WHAT DOES GOVERNOR CORBETT HAVE AGAINST HEALTHCARE?

As the governor prepares to receive a medical procedure paid for by the taxpayers, we should ask ourselves why he is accepting these services, oftentimes referred to as socialist by him and members of his party. It's safe to assume that the governor will not "pull himself up his bootstraps," and take the "personal responsibility" to rearrange his personal budget, "tighten his belt" and include the costs of his medical procedure in his personal finances.


After all, that's what he expects us to do. In March 2010, within days of President Obama signing the Affordable Care Act, he files suit against it. Even though the debate lasted for over 2 years, he still thought that members of congress did not understand the Constitutionality of the bill.


Then, in contradiction with his campaign promises, he allowed the safety net medical assistance program, AdultBasic, to expire. We now have an approximate $500M surplus for the current fiscal year.


On top of these two acts of healthcare discrimination (based on economic status), the governor now wants unionized employees to take a 4% decrease in pay in unison with an increase in healthcare costs. The increase in costs will make it nearly impossible for some to afford the coverage they have now and have had for years.


I'd assume that the governor is not paying for his back surgery because 1) he cannot afford it and cannot fit it in his personal budget, 2) he was provided healthcare as part of his contract with the government/citizens of PA.


The people of PA, including public sector workers, are not appealing the necessity of the governor's medical procedure. We are also not crying out for him to pay for it himself. We understand that, upon hire/election, those benefits were agreed to by both sides.


We now expect the governor to do the same for the workers of PA. Honor the negotiated benefits and acknowledge that healthcare is a human right and covers medical conditions and emergencies that the majority in the Commonwealth cannot afford without insurance.