Letter: Then and now

Editor, Daily News:

My letter of Aug. 30, 2004, needs to be re-evaluated.

The installment of a pacemaker at that time was $18,635.19 for a 30-hour stay at Naples Community Hospital.

Today we are considering the status of 12 million illegal immigrants in our country. If we give them immunity or citizenship, the press is informing us that the figure, with their families wanting to join them in the United States, could very well reach 30 million.

Now think about that. The illegal immigrants only have to visit the emergency room at NCH to receive free medical care. A patient advocate at NCH sent me a letter in 2004 stating that the charges on my bill "are a reflection of three things — our costs, shortfalls in reimbursement for Medicare, Medicaid and managed-care companies, plus write-off for charity care."

With the federal government spending billions of dollars a day for the war in Iraq and billions for defense bills, are they going to pass this burden of health care for the illegal immigrants upon us, the working and retired middle class? Heaven forbid!

Won't Medicare be broke in a few years? We are in trouble if the government doesn't find a solution.

Keep the telephone numbers of your congressmen handy.

Daniel H. Lee , Naples