Dear Editor:

Recently my wife and I received our $850 Maine budget surplus relief checks, and the timing couldn't have been better. I had just endured the last of a three-part root canal procedure, and the bill from the endodonist for the portion not covered by my Delta Dental insurance was a whopping $900. Both of us are retired public school teachers getting by on fixed incomes, so it was a relief not to have to dig into our dwindling IRAs. Thank you Governor Mills for convincing the Maine Legislature to return a good chunk of the state budget surplus directly to the people of Maine while still maintaining the largest rainy day fund ever.

But that dental bill also made me realize that I'm fortunate to have any dental insurance at all, a cushion that thousands of Mainers lack. It reminded me that Governor Mills also signed into law a bill that makes it possible for Mainecare to cover preventative, restorative, and diagnostic dental care, when it had previously only covered emergency care, which often meant tooth extraction. It's also worth remembering that the previous administration defied the will of Maine voters by refusing to expand coverage even with federal money on the table. I'm grateful that we now have someone in the Blaine House who has the real interests of Maine people at heart. Let's keep Janet Mills there this November!

Jim Torbert

Whitefield