Health Care Should Help us In Rural America

[Delarage]

Whoever replaces Alex Azar should take a team and set up shop at these types of free medical events in poor areas of the country and explain to these folks that us Democrats are trying our hardest to make sure that they and their families are able to get decent healthcare but are being stymied by their local Repukes. We let them paint us as coming to take their guns, force them to have abortions, and ending Christmas--when in reality the Repukes take them for granted and allow this squalor to continue.

The central Appalachian area that includes eastern Kentucky, southern West Virginia and western Virginia has long been one of the sickest and poorest regions in the country. More recently, it has been ravaged by the decline of coal mining.

But Virginia was among 19 states that chose not to expand Medicaid as part of the Affordable Care Act. Many states cited the cost, even though Washington pledged to pick up nearly the entire expense. An expansion in Virginia would have covered an additional 400,000 people.

Kantsos voted for Donald Trump last fall in the hope that he could shake up Washington. She said the president needs to concentrate more on his job and less on Twitter.

Sutherland supported Trump, too, and said he thinks the president deserves more time. But Sutherland, who comes to the clinic for dental work and medicine, wishes lawmakers understood how hard life can be in Appalachia. Last year, he said, he walked 30 miles (50 kilometers) to the Wise clinic because he had no car; it took more than seven hours. Others have it bad, too.

https://apnews.com/article/865c6779fa90457bbb6cb62dc4d54e73

[Cha]

1. KR

[Delarage]

8. They have these events already

I'm not sure of the locations, but I've seen things on Frontline and other places that they do have these. It's really sad seeing people in such bad shape and so desperate for help. I'm not at all convinced that they can't be "flipped" if they see people really showing up to see how they are doing and to offer help. Campaign ads aren't enough.

Repukes win these areas by sitting around and talking about the War on Christmas and such. We should sit around with them and talk about healthcare. Information tables, whatever, at least. Maybe I'm a hopeless optimist.

[keithbvadu2]

3. Ask the republicans directly: What are you willing to do to save rural hospitals?

Ask the republicans directly: What are you willing to do to save rural hospitals?

Specifically, not generalities.

[NameAlreadyTaken]

4. The rural areas hate all Democrats and liberals

They hate them categorically. It doesn't matter who: the Clintons, Obama, Biden, Pelosi, whoever. The mere fact that they have the (D) after their name is all that matters to them. That is as far as they can think.

We live in a deep red county in Nevada (82% Trump). We are familiar with these people. These people will never vote for a Democrat, no matter what is said or done.

[roamer65]

5. Yup. That's why I say focus on urban, suburban and minority voters.

[Delarage]

10. Demographics should help us even there

https://www.aamc.org/news-insights/health-disparities-affect-millions-rural-us-communities

The most recent U.S. census, which measured population changes from 2000 to 2010, showed that rural diversity has been increasing. Non-Hispanic whites were about 80% of rural dwellers in 2010 but accounted for only 25% of rural population growth. Over that same decade, rural Hispanics increased about 45% to 3.8 million people, almost equal to rural African Americans. Native Americans increased by 8%. The number of Asians rose by about 37%, although remaining a small part of the total rural population.

In his Central Appalachian area, Florence said, the Hispanic community has grown considerably in the past 15 years, with a smaller Haitian population arriving more recently. Some are migrant workers, for whom health care is “pretty sporadic,” he said. “When I see a migrant tomato farmer, he might have been without his blood pressure medicine for six months. Yet he continues to work every day.”

[Delarage]

13. I agree

I think that's why Jon Tester does well; he is a farmer and knows what the day-to-day is like.

[roamer65]

16. Outreach is fine.

Just shouldn’t be our main priority.

[JI7]

20. I agree that the strategy should be more to not scare them and in turn keep their turnout low

instead of putting too much in trying to get their support . I mean, we can try up to a point but after a certain point it's just wasting time .

[uponit7771]

6. K&R, but we will never know our polling is so bad in America we can never find out if it would help

[Hoyt]

7. We've got to show them through a Public Option. Cramming it down

their throats just won’t work. They are just too stupid to see the advantages and that their taxes won’t soar over what they pay now for premiums and coinsurance.

[SlogginThroughIt]

14. They don't want it and won't use it.

They might use it as a last resort but they will, until their last gasp of air curse the liberals that bring anything bad upon their lives. That's what they have been conditioned to believe. They don't want social programs? Fine let them die off and we can buy up their land and remake this country in the way that it needs to survive. Reach out to rural America? Fuck that. Cut them off. Stop the welfare that extends to them. Let them experience what "Pull yourself up by your bootstraps" REALLY means and then let them choke on their own stupid rhetoric and poorly educated decisions. I am done. Only when they feel it in their empty bellies and their bankrupt bank accounts will they realize that they have been lied to their entire lives. Let them eat their words of hate. Until they are willing to clear their heads they will never accept anything that we have to offer.

[UTUSN]

15. K&R, one would think. But they will probably use/like it but "forget" where they got it!1

[appalachiablue]

17. Since 1987, Hate Radio AM, 1,500 stations monopoly incl college sports

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

18. Remind me again how rural people vote for Democrats,

support things like health care for all.

Oh, wait, they don't, do they? So fuck them. They are getting exactly what they deserve. Except they are not, they are getting things like expanded Medicare and food stamps and all sorts of socialist ills they think are the work of the devil. If I were in charge, I'd make sure they'd get none of that and would get daily briefings about how they don't support such things, so of course they don't get them.

I am so sick of the hypocrisy and the ignorance.

[JI7]

19. Being Racist is more important to many of them than getting health care