In response to Shawn Gray’s letter to the editor of Feb. 7, “Health law helps many,” I hope he appreciates us seniors who are helping to pay for his daughters’ health insurance.

When the new health care law went into effect, our health insurance almost doubled per month.

My wife and I are in our mid-70s, retired and trying to get by on a moderate fixed income. Our health insurance went to $501 a month from $268.

That’s where Gray’s daughters are getting the free coverage, partially on the back of seniors who can’t afford it.

The current regime in Washington withheld our cost-of-living increases for two years even though gas, utilities, groceries and insurance costs were climbing higher.

That put us behind the eight ball and caused a lot of us to have to start using what meager savings we had put away to supplement our monthly expenses.

The health care law is causing severe damage to the health care industry, and we haven’t seen anything yet. Wait until all the many taxes in it kick in over the next few years; that’s when it’s really going to hurt.

Gray might like it now, but wait until he’s retired and has to pay twice as much for his coverage. Then we’ll see how he likes it.

Another thing:

How are teachers getting away paying such a small monthly premium for their health insurance and pensions when the common people have to pay so much in school taxes to support them?

It’s time for the school administrations and school boards to do their jobs and make everyone pay his or her own way, like we others have to do.

I encourage all senior citizens to contact their legislators and ask them to explore other means of taxation to support our schools, freeing the elderly from such exorbitant school taxes after, say, 65 years of age.

We’ve paid school taxes most of our lives, and most seniors haven’t had children in school for years. I think the elderly have earned some relief.