I hope voters will join me on Election Day to vote “yes” on Question 2 to expand Medicaid.

The stories that people without health care shared with me when I served in the Legislature continue to haunt me: the working woman in her 50s who was diagnosed with cancer, but had no insurance; the student who lost her insurance and couldn’t continue with her college education without the drugs necessary to treat her mental illness; the desperate families with addicted loved ones who lacked insurance and could not afford substance abuse treatment; families who faced bankruptcy because of medical bills; the farmer without insurance who couldn’t afford treatment for his heart disease and died as a result.

The list goes on and on.

I also heard from the Maine hospitals and community health centers which are absorbing the costs of the uninsured and are struggling to keep their doors open.

Thankfully, Maine voters have the opportunity to change that picture by voting for passage of Question 2. With Medicaid expansion, federal dollars will flow to area hospitals, and an additional 70,000 Mainers will receive health insurance coverage who don’t now have it.

The 31 states that have expanded Medicaid report significant savings and improved economies.

When people are healthy they are more productive and can help build a stronger economy.

When people in Maine are healthy, everyone benefits. I support a “yes” vote on Question 2.

Peggy Rotundo, Lewiston

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