(Host) Commentator Madeleine Kunin reflects on the growing number of Americans living in poverty and without adequate health insurance.
(Kunin) Two new studies came out in recent weeks which indicate that America is moving in the wrong direction. Both were put out by the Census Bureau. One concludes that more Americans have moved into poverty for two years in a row. The other reports that the number of people lacking health insurance is increasing so rapidly that this is the largest rise in a decade.
At a time when the wealthiest Americans at the top of the economic pyramid are receiving disproportionately large tax breaks, it is unfair for those at the bottom of the economic pyramid to be experiencing more economic pain. The old clich is true, “the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.”
When I was governor of Vermont, my primary goal was to increase the income of Vermonters. That, I believed was the chief responsibility of a leader. Most presidents have had the same goal – to boost the standard of living for all Americans. An increase of 1.7 million Americans moving into poverty is turning the clock back and is not consistent with the American dream of upward mobility or even the principles of democracy. In a country where all are created equal, all should have equal access to the basic needs of life.
Why has poverty increased so rapidly? One cause is the recession which continues to linger as more jobs are being lost daily. Another is the Bush tax cuts. Remember when the increased child tax credit was not given to those at the bottom of the ladder? A third reason may be that welfare reform worked splendidly in good times, but may be tossing people into poverty in hard times.
Whatever the reason, it is important to turn it around, so that the hope of moving out of poverty, which every generation has shared, may become a reality once again. The number of people without health insurance poses a similar problem. Those doing without increased by 2.4 million bringing the total to 43.6 million.
The major culprits are the increasing high cost of health care and health insurance, causing many employers to either decrease health care benefits or eliminate them completely. Most labor disputes today do not center on wage increases, they focus on benefits, with health care being number one.
The faces behind these statistics must be visualized. Most are children, both poor and without health insurance. It is urgent for the administration and the Congress to come to grips with this burgeoning crisis. We are still one of the richest countries in the world. Living with these shameful statistics is not only an embarassment, it is an injustice.
If there is one hope, it is that the upcoming 2004 elections will concentrate on poverty and health care. Such a debate could force solutions to emerge and turn the arrows in the right direction.
This is Madeleine May Kunin.
Madeleine May Kunin is a former governor of Vermont.