Thank you to the voters of Greene County who helped pass Proposition C on Aug. 3. Missouri is the first state in the nation whose citizens have formally rejected federally mandated health insurance. Going forward, many wonder what will happen as a result of Prop C’s passage.

While we can argue the merits of mandated, government insurance, I want to make readers aware of a few realities that could affect us in Missouri. Over the next four years, states are now mandated to expand their welfare rolls in order to cover hundreds of millions of new enrollees. In Missouri, some estimates put our cost close to half a billion dollars. This is money Missouri does not have.

Health care, education and the economy are all connected. The best form of health insurance is a quality job that offers employees the ability to make their own insurance decisions. The best job-creation tool a state can have is a trained work force through a quality education system. If Missouri is forced to pour millions into welfare expansion, we will not be able to invest in the things that will help us prosper.

The country’s economic downturn has Missouri looking at double-digit unemployment rates and severe budget shortfalls in the coming years. Without even considering welfare expansion, talk of raising taxes or cutting education is already being thrown around in Jefferson City. Those voices will only get louder if we are forced to appease big government forces in Washington and expand our welfare rolls.

Missourians cannot afford job-killing taxes during tough economic times, and schools are already trimming everywhere they can in order to continue providing the best education for our children.

On Aug. 3, Missouri said NO to mandated, government insurance. Now we have to ensure that our position is upheld.

With the passage of Prop C, the health care debate is not over. In reality, it has just begun and Missouri’s prosperity depends on the outcome.