In his letter published July 9, Rep. Shields wrote that three federally funded surveys indicated “only 14.4 million are without health insurance for more than 12 months.” Other information he supplied indicates many millions more are without insurance for some lesser period of time during the year. His conclusion is “being without health insurance is not the same as being without health care.”

Rather than pose constructive solutions, Rep. Shields has chosen the political ploy of playing the numbers game. Does it really matter if the number is 14.4 million or 43 million?

The fact is that we cannot afford to continue leaving people uninsured. Rep. Shields indicates billions of dollars in health care are given away each year. He indicates that some of these sources are VA hospitals and public and private hospitals. Evidently, he does not realize or understand that these, and many of the other indicated sources, are funded either with tax dollars or by increased health care costs to other segments of our society.

The Bush administration has not presented any credible health care plan. It has provided a Medicare drug benefit that provides little benefit. When the full plan is implemented in 2006, it will provide little relief because of the large deductible.

Rather than working toward meaningful health care reform, Mr. Bush has chosen to give the majority of tax breaks to the top 1 or 2 percent – those who need it least.

Stanley L. Tetenman, Poland

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