Minnesota health plan; the real story

This is a real story. In Zumbrota, Minnesota the owner of the News Record newspaper reported his healthcare premium costs are $2,100 per month, for two adults, and they have a $17,000 deductible plan. Think about the absurdity of our current healthcare costs? Would you buy a house or a car with a $2,100 monthly payment and you will never pay it off and if any damage were to occur you lose $17,000 of the value before the insurance company pays for anything? The easy math $2,100 x 12 months $25,200 for the first year, plus no cost sharing until your expenses are over $17,000; summary $42,200 for the first year before the insurance company pays. This is very profitable for healthcare insurance companies and if you have a claim, they can delay and deny it. Who is being served, or scammed, and or committing fraud?

How did Minnesota and the USA get here? In the past, our home was the most expensive yearly cost and a car was the second most expensive item for a family. Well, here is the second real story; I remember, in 1997 our national news reported that healthcare costs have become more expensive than our home mortgage costs. At that time, I just started a new job -married with 4 younger children, and enjoyed the fact that this new job had much lower healthcare costs and better coverage than my previous position at the United State Department of Agriculture. Simply stated, during the Clinton Presidency federal benefits were significantly reduced to balance the budget and reduce the debt. My family of six went backwards financially for four years (1993 to 1997) and we had to leave this federal position and join the private industry to survive financially. Our expenses were increasing and we were earning less income four straight years in a row, just like many families are experiencing today.

I figured since 1997 that the federal government or the state governments would eliminate the for-profit healthcare insurance companies and the USA - the financially strongest country in the world - would move toward Universal Health Care which most industrialized countries enjoyed at that time; better healthcare at about half the costs that we were paying. And 30 years later, we still are paying 35 to 45% as much today as the next five highest cost industrialized countries and we are ranked number 14 for healthcare, according to the WHO -World Health Organization.

The third real story; In 2006, Candidate Obama promised universal healthcare during his first campaign and all he did, along with the democrats, was to bail out the healthcare insurance companies resulting in more expensive premiums and more profits for their industry. Every year our Federal, State and County taxes bailout (subsidize) these insurance companies and provide them with healthy profits and huge executive salaries. Furthermore, with Obamacare if you don't have healthcare insurance or if you earn too much with Obamacare you get a bill from the federal government. Stupidity? Greed? Fraud? Political paybacks? All of it and more.

What can we do to lower healthcare costs and receive better healthcare? " The Minnesota Health Plan (MHP)" is a proposed bill aimed at providing healthcare coverage for all Minnesotans. MHP will eliminate healthcare insurance companies ensuring all medical needs are covered, including dental, prescription drugs, vision and hearing care, mental health services, chemical dependency treatment, home care services,and nursing home care. MHP allows patients to choose their healthcare providers (unlike Obamacare) and it would not end coverage when they lose their job or switch employers. It is a response to the challenges faced by many Minnesotans due to high out-of-pocket costs and the lack of affordable

insurance. The MHP aims to reduce healthcare spending through fair pricing, efficiency, and the elimination of paperwork, making healthcare more accessible and less expensive for all Minnesotans. Politically, the majority of Minnesota Independents, Republicans, Democrats, and others support this type of system. Significantly better healthcare at significantly lower costs!!!

All Minnesota residents will pay, based on incomes. MHP will help eliminate fraud in healthcare services, administrative savings will drop costs about 40%, and we will all have better healthcare. Preventive healthcare - catching health issues early adds additional savings and better early childhood health care reduces costs, plus lowers infant mortality. Furthermore, doctors will be in charge. No more Artificial Intelligence (AI) healthcare programs delaying, denying, and deposing the customers without healthcare treatments. No more healthcare insurance companies taking our healthcare funding!

These are three real stories and I am sending them to every newspaper in Minnesota, as a letter to the editor, and asking them and all Minnesota residents to discuss the Minnesota Health Plan (MHP) with their State Representatives and Gubernatorial Candidates. We can do significantly better, when we all row the boat in the same direction. All Vikings know that is a fact.

Onward Minnesota!

Roger Kittelson

Owner Kittelson Creamery LLC

Goodhue, Minnesota