Imagine a 50-year-old patient who has congestive heart failure, works part time and has no health insurance. He doesn’t qualify for MaineCare, except when he lands in the hospital three times a year. His heart doesn’t pump well so he gets swollen legs and he has shortness of breath. This man will likely die four years early because he can’t afford his medications or doctor visits.

This problem of no health insurance (affecting about 82,000 people in Maine) would not happen in any other developed country. They all have a basic plan (a “Ford” of health care) for everyone. Many countries also have a supplemental private insurance plan (a “Cadillac” of health care), which pays for things like dental insurance.

The systems in other developed countries cost less than ours, yet people in those countries live 4.1 years longer than people in the U.S. Health care should be a right in the U.S., like it is in other countries.

A bill before the Maine Legislature, LD 1269, is a resolution to study the costs and funding of a universal health care plan for Maine. I urge people to contact their legislators about developing a plan for universal health care in Maine. No one in a modern civilized country should die early due to lack of medical care.

Kathryn Bourgoin, MD
Orono