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State Representative Patti Fritz
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-8237
For more information contact: Sandy Connolly 651-296-8877
NEWS COLUMN
WE ALL DO BETTER WHEN ALL OF US HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE
For over 30 years I have worked in the health care industry. In all of those years, I don't remember a time when health care concerns weighed as heavily on people's minds as they do today. Whether it's access to coverage or the high cost of treatment and prescriptions, Minnesotans rank health care as their number one issue of concern.
Many of us are fortunate to have good health insurance through our work. However, employers, especially smaller businesses, are finding it increasingly more difficult to provide this coverage for their employees. For most, it's not because they don't want to, but because the rising cost of employee health coverage threatens the survival of their business. This is exactly why MinnesotaCare was created – to offer affordable health insurance to working Minnesotans who cannot get insurance through their work. Unfortunately, close to 70,000 Minnesotans have lost their MinnesotaCare coverage over the last few years as the program was cut to balance the budget.
Most of those who have been cut live day-to-day without insurance, hoping they don't get sick or injured. If they do become ill, they postpone going to the doctor because of the high cost. Many times, this delay results in a trip to the Emergency Room, where treatment is assured. We all pay for these high-cost, and oftentimes un-reimbursed, trips to the ER, through higher insurance premiums and higher health care costs in general. It doesn't take much to understand that all of us are better off if all of us have health insurance.
A report that came out earlier this year was especially troubling. According to the Children's Defense Fund, 68,000 Minnesota children are without health insurance - that's more than twice the total population of the city of Mankato. The number of uninsured children is growing, particularly for those under six years old, a crucial period for child development. For many, that means not getting routine check-ups and immunizations, leaving these young children vulnerable to illness and physical problems that grow more serious when not detected early.
I believe all Minnesotans agree every child should have the medical care they need. Last session, I co-authored the Children's Health Security Act. This proposal would have allowed parents who earn up to 300% of the poverty standard to gain access to health care for their children. The proposal died in committee. However, if we want to continue to be a state that takes care of its children, a program such as this will need to be considered seriously in the near future. It is not acceptable to tell a parent their child cannot be treated because they don't have insurance.
There can be little doubt we need to honestly address this problem. I am optimistic we can make progress if we agree to treat health care as the top priority it is. When families in our community don't have access to health care they can afford, it affects all of our health, our pocketbooks, our workplaces and our schools. We have to do better.
News Items
- STATE REP. PATTI FRITZ PARTICIPATES IN START OF LEGISLATIVE SESSION - (Posted: Jan 9 2013 3:32PM)
- Rep. Fritz: Homeowners, Farmers Need Property Tax Relief - (Posted: 2012-05-01 00:00:00)
- Rep. Fritz: Let’s Vote on a Bonding Bill that Benefits All - (Posted: 2012-04-19 00:00:00)
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