Readers write

Georgia lawmakers fail to address health care

The governor and the legislature are failing Georgia citizens on health care by neglecting to address the significant impacts of the loss of federal health care funding. In Gov. Brian Kemp’s State of the State address on Jan. 15, the impending health care crisis was barely noted, and Republican state legislators have been silent on the matter.

Georgia’s uninsured rate is the fifth-highest in the country. Georgia’s health care performance ranks nationally from 45th to 48th, depending on the study. The low rankings are a result of high costs, poor access to care and poor health outcomes.

The passage of the “Big, Beautiful Bill” by the federal government means more Georgians will be priced out of the insurance market, there will be more strain on rural hospitals and more financial pressure on Georgia’s families.

An estimated 460,000 Georgia Access enrollees will lose coverage. Georgia Access has already lost 190,000 enrollees in the first phase of 2026 enrollment. The impact on Georgia’s economy includes the loss of 46,500 jobs and $336 million in lost revenue over the next four years.

Health care legislation must be a priority.

ANITA L. BARKIN, MACON

Concerns for equality, democracy are driving the dissent

The Susan Marx column, “ICE enforcement, FBI raid show government is afraid. Democracy is in trouble,” (AJC Jan. 29), was brimming with truth, but two of her points were salient. One was that the force behind the repression of dissent is centered on the oppression of equality. The other was that democratic renewal can only occur through ordinary people rejecting injustice.

The 1950s blacklisting spree wasn’t really about Communists in government and the media. There were few to none. Instead, it was about stifling the voices of people who spoke up for equality. Because parts of official Communist dogma mentioned equality, it was easy for authoritarians to conflate the two, but the specific target was equality. It still is.

The U.S. Constitution is marvelous and borrows heavily from the Magna Carta, which established the rights of the common man and constrained the power of the king, and from The Iroquois Constitution, a masterpiece of political equality. We are the lucky heirs to these. The power is ours, not the oligarchs’. For too long, our thinking has been fenced in by convention, but the truth is we’re the boss.

And, by the way, the Founding Fathers called and left a message: “Way to go, Minnesota!”