Issues

Like Governor Lynch, I oppose a broad based tax for New Hampshire. Earlier this year, I joined a majority of the House in killing a proposed income tax on a voice vote. I've also voted against many proposals which would put a new or higher tax on cigarettes, gasoline, bottles, milk, and other items which we depend on.

The key to keeping taxes under control is to keep spending under control. That's why I also vote against wasteful spending.

Q: Where do you stand on health care?

A: According to the US Census Bureau, more than 150,000 Granite Staters are without health insurance. I'd like to see everyone be able to afford the health care that they need. That's why, if I'm re-elected, I'll introduce the Cover New Hampshire Health Access Act.

This bill would be based on a program in Florida which you can read here:
Florida Health Bill [500KB PDF File].

For many people without health insurance, insurance companies would be able to offer many of them streamlined policies that fit their needs.

One of the cost drivers in health insurance are mandates. When the state passes a law making it illegal to sell health insurance policies without benefit 'X', the insurance company has to increase the cost of the policy enough to cover that new benefit. Unfortunately, these cumulative price increases sometimes make health insurance unaffordable. The Cover New Hampshire Health Access Act would allow certain consumers to opt out of insurance mandates in order to reduce the cost of their policies.

For example, last year New Hampshire passed an insurance mandate requiring that all policies cover early intervention services for children up to the age of three. Early intervention can help infants who need extra assistance learning basic skills, and when children are diagnosed and treated early, the savings compared to the cost of treatment later are considerable. It makes sense for insurance companies to offer this coverage because it can save money in the long term.

But what if you're not going to have children? We all know people who are not at risk for needing early intervention services. Insurance is (or is supposed to be) a gamble or bet that you make on an action or accident you are at risk for. You "win" when you receive more benefits from an insurance policy than you paid in premiums, the insurer "wins" if it collects more in premiums then it pays out. If you are not going to have children, you will never receive benefits that are greater then the cost of the premium for early intervention coverage. But in the state of New Hampshire, it's illegal to sell a policy that doesn't include early intervention coverage.

When someone can't afford health insurance, it just makes sense to allow them to buy a cheaper policy that doesn't include coverage for things that they're not at risk for.

Q: Where do you stand on civil liberties?

A: I've promised to fight to protect our privacy and civil liberties, and I've kept that promise. The accomplishment I'm proudest of co-sponsoring HB685, which opted NH out of REAL ID, a national ID card system. But I've also gone to the floor of the House on many other occasions to speak up for our civil liberties.

In 2007, I led the floor fight against HB802, which would have allowed police to stop a vehicle when any occupant was not wearing a seat belt. While I encourage everyone to always wear a seat belt (and require it in my vehicles) I will always support your right as an adult to make your own choices about your life and safety. We narrowly lost this fight in the House, needing just 7 Representatives to vote the other way, but the Senate defeated it soundly.

Also from the floor of the House, I've helped kill a bill (HB537) which would have sent the Social Security numbers of all new employees to the US Census Bureau. I stopped an amendment that would have prohibited many write-in votes from being counted in local elections (HB492). I raised questions about HB630, a bill that proposed creating a controlled drug prescription monitoring program, which is just a creepy as it sounds (having your law-abiding behavior monitored by the government.) This bill narrowly missed passing by just 3 votes out of more than 300 cast - I'm proud that the people of the west side elected me to fight for their privacy and civil liberties; and prouder still that I've kept that promise.

Governor Lynch also signed another bill that I introduced, HB1234. Under current law, it is illegal to possess controlled prescription drugs (such as Vicodin) in New Hampshire unless it's done in one of three ways - in the original, labeled container; if you have an ID card issued by the pharmacist with the same information; or if it's in a pill organizer AND put there by a licensed nurse. If you put your own medicine into a pill organizer and it is discovered, you can be subject to arrest and prosecution. Unfortunately, I was not able to change that this year, but HB1234 does provide an important remedy - you would now be allowed to present evidence of a prescription for the controlled drug as a defense. This was inspired by the case of Mark O'Hara in Florida, who was arrested for possessing Vicodin in Florida. The judge refused to allow him to present his prescription as evidence (since a prescription defense is not mentioned under Florida law), and handed down a 25 year mandatory minimum sentence. Finally, after 2 years in jail, an appeals court ordered him released, calling the decision 'absurd.' Thanks to HB1234, this won't happen in New Hampshire.

If re-elected, I'll continue to fight to protect privacy and civil liberties.

Q: Where do you stand on _____________?

A: Good question! Give me a call at 624-5635, or email me at joel (at) joelwinters (dot) org and I'll let you know. You might even see your question posted here the next time this page is updated.