Congresswoman Carol Shea Porter

Democrats need to unite and get health care passed. Stop listening to the bussed-in sheep (doesn't anyone use critical thinking skills?), hijacking public meetings and parroting what they hear on the Fox network. Democrats need to stop the wishy-washy behavior (bravo Barny Frank for having some backbone and standing up to the extremists) and show the country that Democrats can unite behind a desperately-needed change for this country. This country has a Democrat as President, and control the House and Senate - the Democrats have the majority. Stop letting yourselves be steam-rolled by increasingly radical Republicans.

My health insurance premium went up by one third this year! I have to pay for health insurance out of my pocket, with a $2500 deductible, because I am self-employed. All these "average Joes" are spouting how a public
option would be unfair competition to the insurance companies - give me a break! Insurance companies have been raping their customers for decades, with politicians in their back pockets the whole time! Politicians need to stop worrying about whether or not they'll lose the big contributions from insurance companies and brand them for the villains that they are. Americans have been hoping for years to get health care for all, with special interest groups keeping it stalled. This is an opportunity of a lifetime - don't squander your political power and let it pass by! I believe this to be the opinion of the silent majority, of which I am one (registered Undeclared for 27 years).

Dear Laura Cnoy,

Please address the following:

Mass. has mandatory health care, however it is TOO expensive even for middleclass workers even making $40K per year. Their cheapest plan is $280 per month and is the LOWEST care plan. Not good! Mandatory health care will cause prices to rise. Also, please address why health care providers charge too much for services and where is all this money going?

TORT REFORM

Is tort reform in the savings formula? It would go a long way in helping doctors provide "reasonable" care with tremendous cost and risk savings. We cannot be expected to continuously prove that there is "no needle in the haystack" with defensive medicine. Reasonable has to be a legal defense.

It's far easier to instill fear than to inform.

This is why it appears that the right is winning in this debate, they only have to scare folks.

Isn't it true that we had a fully employer funded health care system until the mid 80s when Saint Ron deregulated the insurance industry letting profit be the driving force behind health delivery?

When they ask if people are happy with their present health insurance they must firat ask if they have had a major illness where a 20% plan becomes a 50% plan. What is 20% of $500,000? I know from experience!

Dear Laura,

One big concern I have is, do we have a good enough Medical Infrastructure to support this new health care system.

Currently I find myself waiting sometimes 12 hours in the emergency room or weeks to get an appointment. If more people are receiving health care they will frequent doctors offices more often. This obviously will put a strain on our already strained medical system.

I worried quality of service will go down.

Do those who have health care coverage pay for those who are not covered and cannot afford their care? How much is this impacting the rise in health care costs?

Congresswoman,
You don't come to a modern ER with a headache until you have had neuroimaging and a headache. The one in 10,000 that have more than just a headache will irradiate the 9,999 who don't. Please walk in our shoes. Tort reform is key.

As a small business owner, of course I will enroll my employees in the cheaper "government option" rather than commercial carriers. By definition it is not a level playing field. Commercial carriers will be relegated to selling premium products only. When are you going to sell pizza and put Domino's out of business?

The Congresswoman is a strong voice - supporting jobs and education. Her work on behalf of New Hampshire college students and parents (and on behalf of the nonprofit agencies which support college-bound families) has been outstanding! Thank you for the opportunity to express my appreciation.

I'm a great admirer of Ms. Shea-Porter, even though I'm not in her district, and I fully concur in the necessity for the "public option." Actually, I think anything short of single-payer is ultimately a waste of time and money, but that's something the Astroturf-roots probably wouldn't allow to happen, so I do understand Ms. Shea-Porter's reluctant acceptance of compromise. I'd like to make this observation about her "cruise ship" metaphor, however (i.e. it's better to pick up a few survivors than none): the most important part of the story is that the bloody ship is sinking.