Wrong to spend city money protecting undocumented immigrants

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has announced that he will use our taxpayer money to protect people who are in the United States illegally from being targeted by federal immigration laws — and he doesn’t care if this will result in a decrease in federal funds for Chicago. While the mayor insists Chicago is in dire financial straits, requires increases in taxes, fines and fees, he doesn’t worry about the cost when it comes to a project of his liking. America loves immigrants, provided they are here legally.

Larry E. Nazimek, Logan Square

Even routine medical care pricey

Columnist John Stossel thinks that an open market place would bring down costs for health care and that insurance should only be used for “catastrophic events.” But the sophisticated technology used in medicine today is expensive. A simple problem like a broken leg or a backache can involve a CT scan or an MRI that carries a price tag of several thousand dollars. Your doctor refers you to his hospital system for tests. It’s difficult to cross-check prices with other systems or to travel great distances when sick to find a cheaper option. If the Affordable Care Act’s mandate were properly enforced, and everyone bought health insurance (with subsidies for those who can’t afford it), costs would be lowered because the risk pool would be larger. Premiums would come down for everyone.

If we don’t want single-payer health care in this country, then a properly working ACA is the cheapest and most efficient way to provide health insurance.

Carol Kraines, Deerfield

A return to coal mines and the Edsel

So the Trump administration’s idea of making America great and putting people back to work is to encourage greater coal production? No doubt the youth and future of America will rush to embrace, not technology and science, but the life of a good old fashioned, hard-workin’, black-lung suffering coal miner! What’s next? Reopening the Edsel factory in Detroit? The hoop skirt plant in Atlanta? Here we come, 1955 again.

John Farrell, Batavia