Patti Gagne gets it. While her opponent wants to raise the minimum wage, Gagne understands doing so will hurt employers and create job loss. It will negatively affect those on a fixed income, such as the elderly, as they will be forced to pay more for goods and services.

While her opponent tells people that the federal government will fully pay for MaineCare expansion, she can point out that, in truth, federal money is not pixie dust but, rather, taxes paid in by us, and that additional administrative costs would not be included in federal money. She also understands that not everyone would be 100 percent covered by federal reimbursement. Those previously covered but dropped recently would be added, but only at 62 percent reimbursement, leaving the state on the hook for the balance.

In either case she also knows that administrative costs are not covered in the expansion funding.

I’ll vote Gagne.

Robert Reed, Lewiston