Supports expanding Medicaid

There really is no shame when it comes to the hate Obama group. The hypocrisy is astounding. Millions of people with pre-existing medical problems, including many in the hate Obama group, are now covered by affordable health insurance under the Affordable Health Care Act.

One of those people, a cancer survivor whose life was saved by insurance obtained under the ACA, was featured in a Feb. 16 Daily Inter Lake article. You would think that this person, an educator, would have at least been informed on the issue, but here is what he had to say:

 "Once you get a diagnosis of cancer, you can't get health insurance. The only option I had was Obamacare. It came at a time that probably saved my life.”

The truth is, the Affordable Health Care Act has been in effect for the past five years, now covering millions of previously uninsured people, most with pre-existing conditions. Taxpayers do not fund this program. Insurance under the ACA is purchased from one of three private sector insurance companies, unless one qualifies for Medicaid.

In 2013, our Republican controlled Legislature, with the help of the Koch brothers, buried Gov. Steve Bullock's plan to expand Medicaid to low income Montanans, while during the same session providing each legislator $887 per month ($10,644 per year), to pay for their own health insurance.

In January, the governor again unveiled legislation (House Bill 249) to implement the Healthy Montana Plan for up to 70,000 low income Montanans, including 9,500 veterans. Any Montanan making 138 percent or less of the federal poverty level would qualify for coverage. Federal funding would be available to pay 100 percent of the cost of the plan for the first three years.

Let’s not let a few hypocrites again prevent us from doing the right thing for so many Montanans who desperately need a little help. We all need to make it clear to our legislators that we support HB 249.

Jim Lockwood

Whitefish