We can' t ignore escalating health care costs

As a medical transcriptionist, I transcribe dictated letters almost daily by physicians to their patients' insurance carriers who are refusing to pay for medical testing, hospitalizations and much needed medications. As a result, many of these patients are losing their life savings and homes to pay for their medical expenses; this, after their insurance premiums have increased substantially over the past few years. After reading a new federal study; apparently, heath care spending rose to an estimated $2.5 trillion in 2009. If you do the math, this is $8,047 per person, and is projected to double by the year 2019. I do not see how we can ignore this issue. We have to address our healthcare problem immediately; if not, this burden falls on the backs of the American public meannig lost jobs, people being forced into bankruptcy and more debt for the U.S. This is not a problem that we can sit back and ignore. We need to push Washington into reform we can all live with, and I stand by President Obama, asking congress to arrive at a solution.

Holly Christensen

Ogden