Hill responds to health care questions

Rep. Baron Hill fielded health care questions last night at a town hall meeting in the packed auditorium at Bloomington High School North.

Speaking to a mixed crowd of supporters and critics, Hill tried to explain to constituents the contents of the current House health bill.

Hill promised that the health care bill proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives would allow people who are satisfied with their current insurance to keep their plans, that it would prohibit insurance companies from denying coverage to people with pre-existing medical conditions, and that it would not ration health care.

He said if H.R. 3200 were passed, people who are satisfied with their insurance could take their plans with them even if they change jobs.

Although he reiterated this promise three times, many audience members did not seem to believe him.

“You know that’s not true,” someone shouted.

Several questions were raised about the cost of the bill and how it would be funded. Hill responded that the reforms would lead to savings that would offset much of the cost. He also said there would be a tax on individuals making more than $250,000 per year.

Yet several attendees came away from the meeting feeling that the question of cost was not adequately answered.

Rob Deppert, a Bloomington resident who sells health insurance for Universal American, said he was mostly satisfied with the meeting and Hill’s answers, except on cost.

“I think he could have gone into the cost and how it was going to be funded better,” Deppert said.

“I don’t think that a tax on people making over $250,000 is going to cover it all. If he’s a conservative Democrat he ought to be proposing cuts that can be made in the federal budget to offset the cost, but I didn’t really hear that mentioned.”

Nelson Shaffer, who has lived in Bloomington for 35 years, agreed that Hill understated the costs of the plan.

“You can’t throw 40 million people in and have no additional cost,” he said.
Though he does not support the congressman’s position on health care, Shaffer said he admired Hill for allowing the town hall meeting in the first place. Other politicians, Shaffer said, responded with teleconferences or neglected to attend public meetings at all to avoid the potentially contentious atmosphere.

“I really respect him for coming here and standing up to this,” Shaffer said. “We vote on people we trust. We expect him to honor that. It’s easy to hear the shrill people or the people who have sad stories.”

The audience was mixed in its reactions to Hill and the proposed health care reforms. Continually, Hill scolded the audience for being disrespectful and contentious.

He drew a particularly loud backlash with his response to a journalism student who complained about not being allowed to videotape the meeting.

“This is my town hall meeting,” Hill said. “Let me restate that. This is my town hall meeting for you.”

During the meeting, Hill called on Dr. Rob Stone, director of Hoosiers for a Commonsense Health Plan, to ask a question. Stone, who works in the emergency room at Bloomington Hospital, asked about a Medicare-for-all health care system.

Hill responded that he has not signed on to a single-payer system, but he did vote in favor of the public option. But Hill said he thought the public option only has a 50-50 chance of surviving a full vote.

Congress will reconvene Tuesday, when it will likely continue to negotiate a final health care reform bill. The Senate has yet to act, and Hill said the House will likely postpone action until the Senate reveals its version.

“This bill is a work in progress,” Hill said. “We’ve been debating health care since Harry Truman was President of the United States. It’s time to get this thing done.”