John C. Costopoulos: Exodus not limited to teachers

I applaud Matt Buys’ Nov. 1 Point of View “The exodus,” but it’s not limited to teachers. If health premiums rise as predicted, we’ll have to go without.

We meet federal guidelines for Medicaid, but the legislature and governor deny us the Medicaid option, even though after giving up on finding a job in my 38-year career, I and thousand of others were willing to take minimum-wage jobs. But others have it worse.

Take the man I met at the Cary Department of Employment Security office who came to finish paperwork for his relocation. There’s little privacy at the check-in desk. The clerk noted that he was a Vietnam vet and suggested he check with the state he’s moving to and see what extra benefits there are for unemployed veterans.

His reply stunned me, “I’m moving to Vietnam where my wife’s family found me a better job and health coverage for my family and me.” He explained that he took a fast-food job after the N.C. legislature and governor cut his unemployment benefit down to 1951 levels. “It’s so sad that there’s nothing for me in the state where my family has lived since the 1820s,” he said.

We too may have to leave the North Carolina we wanted to call home for our “Golden Years.”

This story was originally published November 9, 2015 at 4:32 PM with the headline "John C. Costopoulos: Exodus not limited to teachers."