Maine Letters and Opinion

Maine’s Health Care System Struggles to Keep Up: Why Real Reform Is Needed

May 29, 2026

From delayed care to workforce shortages and uneven access—especially in rural communities—the challenges facing Maine’s health system are mounting. While providers continue to work tirelessly to meet patient needs, the overall system is struggling to . . . read more »

Universal healthcare in Maine can lower school budgets | Letter

May 20, 2026

Published by the Portland Press Herald on May 18, 2026 by William Keller, lives in Windham. It’s school budget time. Here’s something to consider. Health insurance premiums paid by school districts have gone up significantly. . . . read more »

Universal healthcare for Maine could be closer than we think | Opinion

May 13, 2026

Published in the Portland Press Herald on May 13, 2026 by Tom Sterne, MD, lives in Bridgton, and David Jolly, DrPH, lives in Penobscot. The Legislature passed a plan in 2021 that is contingent on federal action . . . read more »

Single-payer system will transform health care for the better | Letter

March 27, 2026

Published in the Portland Press Herald on March 27, 2026 by Michael Bacon, lives in Westbrook. In her Feb. 24  letter, Valerie Dornan offers that the National Health Service in the U.K., despite chronic underfunding, . . . read more »

Health care fraud may be a symptom of a curable illness | Letter

March 20, 2026

Published in the Portland Press Herald on March 20, 2026 by Philip Ptacin, MD, lives in Portland. I’m writing in response to John Schaberg’s letter of Feb. 25 (“Dr. Oz may want to focus more on Medicare . . . read more »

Limiting what Maine hospitals can charge offers relief from rising health care costs

March 14, 2026

Published in the Bangor Daily News on March 13, 2026 by doctors Richard A. Evans, lives in Dover-Foxcroft, and Linda Sanborn, lives in Gorham. We all need relief from high health care costs. As medical professionals, . . . read more »

Here’s how health care costs can be brought under control | Letter

March 9, 2026

Published in the Portland Press Herald on March 9, 2026 by Julie Pease, MD, lives in Topsham Universal health care will reduce unnecessary administrative complexity — and expense. It took an insurance executive to reinforce my . . . read more »

Let’s share in the cost of universal health care | Letter

March 4, 2026

Published in the Portland Press Herald on March 3, 2026 by Delene Perley, lives in Portland. William Vaughan Jr. recently wrote regarding universal health care (“Reality of universal health care worth examining,” Jan. 26). I have . . . read more »

Letter: Too early to applaud Susan Collins on health care

February 27, 2026

Published in the Bangor Daily News on February 26, 2026 by Mary Ann Larson, lives in Bangor. I think it’s too soon to be applauding Sen. Susan Collins, as the chair of the Jackman Select Board . . . read more »

My — encouraging — experience with universal health care | Letter

February 25, 2026

Published in the Portland Press Herald on February 24, 2026 by Valerie Dornan, lives in Hancock. The struggles of the National Health Service (NHS) in the U.K. are frequently cited as a reason to oppose publicly funded . . . read more »