I recently attended the health care meeting put on by the Worker's Center at the Barre Labor Hall. The most interesting point that I came away with was that all of our budget problems (state, municipal, education) could be solved by switching to single-payer health care. Yes, our taxes would go up but there would be no premiums or co-pays or deductibles. This would be a much more fair way to apportion the costs as our taxes are based on our incomes. And everyone would be covered.

This would also help small businesses who are struggling under the high costs of providing health care to their employees.

In other countries which have single-payer health care (which includes all of the other industrialized countries in the world), they pay half what we do for health care and they are healthier – this should tell us something! (Maybe it has something to do with not having the stress of worrying…)

Sandra Bettis

Middlesex