Brownback discusses issues at town hall meeting

United States Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., displays a graphic explaining the complexity of the proposed healthcare overhaul during a town hall meeting Wednesday at the Fort Scott Golf Course and Country Club. The meeting was attended by approximately 150 individuals from the area including members of the Fort Scott Rotary Club and the Fort Scott Pioneer Kiwanis. (Michael Pommier/Tribune)

United States Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., was in Fort Scott Wednesday for a town hall meeting to talk about issues facing the nation.

The bulk of Brownback's presentation focused on his opposition to an overhaul of the healthcare system. He said he believes that most people are happy with healthcare with the exception of two aspects: the cost is too high and there are people who cannot receive coverage.

"I think we need some changes on this," Brownback said. "I think our healthcare system is an overall good system."

Brownback said the government wants to change the whole system rather than address the two major concerns. He said socialized healthcare is not what the country needs.

"It isn't where the country ought to go. I don't believe it will work. I think it is the wrong way for America to go," Brownback said. "I think we need incremental change. I do not believe in a radical overhaul revolutionary takeover. I do not believe in socialized healthcare system for the United States. It won't work here."

In addition, the cost of a socialized system would cause the nation's debt to rise even higher, according to Brownback. He said the only options to pay for it is to increase taxes or take money from Medicare. He said he does not want to see more taxes and Medicare is not stable enough to survive the money was taken to pay for a new healthcare system.

"It's like writing a check from an overdrawn account to buy a car," Brownback said.

Brownback went on to talk about how a socialized healthcare system will lead to longer waits for those needing medical aid. He said Canadians wait longer for medical treatment than Americans. He added, the United States has a higher cancer survival rate than the European Union. He said the reason for this is because the United States spends more money on healthcare.

"We spend a lot of money on healthcare," Brownback said. "If you're sick, you want to be here."

Brownback also spoke briefly about the issue of moving detainees from the Guantanamo Bay detention camp (Gitmo) in Cuba to Leavenworth. He said Gitmo is a perfectly good facility and building a new facility in the states would be a waste of money.

"If there's problems in Gitmo, let's fix the Gitmo problems not move them to Leavenworth," Brownback said.