In his letter to the editor criticizing Democrats and the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) (Sun Journal Aug. 6), Dr. Thomas Shields opposes fixing that law or instituting a single-payer system (Medicare for all). His cure for our health insurance dilemmas: competition across state lines.
  I know Dr. Shields. He is not an unintelligent or uninformed person. Therefore, he has to know that boat won’t float. Private health insurance across state lines, if it could be implemented, would generate a race to the bottom of, yes, cheaper insurance, but with way less coverage and reliability. It is already legal nationally under the ACA that states can form interstate compacts with certain basic protections. None have been formed, and no insurance companies are seeking them.
  Except for the ACA rules, individual states regulate private insurance. Their rules necessarily vary, and meeting several states’ rules would be difficult and expensive for health insurers. Most states oppose sale across state lines, but five have legalized it, including Maine. No insurance company has shown any interest. Dr. Shields, generally a states’ rights advocate, wants the federal government to mandate it nationally.
  It’s a red herring. For whatever reason, the good doctor wants us to believe in something that makes absolutely no sense.
Kevin Simpson, Auburn