Snohomish County legislators urge Congressman Larsen to support strong public option for health care

Four Snohomish County legislators sent a letter to Congressman Rick Larsen last week, expressing their support for a strong public option in federal health care legislation.

Representatives Marko Liias (D - Mukilteo), Mary Helen Roberts (D - Lynnwood), John McCoy (D - Tulalip) and Mike Sells (D - Everett) wrote on October 28: "We cannot continue to allow hardworking Americans to be ruined by the high cost of health care. Hundreds of our constituents are forced to declare bankruptcy every year due to unpaid medical bills."

The purpose of the letter was to let Congressman Larsen know how important a public option is for constituents of Snohomish County, because it would serve as a fallback option for those who have no other coverage. As the health care debate continues in Washington DC, state legislators are hearing from people in their districts about lack of coverage or coverage that is too expensive for them to afford.

The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that 47 million Americans are currently uninsured. The Washington State Insurance Commissioner announced in June that 876,000 Washingtonians lacked health care coverage, a 21 percent increase over the previous year.