To the Editor:

In a recent Q&A in The Mountaineer, Congressman Mark Meadows, R-Asheville, seemed very light on specifics related to health care. In response to being asked what he believed to be inadequate in the healthcare bill, in 21 lines of print, he said premiums would not come down enough and that it had to have a safety net for those who can’t afford insurance. Admirable goals. In 28 lines of print in answer to what an ideal affordable health care plan should include, he repeated the same two goals. Is that all? In a conversation with a constituent in his Washington office, he commented, “Who would have thought that health care was so complicated?” Indeed! Who would have thought that a member of Congress voting on national health care legislation would not know that? In health care legislation, a tweak here has repercussions there. It is indeed complicated. You can’t change one component without affecting something else. He also stated that he didn’t want to do anything to hurt children, the poor or the elderly. Then please remember that those are the ones most affected by Medicaid and by the Affordable Care Act.Congressman Meadows: We need to get away from simplistic throw-the-baby-out-with-the-bathwater solutions. I have a problem with repealing the Affordable Care Act if it is not replaced with something better. It is not perfect, but please work to correct its shortcomings. Don’t ditch it till you are sure, in the complicated world of healthcare insurance, that you have something better to offer.

Joanne Strop

Waynesville