Health Care Reform Topic Of Another Discussion, Protest
8.24.2009
WFMZ-TV
Health care was the primary discussion surrounding the visit of one U.S. lawmaker to our area today. While Representative Jim Gerlach spoke with constituents at Reading Hospital, a crowd gathered outside of his office in Wyomissing, Berks County. WFMZ's Melissa Fullerton reports.
>> REPORTER: The floor was open during Congressman Jim Gerlach's visit to Reading Hospital, but an agenda quickly emerged.
>> ADAMS: Health care kind of dominated the discussion as it probably should.
>> REPORTER: The Republican lawmaker is in favor of health care reform, but distances himself from the public option listed in the current proposal.
>> GERLACH: There are many of us who think there are more private sector based approaches to accomplish that rather than what's being talked about right now.
>> REPORTER: The Congressman's audience seemed to fall in line.
>> ADAMS: People think health care's expensive now, wait until it's free and they use the mechanism of extracting it through taxes and your payroll check. We want health care! Now!
>> REPORTER: Meanwhile, those in favor of the president's health care proposal rallied outside of Gerlach's Wyomissing Office.
>> MORRILL: We want health care reform that's for everybody, universal. We want it affordable, quality and we want real choice.
>> REPORTER: Doctor Manan Trivedi calls health care reform critical. He believes the President's proposal will help remove insurance executives from his relationship with his patients.
>> TRIVEDI: Unfortunately, what we end up doing and spending a lot of our time on is paperwork and billing and coding and filing and fighting with the insurance companies to pay for their promise.
>> REPORTER: The split on the issue remains over whether government involvement in health care closes doors and complicates matters.
>> SHEMANSKI: It scares me that any public option might turn into a black hole of red ink.
>> REPORTER: Others say scare tactics are blurring the true objective.
>> TRIVEDI: When your only objective is to tear down, then you have no place in this debate. OK? You have no place in this discussion. I am willing and eager...I look forward to a healthy, constructive discussion about the facts. But that's the key it must be a fact based discussion.
