Burlington, Iowa
A large group packed the Autumn Heights Community room, all ready to talk the health care system and their financial security. The group was deeply concerned about the high cost of health care and importance of maintaining Social Security as a guarantee.
A couple of interesting perspectives were shared during the conversation. One was from a man from Hungary who was frustrated with the health care industry in the United States. He said that health care should not be a money-making industry and should be a right for everyone. He shared a story about a recent knee surgery he had, when he actually traveled back to Hungary to have the surgery because it saved him tens of thousand of dollars.
The group was in agreement that pharmaceutical advertising has gotten ridiculous and should be limited. This sentiment was echoed by a doctor who said the industry is out of control. He said that advertisements were leading to increased health care prices because so many people come in and ask him for prescriptions for drugs he has never heard of.
The conversation ended by participants informing campaign representatives of their positions on these two issues. The participants supported permitting the government to negotiate drug prices, educating children about healthy living at a young age and raising the COLA.
Keokuk, Iowa
Residents from the southeast tip of Iowa and even some from northeast Missouri sat together in the Keokuk Middle School to discuss the three approaches presented at the town hall conversation.
Participants held a lengthy discussion on the government’s role with regard to financial security and health care. Several ideas were entertained including a program to grant incentives to citizens to acquire health care and encourage citizens to save their money for the future. An idea for preventative care was to have government require specific operations only be given to those who meet certain parameters, such as not smoking, if the procedures were to be paid for by the government.
There was a strong negative sentiment for individuals being left to take care of themselves, without any government assistance. Many participants agreed that the reason why there are so many problems now is indeed because of their inability to get better jobs, government help or insurance on their own.
One gentleman proposed a hands-on approach to financial education for students. He thought parents should include their children in budgeting by having them look at their paycheck and then subtract the real-life expenses (gas, bills, food, health care, etc.) over the course of a month. Would this approach help students understand the importance of budgeting?
Mt. Pleasant, Iowa
Iowa Wesleyan College hosted an evening conversation of concerned citizens, including one State Representative who serves on the Heath and Human Services Committee and is a local small business owner.
The group had a great deal to say about the accessibility and affordability of health care. One couple was concerned about their son who is living without health care. There was also concern about accessing care for the needy in rural areas. One idea that was shared was to continue using states as laboratories to try and figure out what system works for health care and then institute the best system nationally.
There was strong agreement from the group about making insurance and pensions portable, so when people change jobs they can continue to save for retirement and maintain health care coverage.
Washington, Iowa
Retired health care workers, nursing home administrators, farmers and other retired individuals made up the conversation at the ISU Extension Office at the Washington County Fairgrounds.
The group had a great deal to say about the Social Security system. A couple of participants said that they would prefer to take the money that is being put in Social Security and invest it themselves. The whole group acknowledged that this approach would not work for everyone and Social Security should be kept intact as a safety net for citizens. A couple of ideas brought up to help fix the system included: lifting the cap, encourage people to work longer, invest money in the system to make it grow more quickly and not allowing other programs to borrow from the system.
Should we try to keep the elderly in their homes longer to save the government Medicare money?
Is there a perfect fix for these systems that will satisfy everyone?
Ottumwa, Iowa
A large circle of participants gathered at the Bridge View Center in Ottumwa for an evening conversation. Participants shared some devastating stories about how health care and financial challenges have affected them and their families. One participant acknowledged being on the verge of filing for bankruptcy because of high medical bills that he was facing.
When the group talked about the health care systems in other countries (government controlled systems), there was mixed reaction about their effectiveness. Participants had positive reactions about their experiences in the Cuban and Canadian systems. There was a negative experience with the German system. Would it be cheaper to just pay more in taxes and have health care covered like in other countries or to continue to pay the same taxes and premiums?
The Participants all agreed that citizens need to get more involved in the political process to make positive change.
Oskaloosa, Iowa
A group of concerned participants in the Oskaloosa conversation gathered together at the Maple Ridge Assisted Living center to discuss these vital issues.
Several attendees expressed a strong need to encourage individuals to learn how to save their money. Participants also discussed the possible elimination of unnecessary taxes as a means to enhance financial security. A few supported the idea of implementing a system of privatized social security and creating personal medical savings funds that individuals pay into themselves.
Another point discussed was the need for individuals to get involved in government. The group felt this would remove the “us and them” stigmatization and encourage representatives to work with and for the people. It would also ensure that citizens have a link to all aspects of government.
