After Gov. Rell vetoed Sustinet, I sent the following email to Rep. Klarides who is the State Representative for the district where I live:

Rep. Klarides,

I was very disappointed to learn that Gov. Rell has vetoed House Bill 6600, An Act Concerning The Establishment of The Sustinet Plan. We need meaningful healthcare reform in our State and in our Country and Gov. Rell’s actions are a grave disservice to our State.

I realize that you have failed to show any leadership in addressing the greave issues of health care in our state as well, but you have an opportunity to redeem yourself.

Please join with the Democrats in overriding this ill thought out veto

To which, I received the following reply:

Dear Aldon:

I understand and share your concerns with the need for affordable health care in the state. However, H.B. 6600, AN ACT CONCERNING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SUSTINET PLAN, was vetoed by the Governor because, as stated in her veto message, it is a well-intentioned bill, but ultimately does not resolve the central problems of access and affordability. While this plan on paper may seem effective and efficient, it will cost billions of dollars to implement. In this current economic situation with record budget deficits, unemployment, and business closures, there is no guarantee that the funding necessary to sustain the program over the long-term will be available.

It is important to note that our state has been one of the nation’s leaders in health care coverage. Our uninsured rate was recently reported at just 9% in a 2007 census study. This is a reduction from the 11% uninsured in 2005. I think that the actions we have taken in recent years by expanding outreach on HUSKY (Public Health Insurance for the Uninsured Children) and implementing the Charter Oak plan for uninsured adults has helped keep Connecticut ahead of the rest of the nation in access to health care. Our system may have flaws, but it makes practical sense that any new reforms work with the existing system and future federal reforms to expand coverage to those not fortunate enough to have insurance.

To address the need for affordable health care, the governor has created a new advisory board of health care. Given the fact that Congress is currently looking at making fundamental changes to health care coverage nationwide, it is important to develop a process that will insure that Connecticut is prepared to make the most of the policies established on the federal level as quickly as possible.

While we may not agree on the process, I think we both agree on the need for a health care program that benefits the majority of citizens and is both affordable and accessible while not compromising our difficult economic situation.

Here is my latest reply to her:

Dear Themis,

I have read Governor Rell's veto message, and I believe it is extremely misguided. I firmly believe that the cost of doing nothing, or setting up some advisory board, the way Governor Rell has done with her executive order will actually cost the state much MORE than implementing the Sustinet plan. We already pay for the cost of the uninsured when we visit a hospital that bears the brunt of providing emergency room services to the uninsured and unable to pay. This gets passed on to insurance companies and we pay the cost in increased insurance premiums, such as the increase that Anthem just requested. This gets passed on to local governments and we pay the cost in increased local taxes as local governments provide insurance to their workers. We pay the costs in decreased jobs when small businesses cannot compete because of the costs of trying to provide insurance to their employees.

Yes, Sustinet will cost money to implement. However it will far cost far less than doing nothing, or setting up an ill conceived panel by executive order. Governor Rell and the Republican leadership has been seriously remiss in addressing this issue and our state continues to suffer from this.

Yes, we do disagree with the actions and more importantly, the inactions of Gov. Rell and the Republican leadership. As far as I can tell, the new advisory board is nothing but another bureaucratic boondoggle, an attempt to avoid doing anything until someone else, such as perhaps the U.S. Congress comes along and addresses the issue in a manner that is more acceptable to the insurance companies that are using our money gathered in the form of premiums to lobby Governor Rell and people in Congress. Meanwhile, we all pay too much for too little coverage.

So, again, I ask you to look much more closely at this very important issue. Show some leadership instead of simply echoing empty talking points of Governor Rell.