Letter to the editor: Privatizing health care would be financially devastating

Have people who plan to vote for Tim Sheehy studied up on the guy? Rather than look at R or D, we've got to check the policies pushed by the person.

For example, it's worrying that Sheehy is running to be a Montanan U.S. senator on his blindly ideological "pure privatization" health care plan. It would be financially devastating to hardworking Montanans. And dangerous.

Rural areas like Granite County are especially hard-hit by his plan. Our Granite County Medical Center is a "Critical Access Hospital," bringing all sorts of federal resources that help it stay open. Under Tim Sheehy's plan, those resources disappear and our hospital would almost certainly be forced to close. Maybe that's fine by the Bozeman multimillionaire, but to everyday Granite County residents, it means driving at nearly an hour for treatment. Do you want to face an hour's drive to get medical care in an emergency for yourself and your loved ones? Of course not.

I don't know if Tim Sheehy's support for pure privatization comes from deliberate disregard for rural Montanans or utter ignorance of the calamity his policies would result in, but it is scary. The fact that it all sounds so simple to him shows how green he is. Jon Tester has supported our rural hospitals by continuously delivering for the Granite County Medical Center, and that shows real leadership and care to me.

Jon is the clear choice as U.S. Senator for Granite County this November.

Connie Norona,