry Meyer said.
The biggest concern in the room was the possibility of the Affordable Care Act being repealed with no replacement plan in place.
“Address the problem, but don’t pull the rug out from under the people who need it most,” Stretchbery said.
Nancy Brownell agreed, noting that many of the problems with the ACA are occurring because the Republicans fought against the single-payer system.
“We should never have a repeal before we have something to replace it,” she said. “The Affordable Care Act has made an incredible difference. Repealing it now is not an option.”
Bosserman was asked about Latta’s position on repealing the ACA.
“I can’t speak for him personally,” Bosserman said. But he said Congress is working on a replacement plan. “I don’t have the inside scoop on what the plan is.”
Some of the citizens noted the irony of health care being a struggle in the U.S.
“It doesn’t make any sense to me that a country such as ours – one of the greatest in the world – and we’re battling over health care,” Lynn Wineland said.
The issue is not partisan, they stressed. It is a matter of doing what is right.
To repeal would be “irresponsible, immoral and unethical,” Stretchbery said.
“What it will really do is abandon the people who need it most,” Andy Schocket said.
Among those would be people with pre-existing conditions – many who were unable to get health insurance prior to the ACA.
Linda Smead talked about her daughter who had leukemia. Each of her hospitalizations cost at least $100,000, and she stayed in an abusive marriage for the health insurance. The ACA allowed her to leave the abuse and get her own health care, Smead said.
Beverly Elwazani told of her oldest son who has controlled asthma and went through a brief period of depression. Prior to the ACA, he was turned down for coverage by three major insurance companies.
Landry Meyer talked about the number of families forced to hold fundraisers for life-saving treatments.
“We’re the United States of America, health care and lifesaving treatment is a right,” she said. “It’s not just for the upper class who can afford it. It’s a fundamental right. We should not be struggling for that.”
Wells-Jensen agreed.
“It is appalling to me that I see friends who have life-threatening illnesses and they are out there selling spaghetti” to raise money, she said.
Dylan Price, who uses a wheelchair, said he knows of several people agonizing over the possible loss of health insurance.
“They lay in bed at night,” stressed over the potential changes. “They have medicines that they need,” Price said.
Mary Natvig spoke up for citizens who are artists, freelancers, or “cobble jobs together” to make ends meet. Those people may again be without insurance if the ACA is pulled. She also voiced her objections to the laws showing preference to males by paying for male hormones but not paying for birth control pills which many women take for female hormonal treatment.
Stretchbery also objected to the new administration’s push to lessen environmental and business regulations – but talk of putting more restrictions on women’s bodies.
As former superintendent of Wood Lane, Stretchbery also stood up for families who stay home to care for people with disabilities. While the person with disabilities can get health coverage, prior to ACA, the family members did not qualify.
“The local systems cannot afford to take care of all the needs,” she said.
Chris Streidl, of the Wood County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board, spoke of the health needs created by the opiate epidemic.
“We are number one in the nation in Ohio for deaths” due to opiates, he said. “Your constituents are dying.”
The one cure seems to be the drug Vivitrol, which costs $1,200 a month. “Without Medicaid paying for that, they are going to go without treatment. Your constituents are at serious risks,” Streidl said.
Tom Oberhouse, spoke up as a business owner with more than 50 employees – so it is affected by the ACA. Oberhouse said his rates have gone up 3 to 5 percent a year, but that is far less than the 10 to 20 percent annual increases that were seen prior to the ACA. He also said that while the act has increased paperwork, it is the right thing to do.
“Tweak it, but don’t get rid of it,” he said.
“Taking care of its citizens is a responsibility the government has,” said Jason Wells-Jensen. “As an elected official, you have responsibilities.”
Following the meeting at Latta’s Bowling Green office, his Washington, D.C., office was contacted about the possibility of a town hall meeting. Drew Griffin said he was not sure when the congressman would be available, but added, “it’s something he takes very seriously.”
Griffin also said Latta is working with others in Congress on a smooth transition for health care. “He does know people are concerned.”
