We have come to a time in our country in which the people of our generation need help more than ever before. As America continues to recover from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, people are still losing their homes, jobs and, eventually, their hope. With families living off of little to no income, there are amenities and necessities that people cannot afford, and one of the most crucial items is undoubtedly health insurance.

President Barack Obama, alongside many experts and legislators, created a plan to resolve this issue when he set out to implement the Affordable Care Act, which was projected to provide health care to millions of families who could not afford it to otherwise. Many Republican-led states, however, decided this health-care law was unconstitutional and challenged the law in the Supreme Court. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court upheld most parts of the law.  The court, however, struck down the part of the law requiring states to expand Medicaid in order to cover more people. Georgia governor Nathan Deal recently made it very clear that he would take advantage of the ruling and opt out of the Medicaid expansion because, “It was something [Georgia] simply cannot afford,” as he said in an interview in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

This decision is a tragedy not only for the families who truly need the assistance but also for all citizens of the state of Georgia. Opting out of a national bill that could help millions of Americans have access to health care is not only an embarrassment; it is also reckless and foolish. Too many of our representatives are wrapped up in the cost and money involved in issues such as this one, while their mind set should be to put the people of our country first. Cost should never matter if it leads to protecting millions of Americans who are in dire need of nothing short of a miracle.

Former America’s Got Talent judge and current CNN news reporter, Piers Morgan, spoke out about the controversy behind this health care law.

“In London, we have free universal health care for everyone, so I don’t see the problem with this bill,” Morgan said. “People should be jumping at the chance to pass this bill, not trying to strike it down.”

Unfortunately, it seems that universal health care remains a far-fetched idea in the United States. There should be no problem with the government providing health care to its people, for the United States is the most influential and powerful country in the world. If our representatives have the audacity to place a price tag (or price limit perhaps) over the well-being of American citizens, then they undoubtedly have their priorities mixed up.

The even sadder fact is that Gov. Deal is not alone. Deal joins a host of other Republican governors, including Rick Perry of Texas, Rick Scott of Florida and even presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who says he will “repeal the law immediately if elected.” If this happens, then the government will leave millions of Americans alone and without the help they so desperately need.

Gov. Deal and the city of Atlanta are considering construction of a brand new football stadium for the Atlanta Falcons, possibly using taxpayer dollars to raise $331 million for the project. Doing such when we cannot even find ways to provide health care for the people of our state and country is a severe problem in itself. What we should care about most is the people. Not the money, not the new football stadiums, but our fellow Americans. It is time to put the people first. Once we successfully achieve this goal, our country will be on a path toward greatness. We need to get our priorities straight.