“Don’t mess with my right to medical choice.”

The Health Care Round Table that took place yesterday in Grand Rapids brought out about 90 participants interested in the future of America’s health system. RightMichigan’s Nick De Leeuw, who attended the event, has an excellent write-up here.

Dominic Siciliano, one of the speakers, told those present at the meeting about his two-year-old daughter, who was receiving a chemotherapy treatment at the time he was speaking.

To him, it doesn’t matter what health care costs. He works hard to be able to afford good health care, he says, and if he can’t afford it, he’ll go into debt to make sure his little girl gets the best treatment money can buy. His biggest fear is that in an effort to lower the costs of health care in America, politicians and bureaucrats will deem the best care “wasteful” or “inefficient.” ”Don’t mess with my right to medical choice,” he pleaded. “If I have the money, or even if I don’t, I want to be able to buy that care.”

And at the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.

Arizona had an excellent ballot initiative, the Medical Choice for Arizona Act, last year that captured this desire to preserve choice in health care and protect its citizens from medical rationing:

The right of citizens to enter into private contracts with health care providers for health care services shall not be infringed. No law shall be enacted requiring any citizen, or any class of citizens, to participate in any state sponsored health care system or plan.

That’s something we should hope for in Michigan and right across America.

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