TO THE EDITOR: THE NORTHFIELD NEWS ADAY DOES not go by that I don't get a question about the health care debate. AARP members are particularly interested - for themselves, their children and grandchildren. Today those members are sending us a clear message: we need to make health care more affordable and improve its quality. AARP is fighting to make those voices heard. No issue is more important to this Association than fixing this broken system. We're very actively pressing Congress and the President to arrive at fair and common-sense solutions that will lower costs, improve quality and protect and improve Medicare. While Vermont is considered a leader in tackling this complex problem, we simply cannot succeed without a federal solution that represents real, meaningful and sustainable change.

Progress on health care is far too important to be derailed by myths and scare tactics perpetuated by special interest groups who will benefit from the status quo.

You may have heard some outrageous claims in the media from those opposing health care reform. Unfortunately, the truth is too often getting lost in the frenzy of negative and sensational press reports. It is indeed a complicated issue, so it's critically important to get the facts straight and realize the good that will come of this historical effort to fix health care in America…and in Vermont.

Common myths and claims:

We can't afford it--

We can not afford the status quo - any one of us could be one pink slip or one serious illness away from financial ruin. If we do nothing to fix health care, families with Medicare or employer-based health coverage will likely see their premiums nearly double again in the next seven years.

Reform proposals will cut Medicare benefits--

None of the major health care reform plans currently being considered would cut Medicare benefits. Reform will lower prescription drug costs for people in the Part D "doughnut hole," protect access to doctors, prevent costly and avoidable hospital readmissions, improve quality of care, and eliminate billions of dollars in waste.

It's a government takeover- -

Health care reform will not be a government takeover. All of the main proposals currently being debated by Congress would preserve the employerbased health care system, meaning an estimated 200 million Americans will continue to get their coverage through their employers.

Health care reform is rationed care--

Health care reform will not give the government the power to make important health care decisions, regardless of a person's age. Those decisions will be made by individuals, their doctors and their family.

What about mandatory end of life counseling/govt euthanasia?

Not only is that completely false, it is a misleading and cruel scare tactic. Health care reform will NOT give the government the power to make life or death decisions for anyone regardless of their age.

AARP believes health care is not a Democratic or Republican issue. Nor should it be about political gamesmanship. It's about people's lives. Health care reform must fix what's wrong and preserve what's right. It must strengthen and improve Medicare, protect people's choice of doctor and insurance plan, stop insurance companies from charging older people unaffordable premiums, and guarantee dependable, affordable coverage.

Vermont took an important first step in passing its own health care reform package in 2006, and key elements of that plan are part of the national plans being considered. But our objectives on both cost control and access for all will not be fully realized without a federal solution in place.

Don't let special interest groups who are trying to block progress on health care reform fool you with their myths and scare tactics. Now's the time to talk about what works and what doesn't - to find a common sense solution to our nation's health care challenges. It's critical to our citizens, to our economy and to our future. AARP is in this fight for the long haul and we're in it because Americans, and Vermonters, are calling for real change - let's listen.
DAVE REVILLE
AARP Vermont