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Durbin town hall in Naperville focuses on health care, Democrats' future

Editor's note: This article has been updated to correct the residence of Carole Cheney. Cheney lives in Naperville.

The town-hall meeting Democrat Dick Durbin hosted Thursday in Naperville was a chance for the longtime senator to promote his views on health care reform to a largely friendly crowd.

But the gathering of roughly 350 people at North Central College seemed to double as an early convention for the 2018 election for DuPage County Democrats.

Before Durbin greeted his audience at the college's Wentz Concert Hall, the DuPage County Democratic Party passed out information about local elections and the Coalition for a Better Illinois 6th collected signatures on petitions urging 6th District Republican Rep. Peter Roskam to host his own town hall.

Some of the Democratic candidates seeking the nomination next spring in the 6th Congressional District - Becky Anderson of Naperville, Carole Cheney of Naperville, Amanda Howland of Lake Zurich and Kelly Mazeski of Barrington Hills - attended the event, as did other state and local Democratic officials.

When Durbin, of Springfield, took the stage, he focused the conversation on health care, starting with a recap of congressional Republicans' failed attempts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. For better or worse, he said, the last-minute bills and late-night votes have gotten the country talking.

"I do believe that what we are going through now is a national debate that is inevitable and long overdue," Durbin said. "That is, where are we going as a nation when it comes to health care?"

He said the Affordable Care Act has succeeded in providing coverage for more in Illinois and across the country, but it has failed in some instances to keep premiums low and prescriptions affordable. Reforms, Durbin said, should focus on allowing Medicare and Medicaid to bargain for prescription prices and on providing lower premiums for clients who buy coverage on insurance exchanges.

He said people now have recognized the value Medicaid provides in insuring a large percentage of babies, people with disabilities and seniors, so public sentiment for preserving it has grown.

"Support for the Affordable Care Act was lukewarm even after it passed," Durbin said. "But then when the talk of repeal started, a funny thing happened - people started saying, 'What are they taking away?'"

Two residents' questions among the 15 Durbin answered focused on health care. One woman complained she lost insurance under the Affordable Care Act and didn't want to buy it through an exchange because she wouldn't be able to see the same doctor. Another asked Durbin why there can't be more talk of yoga and holistic methods to improve health before costly conditions take hold.

"What can you do to promote preventive care instead of drugs?" Deepti Suri of Bolingbrook asked.

Durbin said prevention is "well worth the effort" and he's "more open than most" to the power of proven alternative methods such as yoga and acupuncture. He said he expects the Senate to take up the topic of health care again when the body reconvenes in September.

Audience members also asked Durbin about education funding, climate change, tensions with North Korea, gun control, voter fraud, nuclear power, funding for medical research and the problems of dealing with a White House speakers characterized as "chaotic."

In answer to another question about the Democrats' political message for the 2018 election, Durbin sounded off on what he called the "important debate" about the presence of statues honoring Confederate leaders. While the discussion "raises questions about who we are and who we value," Durbin said it's equally important to bring the conversation about race into the present day, focusing not on slavery but on issues of poverty, jobs, voting rights and the minimum wage.

As he concluded the event, Durbin satisfied the constituents who are vying for a town hall with Roskam by encouraging all elected officials to let people make their voices heard.

"I hope that people who attend those meetings will be constructive and civil and make it a real exchange," Durbin said. "If we lose this opportunity for dialogue and don't talk to one another, then it's only going to get worse."

  U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin answers questions Thursday during a town hall discussion in Naperville, which he focused on health care reform and answering constituents' questions. Daniel White/dwhite@dailyherald.com
  U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin shares how he thinks Democrats can utilize a better strategy for the 2018 elections while he talks with constituents Thursday on the campus of North Central College in Naperville. Daniel White/dwhite@dailyherald.com
  William Higgins of Aurora, left, asks U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin a question about federal funding for medical research Thursday evening as the longtime Senator stopped in Naperville for a town hall discussion. Daniel White/dwhite@dailyherald.com
  While hosting a town hall Thursday at North Central College in Naperville, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin describes how his Senate colleague John McCain cast the deciding vote earlier this summer to keep the Affordable Care Act in place. Daniel White/dwhite@dailyherald.com
  Sen. Dick Durbin greets supporters Thursday after his town-hall discussion at Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville. "I hope that people who attend (other town-hall meetings) will be constructive and civil and make a real exchange," he said at the event. "If we lose this opportunity for dialogue and don't talk to one another, then it's only going to get worse." Daniel White/dwhite@dailyherald.com
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