Childers: County has "kicked the can" for too many years

Commercial Appeal - Childers welcomes Delta Grassroots Conference

U.S. Rep. Travis Childers, D-Miss., was the last in a series of Delta congressmen to talk local issues with the representatives of the Delta Grassroots Caucus Tuesday night.

But he started off by making an admission: "I am so proud to be in Washington, D.C., in a room full of people who talk like I talk," he said as the crowd roared with laughter. "I talk from one end of this city to the other and most of 'em don't understand a word I say."

He said he'll work to address the disparity in Medicare reimbursement rates between rural and urban settings and is working to increase the enrollment in the state's only medical school.

"For the life of me, I cannot understand why doctors get paid more in Miami, Fla., than they get paid in Tupelo, Miss.," he said.

On health care reform, he said the country has "kicked the can" for too many years. "No one's going to come in on a white horse and save us, except ourselves," he said.