I hope that the voters of Maine will vote to pass the universal home care initiative in November. It makes common sense to take care of the elderly. After all that they have done and endured, senior citizens deserve to age at home, with their things and with their loved ones. No one wants to go to a nursing home if they don’t have to.

Folks should not believe the scare tactics of the nursing home lobby — they are trying to scare the public. The tax is only on individuals with income greater than $128,400 — a very small percentage of the Maine population. Right now, middle class families are shouldering the burden of the cost of caring for their loved ones, but I believe that everyone should pay their fair share.

Universal home care makes economic sense. It is estimated to cost as much as $100,000 or more per year for nursing home care; full-time home care averages around $50,000 annually. It would cost literally half of what is costs now to care for the elderly, where they would rather be for their last years on this Earth — at home.

Pascoal Silva, Lewiston