Tort reform crucial to reduce costs

As proud Americans, we had plenty to say to Rep. Rick Larsen at his recent town hall meeting on health-care reform in Everett: First, good job, and thank you! Only one correction: answer the questions, please.

A veteran, wounded and hospitalized, took umbrage with comments about our government never doing anything “right.” Saying he received good care and is better for the experience, he drew cheers! I appreciate his service in making this the greatest nation ever seen and defending us as advocated in our Constitution.

I believe tort reform is more crucial than health insurance reform (which has many names now). When doctors must run scared of malpractice litigation by ordering redundant tests to protect themselves, those tests will be ordered. As malpractice insurance rates escalate, fewer people will embrace a profession that is too expensive, time consuming and, eventually, risky. Larsen said, “Business as usual is unacceptable for small business owners who cannot afford employees’ coverage.” He is absolutely correct! They cannot afford it because they are being taxed out of business! Employers are a target for every tax imaginable. Entrepreneurs should be rewarded, never punished by the “nanny state.”

Congress has been out of control with taxes and spending too long. Some forget that only Congress can spend our money; not George Bush, nor Obama. A year ago few Americans knew how many zeros were in a trillion (12); today, “trillion” is tossed about as if it were a concept we could actually grasp.

Americans are angry, resentful of the rush to pass unread bills, borrowing Chinese money for our grandchildren to repay. If Medicare is broke, how will this be better? Campaign rhetoric about “transparency” is baloney. We don’t trust Congress or the president, and we need a watchdog. Would you like that job, Rep. Larsen?

Dot Holladay

Mukilteo

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

toon
Editorial cartoons for Tuesday, July 8

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

A Volunteers of America Western Washington crisis counselor talks with somebody on the phone Thursday, July 28, 2022, in at the VOA Behavioral Health Crisis Call Center in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Editorial: Dire results will follow end of LGBTQ+ crisis line

The Trump administration will end funding for a 988 line that serves youths in the LGBTQ+ community.

Comment: Students can thrive if we lock up their phones

There’s plenty of research proving the value of phone bans. The biggest hurdle has been parents.

Dowd: A lesson from amicable Founding Foes Adams and Jefferson

A new exhibit on the two founders has advice as we near the nation’s 250th birthday in the age of Trump.

Was Republicans’ BBB just socialism for the ultra-rich?

It seems to this reader that the recently passed spending and tax… Continue reading

GOP priorities are not pro-life, or pro-Christian

The Republican Party has long branded itself as the pro-life, pro-Christian party.… Continue reading

Comment: $100 billion for ICE just asks for waste, fraud, abuse

It will expand its holding facilities, more than double its agents and ensnare immigrants and citizens alike.

toon
Editorial: Using discourse to get to common ground

A Building Bridges panel discussion heard from lawmakers and students on disagreeing agreeably.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on Friday, June 27, 2025. The sweeping measure Senate Republican leaders hope to push through has many unpopular elements that they despise. But they face a political reckoning on taxes and the scorn of the president if they fail to pass it. (Kent Nishimura/The New York Times)
Editorial: GOP should heed all-caps message on tax policy bill

Trading cuts to Medicaid and more for tax cuts for the wealthy may have consequences for Republicans.

Alaina Livingston, a 4th grade teacher at Silver Furs Elementary, receives her Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination clinic for Everett School District teachers and staff at Evergreen Middle School on Saturday, March 6, 2021 in Everett, Wa. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: RFK Jr., CDC panel pose threat to vaccine access

Pharmacies following newly changed CDC guidelines may restrict access to vaccines for some patients.

toon
Editorial cartoons for Monday, July 7

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Comment: Supreme Court’s majority is picking its battles

If a constitutional crisis with Trump must happen, the chief justice wants it on his terms.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.