Editor's note: Lampasas resident Jean Sargent recently came across the following letter to the editor, penned in 1994 by her late husband -- longtime local pharmacist James Sargent. What struck Mrs. Sargent was that 15 years later, Congress still is talking about the same issue: overhaul of health care in the United States. Like her husband, Mrs. Sargent believes America's health care is the best system in the world, but that it should be refined further. In the meantime, she, like her husband did in 1994, requests we uphold the members of Congress in our prayer..

I want to address an extremely important piece of legislation now being debated in Congress. That legislation concerns the Clinton Health Plan.

Let's try to divorce politics from this extremely important issue that addresses itself to our health care.

Number one: It has become very obvious to me in the last few weeks that we have the finest, most sophisticated, most learned and dedicated health care in the civilized world. If you do not believe they are dedicated, walk in the shoes of Dr. Mark Lane or Dr. Morris Patteson for about 60 days.

Number two: I have been somewhat exposed to our health-care system the past 25 years, having served as a consultant pharmacist for several nursing homes and small hospitals. And in a recent conversation with Carlyle Walton, the administrator of Rollins Brook Community Hospital, I was reassured of what in my previous experience I had concluded: that in spite of what we read in the newspaper or see on TV, there has never been one soul turned away from medical care at a hospital or nursing home because of race, creed, color or financial status. Granted, there have been isolated instances of denial, but there is always some other reason involved.

Our health care in the U.S. is not perfect and could stand some refining, but this is always the case when human beings have anything to do with it because of our imperfection.

Third, I know our Almighty God has control in this world, and He doesn't have time to tune in on the wranglings of His creatures down here. But in your daily prayers, you might ask His guidance and direction for the lawmakers in Congress to use common sense to decide this issue and not get carried away with political acrimony. Our health-care system provides the expertise of the most brilliant and learned physicians and clinicians in the world today to the point that people from all over the world come here for their services if they can get here -- including hordes of Canadians.

James Sargent