When the federal government provides medical care, it has a moral obligation to make sure it’s available.

Whidbey Island is home to many people enrolled in the Tricare program for military people and their dependents, but now the largest local provider of that care, Whidbey Community Physicians, is threatening to not accept Tricare patients because of minimal payments from the government. Tricare is paying less than half the real cost of medical care and the physicians’ group can not afford to make up the difference.

This has been an ongoing problem with another huge health care program, Medicare, for years. The problem has grown so bad that senior citizens have trouble finding a physician, as Medicare covers only a fraction of the real cost of providing that care. Local health care providers can choose between going broke or abandoning some of their patients.

The blame lies squarely in Washington, D.C., a fantasy land where those who govern us believe they can dictate prices in order to save money. They set a low limit on how much they will pay to visit a doctor regardless of how much it actually costs. This helps balance the books, but out in the real world it means medical care disappears for those who need it most, including the poor, elderly and military dependents.

The problem is bad and will only get worse as the population ages. Congress must face reality and properly fund existing programs like Tricare and Medicare. This will mean raising taxes, so admit it and get on with it.