Hochul blasts Collins for supposed cancer insensitivity
What seemed to be a minor grammatical error on the part of Republican Congressional hopeful Chris Collins earned him a fierce slap from his opponent, incumbent Kathy Hochul.
“People now don’t die from prostate cancer, breast cancer and some of the other things,” Collins told the Batavian on July 4th. “The fact of the matter is, our healthcare today is so much better, were living so much longer, because of innovations in drug development, surgical procedures, stents, implantable cardiac defibrillators, neural stimulators — they didn’t exist 10 years ago. The increase in cost is not because doctors are making a lot more money. Its what you can get for healthcare, extending your life and curing diseases.” Supporters of Collins say that the candidate had merely referenced the improvements in medicine in the United States, and did not intend to say that people no longer die from cancer.
Kathy Hochul does not agree. A statement from her camp blasted Collins for “a stunning lack of sensitivity.” “Tragically, nearly 70,000 people will die this year from these two types of cancer alone,” the statement continued. “We can disagree about public policy without making these kinds of outrageous and offensive statements.”
Collins himself says Hochul herself was callus in politicizing the subject of cancer. “As the brother of a breast cancer survivor, I am grateful for the medical advances that saved my sister’s life, which would not have been possible a generation ago,” he stated. “I find it troubling that Kathy Hochul would politicize the seriousness of cancer.” Collins then went on to point out that Hochul’s support of government health care would “put government bureaucrats in between doctors and patients.”
Sunny skies today with a high of 83. Tonight, clear weather will persist with a low of 63.
