Mr. Arcuri,
I would like to voice my opinion regarding the SCHIP proposal that continues to be an issue for our leaders in the government. As a staunch Democrat, and an individual who believes that the government should function to aid its citizens to the greatest degree possible, I firmly support an expansion of the SCHIP program. In fact, I feel that the time has come for an even larger reform of the healthcare industry than the SCHIP proposal would have provided. However, I cannot in good conscience support any proposal which would place such oppressive tax burdens on a single category of legal consumer products; namely tobacco products in this case.
While I appreciate the detrimental effects of smoking on both the health of an individual smoker, as well as the population as a whole, I also realize that there are other factors that have been proven to lead to higher rates of respiratory illness and cancer. One culprit in particular is environmental pollution, both industrial and automotive. Statistics show that asthma rates are continuing to rise very rapidly nationwide, and while something as complex as the spread of a chronic health condition cannot be liked to one single factor, I am rather confident that environmental pollution is contributing more to this particular crisis than legal tobacco use by consenting adults. Perhaps a better solution would be to impose a much smaller tax over a larger spectrum of industries, and simultaneously create initiatives that would reward companies for helping to keep our air cleaner and healthier for all of us.
I realize that there is a very vocal opposition to both smoking and the tobacco industry, but just because someone is yelling loudly doesn't mean that they are automatically right.
Mr. Arcuri, I urge you to work with other leaders in the government to do two things: 1) find another source of funding for the SCHIP expansion; and 2) find a compromise that will help to keep our nation's children both healthy and insured.
Thank you for your consideration.
Paul Wolber
