Crowd packs health care town hall meeting

SANDPOINT — Health care reform took center stage at Monday night’s town hall meeting, and more than 200 residents braved the muggy confines of Community Hall to hear firsthand how Rep. Walt Minnick, D-Idaho, wants to tackle the prickly issue.

Like many of his congressional colleagues, Minnick is using his summer recess to speak with constituents about the health care legislation being debated in Washington. He said the town hall meetings he has attended, including Sandpoint’s, have buoyed his spirits.

“My view is that what we have here tonight in this packed hall is the surest sign that democracy is alive and well in the United States,” he said.

The two-hour meeting allowed Minnick to address more than a dozen health care questions, ranging from how the reforms would be paid for to why they are needed.

Minnick, who doesn’t support any of the three bills currently proposed, said he would vote for health care reform, but only if it does not add to the nation’s ballooning debt.

“Health care in this country is broken and we need to reform it, but we need to get it right,” he said. “The issue isn’t spending more, it’s how do we get more bang for our health care buck.”

 Despite the tight quarters and sweltering heat inside the hall, the crowd remained civil and respectful throughout, which stands in sharp contrast to the screaming matches seen at similar meetings throughout the country.

The event was cordial, but not without its confrontational moments. In the most heated portion of the night, an audience member challenged the legality of the federal government even addressing health care reform and said the duty should be left to the states.

“Well, somebody ought to deal with it,” Minnick answered. “If the states won’t, I think we should take a crack at it.”

As the night wore on, talk turned to immigration and how the proposed reforms would or would not benefit illegal aliens. Addressing what he said was a misconception about the proposals, Minnick drew hearty applause when he assured attendees that undocumented immigrants would not be covered under any legislation.

“There’s no intention in any of these plans to cover anyone who’s not here legally,” he said. “Health insurance needs to be for those here legally.”

Minnick will continue crisscrossing the state speaking with Idaho residents before returning to Washington next month.