In a letter published Jan. 13, Paul Lowell of Rumford wrote that too many people take too many prescription medications, ask doctors for every new medication and expect the government to pay.

Has Lowell considered the alternatives? Longevity has increased greatly since the beginning of the last century.

Unfortunately, these extra years are often spent in declining health. In the recent past, this has often meant years spent in nursing homes. It quickly became obvious that few could afford nursing homes and the government picked up the bill. It currently costs thousands a month to be in a nursing home. If, by medicating folks’ ailments or general aging conditions, nursing homes are avoided, isn’t this the better solution?

Our bodies age inside as well as out. Organs cease to perform properly.

Medications can prevent some of the ailments that go with these declines or relieve the symptoms. The pharmaceutical companies have raised and raised again the prices of these medicines. On fixed incomes, we can’t pay.

There are two choices. We can opt out, claim it is time to die, which will likely mean time in a hospital or nursing home, or we can take medication to provide us a measure of comfort and ability to stay in our own environment. Medication doesn’t always make us symptom-free, but it is natural to want to keep living.

Jennie Brown, Gorham, N.H.