Letter To The Editor: Mahaska County seniors are getting a workout.

Editors Note: The views and opinions expressed in this editorial are not necessarily the views or opinions of Oskaloosa News.

Mahaska County seniors are getting a workout. Thanks to Medicare-covered programs, they can participate in Silver Sneakers at our own Mahaska County YMCA. Seniors are offered exercise classes that help them retain or regain strength and flexibility. For many seniors, it’s at no charge.

This and other health-maintenance plans let older Iowans live longer, more productive and comfortable lives. They reduce healthcare costs by avoiding or delaying serious illnesses. Preventive health care programs save money in the long run.

Seniors who participate in these programs are doing their part to reduce the burden on Medicare. Unfortunately, in Congress, Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks, blames their healthcare use for driving up costs, saying they could just gargle with saltwater instead of seeing a doctor for their sore throats, as reported by the Burlington Hawk Eye newspaper. Miller-Meeks has also expressed support for plans that would replace Medicare with a voucher program, telling the Fort Madison Daily Democrat that seniors could get a fixed sum to buy private health insurance. She told the Radio Iowa news service she also favored raising the Medicare eligibility age from 65 to 67 for new beneficiaries.

It’s clear: Miller-Meeks’s silver sneakers are out of step with Mahaska County seniors.

Sincerely,

Cheryl Benson