It seems that nearly every candidate for public office has listed “Reform health care” among their stated goals. What this may or may not mean is anyone’s guess. Only one politician has actually made an effort to see that all Mainers have access to full health coverage. That politician is Gov. John Baldacci and I wish to publicly thank him for leading the efforts that led to the DirigoChoice Individual Insurance plan.

While the current system is not perfect, without it myself, my wife and our 15-month-old son would be hard-pressed to afford coverage even if we could find it. Having received my master’s degree in English at the University of Maine this past spring, and having hopes of staying in the Orono area but without any real prospects for full-time/full-benefit employment, insurance was one of our primary concerns.

I secured positions as an adjunct instructor of English at three area colleges: UMaine, Unity College and Eastern Maine Community College. My wife, Holly Twining, has recently been named the new program naturalist at Fields Pond Audubon Center. Despite the many hours we work educating young (and old) Maine minds, these positions do not provide health coverage. Luckily, this summer I called DirigoChoice and have found the coverage to be more accessible and much more affordable than that which was provided through the UMaine System.

Our sincere thanks to Gov. Baldacci and those persons in the State House who worked with him to bring DirigoChoice about. Without Dirigo Choice I’m not sure where we would be; probably, and sadly, not in Maine.

Travis Baker

Orono