Despite some good features that will benefit a large number of people, the Affordable Care Act doesn’t go far enough. About 76,000 West Virginians will remain uninsured after the Affordable Care Act is implemented. In addition, people “covered” by health insurance still may not be able to afford the co-pays and deductibles.

Senator Rockefeller has been an avid advocate for children’s health and for many other ways to help people improve their health and lives. CHIP, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, is one example.

But the expensive, fractured, and piecemeal healthcare “system” requires a solution that will work for everyone: improved and expanded Medicare for all. People covered by Medicare have many fewer complaints than those covered by private insurance. Medicare is administered with very low overhead. Most importantly, if everyone from conception to death were covered by Medicare, medical costs would decrease because Medicare would negotiate fees with hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, and other healthcare providers.

We applaud Senator Rockefeller’s legacy of improving healthcare for West Virginians and others throughout the country. His legacy can be stellar if he stands up for replacing the system that leaves so many unable to afford healthcare with improved Medicare for all. We ask him to do this by signing on as a cosponsor to a bill that soon will be introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders: The American Health Security Act of 2013.

Lynn Yellott

Shepherdstown