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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 23, 1981)
Portland Observar April 2 3 .1W1 P *8 * 3 (> From the Capitol ■ 1 pars* Congressman Ron Hyden Q. Congressman Wyden, this week you said that elderly Oregonians might be forced into nursing homes i f Congress approves cuts in senior programs currently proposed by the administration. Why? A. Because many o f the programs currently slated fo r the chopping block are the very programs which help keep seniors in their own homes - and out o f nursing homes. M e d ic a re : Take Medicare fo r example. The A d m inistration has proposed repealing Medicare amendments which would compen sate senior citizens fo r physical therapy and home health care. W ith o u t such support, many Oregon seniors may have no alter native but to enter a nursing home. From a fiscal standpoint, as well as a humane one, this simply does not make sense. A recent study ot one Oregon county by the Oregon Department o f Human Resources showed it cost less than half as much to keep seniors at home by providing them w ith food stamps, SSI benefits, medical care and home maintenance services as it does to institutionalize them. Other studies, on both a local and national level, have also shown that it is far more cost-effective to keep seniors in their own homes as long as possible. L o w -In co m e Senior Housing: Providing seniors with decent, low cost housing also helps keep them out o f nursing homes. According to Portland housing experts, on any given day in the P ortland metropolitan area, a senior may be placed in a nursing home because there is no available senior housing. U n fo rtu n a te ly , dhe A d m in is tra tio n ’ s public housing budget proposals w ill only make a bad situation worse -- at least with re spect to Oregon. The Administration has proposed cutting funding for H UD and Sec tio n 8 assisted public housing programs by '/ j (H U D ) to !4 (Sec tion 8). According to Bill Hunter of the Housing A u lh u iily o f Pot (land (H A P ), funds are already so tight that H UD did not provide money to build even one elderly public housing unit in P ortland during 1981. H unter also says H A P currently has a waiting list o f more than 1,700 elderly persons who w ill have to wait an average o f nearly two years to get a home. The need to provide adequate, low-cost housing for seniors is again as much a fiscal concern as a social one. W ith the cost o f nursing home care approaching $1,100 to $1,200 a month, we should do everything in our power to keep seniors in their own homes. These are only two examples o f what I consider to be the A d m in is tra tio n ’ s penny-wise, but pond-foolish fiscal policy. • The A d m in is tra tio n has also proposed cutting low-income energy assistance and w eatherization programs that have proven success ful in reducing energy consumption, lowering heating bills and allowing seniors to avoid having to choose whether to heat or eat. • Furthermore, although the A d m inistration has proposed cutting funds for senior programs by almost 25 percent, it has proposed virtually no cuts in adm inistrative costs for the very same programs. 1 am committed to balancing the budget and stopping run-away federal spending. It is disgraceful that we spend more federal dollars each year to finance the national debt than we do fo r all the health care programs in this country. But we have to cut fa irly and sensibly. C u ttin g these senior programs may save a $1 now, but if it results in increased in stitutionalization, it w ill cost us $6 or $7 down the road. And that doesn’t make sense. The Legislative Com m ittee fo r C orrections, o f Oregon State P enitentiary, a prisoner group working with legislative members, is seeking the passage o f five main bills that will improve the quality of life within the state institutions, and better prepare us for the transition back to the community. These five legislative bills, are as follows: Bills submitted by the Legislative Com m ittee fo r C orrections, fo r Oregon State Penitentiary are: 1. The F am ily V is itin g B ills which w ill provide fo r an area w ith in the in s titu tio n where a prisoner may visit w ith fa m ily members in a home like setting, spending up to 22 hours with these members and reestablishing ties that the present visiting system does not allow for. This b ill is proposed so the prisoners and their families w ill provide the funding fo r purchase and maintenance o f the units within the family visiting area. 2. M e rito rio u s G ood T im e B ill which w ill make m eritorious good time earned through in stitutional work or school assign ments applicable to parole date sets. As the good time now stands, it only applies to some 12% o f the prison population who do not take parole, but instead discharge their sen tences. This good time is earned thru prisoners in industry, and ef forts should have application to the parole date set. 3. A bill to allow an inmate to be accompanied by an attorney, and or a medical or psychiatric doctor, when appearing before the parole board. In many cases there is evidence only a professional can properly present that which will help the board reach a proper and just decision. 4. The Pay Increase Bill which w ill provide an increase in the maximum daily pay fo r industries and institutional workers from the present $3.00 a day, to $6.00 a day. There has not been an increase in this area since 1969 and it is badly needed to help the prisoner better prepare fo r release thru a saving incentive plan, and/or better main tain their fam ily responsibility by enabling them to send money home, industries prisoner pay comes out of industries profits. B ill which w ill provide an increase in the money persons receive when discharged or paroled. The gate money for many decades now, has remained at $100, hardly sufficient fo r a person starting again, especially fo r those w ithout close friends or family. The bill proposes that a matching fund be set by the state, whereby the state would match the money a person has saved upon the tim e o f his parole or discharge, to a maximum o f $250.00. OUR PRESENT V IS IT IN G SYSTEM I f you are m arried, you are allowed four visits in a one month period. I f single, you are allowed two visits a month with any one per son. The visits are between 3 and 3l/ j hours in length that includes the time taken to get both visitor and inmate into the visiting room area. When you receive a weekend visit, visits are often terminated after only 1 >/i hours because o f the over crowded conditions o f the visiting room and other visitors waiting to get in. When your visitors first arrives, the tw o o f them are allowed “ a three second embrace.” A fte r the in itia l embrace you escort your visitor to a specific area assigned to you for the duration o f your visit. You are separated by a coffee table between you. This insures that no em otional or physical contact is maintained. You are only allowed to reach across this area to hold hands, period. Any deviation from this procedure constitutes an infraction o f the rules, which means a loss of your visits. You are under constant visual supervision during the duration o f your visit. You and your v is ito r are restricted to your assigned area. The only expectation is being perm itted to use the restroom, or to purchase refresh ments, “ alone.” V isitin g room o fficers periodically roam throughout the visiting room area to insure that the “ no physical contact p o lic y ” is being enforced. To assist the o f ficers in enforcing this policy, the v isitin g rooms have video tape television cameras strategically arranged to guarantee that the no contact policy is enforced to the fu llest. These cameras can also 5. The G a te M o n e y In c re a s e Jordan discusses police activity i<iuinued from page 1 col. 6) ra to r’ s decision would be more ;redible if the public had the op portunity to observe the process. Iordan agreed, but said he was un sure o f the requirements o f the state’ s Open Meeting Law, how ever, he said he would seek legal clarification. THE HERB-INN 3406 N E Rodney Medicine: it Culinary Herb« Freih ft Dried Herb eeeda Low coet veg seeds Natural body care prod Edgar Cayce Formula« Sandra William« (BO3I 04-7011 Portland. Oragon Open 9 til 9 7 days a week C itin g the responsibility that public o ffic ia ls have to the C ity, Jordan said he did not feel he need ed the approval o f M ayor Frank Ivancie before he made the decision, “ But,” he said, “ the Mayor needs to let the public know what he w ill and will not tolerate in this City.” A fter hearing Jordan’ s explana tions, the Northeast C o a litio n o f Neighborhoods voted to support him. Houses in Georgetown, the capital of Guyuna, are built on piles since the city is below the high tide mark. record all visiting room activities. At the term ination o f your visit, you are allowed to escort your visitor to a designated " E x it area” at which time they allow you to em brace your visito r fo r a period o f five seconds. During this period o f time, couplts, fam ily and children are crowded together in groups o f about 30 people. A ll are under the visual supervision o f one correc tio n a l o ffic e r, one Sargeant, one C aptain, and one executive assistant. The above mentioned per sonnel are constantly insisting that your embrace last no longer than the five seconds alloted time. They con tin uously interm ingle w ith the various couples to see that the policy is being enforced. Then, you also have the visitors who have com pleted their embrace, or not in volved with embracing, supervising the others who are yet embracing. Along with the visual supervision o f o ffice rs present in the visitin g room at te rm in a tio n o f visitin g hours, to maintain a strict policy o f the five second embrace, they hum ilate you by herding you and your visitor through the exit area as fast as possible, with remarks such as “ move it a lo n g ,” “ come on Smith, move it ! ” These remarks are usually in harsh, demanding tones, all doing this at once, it makes for a very unpleasant, upsetting a t mosphere fo r you and your loved ones to be forced to depart under. WHAT IS A FAMILY VISIT? It is a visit under normal relaxed fa m ily setting where your w ife, children, or other fam ily members are able to spend a period o f time together as a fa m ily . This visit would be in private accomodations w ith a yard area fo r outside ac tivities. (Such m obile units which are being used in various states at this time) This gives the inmate, spouse, and children an o p p o rtu n ity to com municate as a fa m ily , and show emotions they otherwise have no other chance to express under our present situation. Such as not being allowed to touch your wife’ s face. A fam ily visiting setting is needed to reintroduce the inmate back into a fa m ily type atmosphere. To have the o p p o rtu n ity to m aintain the husband, w ife relationship; to be able to express emotions toward one another that you now have to suppress; a private setting where the two o f you are able to discuss problems such as domestic, finan cia l, or whatever problems the spouse has to deal with while having to maintain a household. Fam ily visits would give the in carcerated parent the chance to m aintain the parent image to the children; to become involved with their problems, and to assist them in dealing with them; to just be allowed to hold and play with your children and hear them laugh as you cannot now experience, and not have to disturb other visitors who are crowded up on either side of you also visiting. Progressive prison systems such as California, New York, Mississi ppi, and others, have found the one very im portant benefit generally overlooked. It is the rehabilitative fc « Agencies for young and old Join forces at the Salvation Army Moore Street Center swimming pool, when senior citizens from the Rose Senior Citizens Center was invited to use the pool for weekly swim classes. OSP prisoners advocate legislation By Chuck Hein 1 It's Good toKnouçL at C om e In at Your C o n v e n ie n c e function o f fam ily visits. This is ac complished through the strengthen ing and maintenance o f the inmate’ s fam ily ties. You can incarcerate a person fo r just so long, as ap proximately 97% o f the people that are sent to prison by society, w ill be returning to that same society...a fact that cannot be changed. So, the inmate can re-enter society as a bitter, depressed, angry, frustrated, unwelcomed in d iv id u a l w ithout friends, fam ily, a home, a positive attitude or finances. I should not have to explain the outcome o f a person in that frame of mind, or the ex-offender can re-enter society with a positive attitude, friends, family, a home, job, community acceptance, and who is no future tax burden on society, because the people o f that community held out their hands to help a fellow human being who made a mistake. Complete D en tal Service LIBERAL FOR A U Y O U « DENTAL NEEDS CREDIT No Intereit or Carrying Charget D etU treo • Fnrtinlo • FUUngo • BrM*c* • R o o t Ctutnla • OrtJkMtowtlr« • EXTRACTIONS and FILLINGS Unrig Sodium Pentoihol — When Dented For U K I P During Operation Fmf D ental REPAIRS Often While Tee Welt I 0«ntvr«i l«lin«44 l«peir«4 Cracks I «pairad • Misting T««lh l«ptac«d in Our Own Laboratory LOW COST Q uality DENTURES liw riK t « F fff PARK IRC CAPITOL LOT 2nd A 3rd S W Momson * * * HOURS: 8 30 A M to 5 0 0 PM Closed Saturdays D K N T I9 T Street Level 4 th 5 1 5 s.w. Betweaa JU4«t t Washingt«n ( offices also in s a lir 227*2427 a iugini ) ] Bill Nickleberry and Max Pittman practice what we preach...conservation. And save PGE customers about $110,000 a year. This year, Bill. Willamette Center building Manager, and Max, the Center s Superin tendent, along with the rest of the PGE Watt Watching staff will help save about $110,000 through conservation mea sures being practiced at the Willamette Center building complex. PGE s headquarters. Bill and his co-workers are putting to use many of the conservation techniques we've been advising custom ers about for more than eight years The conservation techniques in use include thermopane glass windows, insulation and weather stripping. Since the Center was first occupied, the air in the building has been heated mainly by body heat, office machine heat and the heat from overhead lights. As a result of their efforts and by making more efficient use of construction pre planning, Bill, Max and fellow employees and tenants have been able to reduce the energy use at the Willamette Center by 12 per cent, or almost 3 million kilowatt-hours. At today s rates, that's a savings of almost $110,000 a year Savings that are more impor tant now than ever before Electricity costs are going up everywhere, it's not just here Both private and public utilities throughout the country are facing soaring costs Higher equipment costs, fuel costs and interest rates have everyone on a tight budget And the rapid increase of new residential and business customers in the region is another strain on existing supply But, at PGE, we are fortunate to have people like Bill and Max working hard to keep costs down for customers wherever they can People who care FC People w«1 cost-saving « le i» lor you
