Panama City- Congressman Allen Boyd's long-awaited town hall meeting on healthcare reform got heated Tuesday night. In fact, about half the audience walked out of the Gulf Coast Community College gymnasium, less than an hour into the event. Many had topics other than healthcare, they wanted to discuss, but felt Boyd wasn't giving straight answers.

Many in the crowd were already frustrated when Congressman Boyd postponed this town hall meeting back in August, because of format and venue issues. It seems they carried at least a bit of those frustrations into Tuesday night's session.
Some felt since Boyd already voted against the healthcare reform bill Saturday, that this meeting could be better used to discuss other issues.

Many said they are tired of the way the federal government is spending their tax dollars. They cited the stimulus bill, the cap and trade bill, dependance on foreign oil, the severe partisanship in U.S. government, the overfishing bill, and how the health care reform bill might affect veterans health care as topics of concern.

But less than an hour into the meeting, the crowd grew frustrated with Congressman Boyd's answers. About half the audience walked out. Captain Rick Corley of Panama City was one of them. "People are suffering everyday. I came here to have my questions answered and I didn't get any answers. He just kept dancing around the questions, it was like "Dancing with the Stars. He did not give a single simple answer."

WJHG asked Boyd how he felt about half the crowd walking out. "I think it shows their anger. I asked people to have respect for one another. But if they didn't want to stay and listen, I respect that."

Boyd did have some supporters. A group from Sallie Mae showed their appreciation for the congressman's backing against a bill that would put the student loan business in the government's hands, costing hundreds of local jobs.