Promoting health

From the dueling proposals for the use of Maine’s share of the tobacco settlement, an observer could get the idea that there is a debate going on over how the money should be spent. Actually, there isn’t; instead there are merely a couple of shades of difference among lawmakers who essentially want the same thing.

Gov. Angus King wants to use part of the settlement to pay Medicaid expenses, which provides health care to the very poor; Speaker Steve Rowe’s plan would spend that money covering the semi-poor. The speaker spends a considerable amount of money on smoking cessation; the governor spends even more on a combination of cessation and healthy lifestyle programs. Both bills expand health coverage for poor children.

There’s nothing particularly wrong with either bill and several things right with both. But the governor is on to something with his program to promote health rather than just pay to fight illness. He is the first Maine politician in memory to devote this much attention and significant resources to this problem, and he deserves a chance to make these programs work.

Three-fourths of Maine people die of just four groups of diseases: cardiovascular, including stroke; cancer; chronic lung disease and diabetes. They are largely preventable and largely caused by smoking, poor diet and lack of exercise. The state’s death rate from these places it fourth highest in the nation, costing Maine countless lives. Monetarily, just the smoking-related diseases, according to the Maine Bureau of Health, cost the state $96 million a year.

Gov. King’s argument is that Maine’s unusually high death rate from these diseases is not inevitable, and that without forcing jogging shoes on everyone’s feet, state policy can provide opportunities – for instance, through education on diet and exercise — that would allow for healthier living. That saves a ton of health care money and unlimited amounts of heartache — literally.

This is a long-term project, but the health statistics on Maine citizens also make it urgent. The Legislature should put aside the slight differences it has between its bill and the governor’s and support him in this bold and worthwhile plan.