AARP Candidate Questionnaire - Kostyo Answers

LONG TIME CARE:

I strongly support redirecting funding from nursing homes to home and community based services.

I learned valued lessons about the importance of personal independence years ago in the course of my mother’s care for her mother, and later while caring for my mother. I understand that “home” has a significant and critical meaning of security for our aging parents and seniors. The ability of an individual to remain in their home serves as a continued guarantee of independence for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These are the unalienable rights central to our Declaration of Independence and continue in meaning when not forfeited as we age by removal to nursing home care.

I support every effort to provide home and community base services like PASSPORT funded by Medicaid. These programs save invaluable individual independence and personal dignity that cannot be found in the very best nursing home facilities. Moreover, I believe PASSPORT and similar programs are a valid stewardship that save tax dollars in Ohio.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG AFFORDABILITY:

I strongly support establishing evidence based research to compare drug effectiveness.

To restore “health care” as our “care for health,” we must fully restore the dynamic of patient-doctor relationships. We must fully empower doctors to actively address and follow the care of their patients. All too often, patients’ services and prescription drugs are directed, if not dictated, by health insurance providers. Often, this means that prescriptions are issued for newer and usually far more expensive drugs.

I support empowering our state to take every competitive approach available that will allow doctors to prescribe the correct drug that can be obtained at the most competitive price. Our states must pool every resource to exercise strong purchasing power for bulk purchases of prescription drugs.

I believe we should eliminate every border or barrier, international or otherwise, that allows for the purchase of prescription drugs at the most competitive price available from drug manufacturers.

When we save on the cost for prescription drugs, we reduce the state cost for Medicaid. I see this as my duty when elected as a steward of our public trust.

HEALTH CARE:

I strongly support empowering state government to play an active role to insure that every Ohioan has access to adequate and affordable health care.

I believe we must direct and empower individuals to take active responsibility for their personal health. Common sense directs that healthy people at each age will require less medical attention and less medical cost from our health care system. As a responsible first step in a transition from our present “health care” system to a prospective or “care for health” system, we must direct and reward physicians and health care providers to practice preventive medicine. I strongly support requiring health care providers to reimburse for preventive medical expenses.

Whether by a system as recently adopted in Massachusetts or as proposed by United States Senator John Kerry, we must see that every American citizen and every citizen of this state has coverage for their health and care.