Linda A. Naylor: The GOP ‘death panel’

As I read Ned Barnett’s May 29 column “A caring doctor’s orders: Expand Medicaid,” I could not help but remember the vicious and vile lies spread by those who opposed the Affordable Care Act.

Does Sarah Palin come to mind? She, Republican politicians and right-wing pundits did not let an opportunity pass to predict the horror of the “death panels” President Obama would appoint to determine who lived or died. It is heart-breaking to acknowledge that they were right, though wrong on the details.

In North Carolina we do not have “death panels” per se, but because of Gov. Pat McCrory and the Republican-dominated legislature, thousands of our residents have been sentenced to suffer with critical health issues, even the possibility of an early demise, because of the lack of access to health care.

McCrory and the legislature could solve the problem by expanding Medicaid, but they refuse to do so. What is the definition of a death panel?

This story was originally published June 4, 2016 at 5:51 PM with the headline "Linda A. Naylor: The GOP ‘death panel’."