Health Care Task Force

The excellent coverage by Ray Perez of the “Health Care Crisis” Report of the United Way (July 24) was valuable interpretation of a comprehensive analysis of health care services in Orange County.

As a volunteer with the United Way Health Care Task force, I found your reporting and editorial to be most encouraging. We now have the tougher job--how to obtain cooperation to work toward solutions that require the participation of all levels of government, the voluntary agencies, civic organizations and concerned Orange County residents.

We cannot emphasize enough how all-pervasive are the difficulties of the health care services. Elderly citizens on Medicare must lose most of their lifelong resources to qualify for nursing home care. Young mothers cannot obtain the prenatal care that will prevent more costly future services for their child. Individual physicians, employers, private patients, or concerned community groups are expected to pick up the costs of sick persons the public services will not help.

The immensity of the health care difficulties, with every sixth person “health-care deprived,” combined with the increasing restrictions on services, the impact on quality of care, and the lack of overall planning, points to guarantees for increased human suffering. Behind all the statistics are real people suffering every day with increasing disabilities if they don’t receive service now.

We hope Orange County residents will obtain and read the report, inasmuch as it sets forth the problems with each health program. No ready-made solutions are offered, but we will continue to work toward some.

C. A. ALEXANDER

Chair