November 30. 2005
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Page A6
Opinion articles do not
necessarily reflect or represent the
views o f The Portland Observer
O pinion
Budget Hurts Poor
•
IS fffR . V S
Cuts will end up costing
more in long run
IGJtBO^HOOD
by J udge
G reg M athis
The United States budget is more than just an account
ing tool, designed to help the country focus it’s spending.
It’s more a reflection of the governm ent’s priorities, show
ing American citizens - and the world - ju s t what segments
o f society the governm ent cares about. The U.S. House of
Representatives just passed, albeit narrowly, a $50 billion
budget-cutting bill that clearly illustrates what and whom
those leaders are concerned with. As is most often the case
in this country, poor and low-incom e Am ericans did not
make the list.
The House voted 217 to 215 to approve the bill, which would
deny food stamps to more than 200,000 low-income people
each month and cut basic food aid by nearly $700 million over
five years. In addition, federal funding for child support
enforcement efforts would be eliminated and states would be
able to impose new co-payment and premium fees on Medicaid
beneficiaries, while reducing the services the program pro
vides. The bill also included provisions for an increase in
student loan interest rates and fees.
These cuts are supposed to trim the country’s deficit and
save over $50 billion over the next five years. The long-range
effects of the cuts, however, will end up costing the govern
ment, and society, much more in the long run.
Not the Right Vision for America
to the
We can
( S fd ito r
avoid these
No Apology? spending cuts
The “mushroom cloud" was
Bush’s pretext for going to war.
Soon we learned it was all ‘sexed-
up’ to use that British term for it.
Presidential aide Scooter Libby
has now been indicted and by all
accounts, Karl Rove is not far be
hind.
Does the President and this Re
publican administration have no
shame? No apology? Only bi I lions
for the mega-rich, divisive moves
(anyone remember the gay mar
ria g e
c o n stitu tio n a l
amendement?), a ruined economy,
a destroyed international reputa
tion (U.S. = torture in a lot of the
world, now.)
Shame on them. Bush needs to
stop destroying our country and
go back to Crawford.
A. Roy
Southwest Portland
U.S. R ep . R obert C. S cott
Instead of reducing the deficit,
the Republican so-called “deficit
reduction plan” actually increases
the deficit. The plan cuts federal
spending by about $50 billion dol
lars and also cuts taxes by nearly
$70 billion dollars, resulting in a net
increase in the deficit of $20 billion
dollars.
The spending cuts affect some
of the most important programs in
the federal government, such as
Medicaid, food stamps, child sup
port enforcement, childcare, fos
ter care and college student finan
cial aid.
The supporters of the plan are
saying that these spending cuts
are needed to accom modate a
by
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ü J’1 •) J n r 11 a n b (® b e e r n e r
Call 503-288-0033
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financial emergency brought on
by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita,
but the fact is the programs be
ing cut are the very same ones
most needed to assist hurricane
victims.
So, cuts in vital programs will
hurt hurricane victims and oth
ers in need and these cuts are
especially egregious when they
are part o f a plan that includes
tax cuts for the wealthy. For
e x am p le, tw o tax
cuts that go into ef
fect next year, in
volving the personal
exem ption and the
standard deduction,
will in the future cost
$20 billion a year and
97 percent of that will
go to people with an
nual incom es over
$200,000.
The R epublican
so-called deficit re
duction plan is not the right vision
for America. We can do better.
We can avoid these spending
cuts and provide assistance to
hurricane victims, simply by de
laying the tax cuts for the wealthy
until we can afford them.
The Congressional Black Cau
The Congress
ional Black
Caucus’
budgetary
priorities focus on
uplifting the least o f
our society.
Healthy Birth Initiative can help.
Healthy Birth Initiative (HBI) is a program for
African American women and their families living
in N /N E Portland.
HBI offers:
someone
you know
pregnant
• Transportation to medical and social
service appointm ents
• Hom e Visits
• Incentives
• Health education classes (free childcare and
transportation when attending any HBI
group or class)
• Information and referrals to community services
Health Department
For more inform ation contact:
Healthy Birth Initiative
5329 NE Marrin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Portland, Oregon 97211
503-988-3387 x22242
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A L L R IG H TS R ESER VE D . R EPR O D U C TIO N IN W H O L E OR IN PA RT
W IT H O U T P E R M IS S IO N IS P R O H IB IT E D
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c u s’ budgetary priorities focus
on uplifting the least o f our
society. In addition, the black
caucus has a com prehensive bill
to assist hurricane survivors and
to rebuild the G ulf Coast region.
We also need to rem ove any
barriers that would prevent fam i
lies from receiving the basic ser
vices they need to put their lives
back together.
The American dream is achieved
by providing opportunities for all,
not by cutting taxes for the wealthy,
while cutting services for those in
need.
Congressman Bobby Scott is
a member o f the Congressional
Black Caucus and a Democratic
from Virginia.
> „
' y
and welfare o f
K r ifl
should be the
government's top priority.
The National Center for Children in Poverty predicts that
the reduction in social programs will lead to increases in the
number of people who are un- or underinsured, living in unsafe
or unstable housing or who are homeless and families that
don’t know where their next meal is coming from. With the
House’s plan, more and more families and children will be
pushed deeper into poverty. This is a direct contradiction of
President Bireh’s promise to help ‘uplift the poor,’ made after
the devastation of Hurricane Katrina shed some much needed
light on the state of poverty in this country.
The House could have easily saved the same $50 billion by
lowering the prices Medicaid pays for prescription drugs or
reducing the payments made to managed care plans. The
House could have cancelled two tax cuts, scheduled to begin
January 1, designed specifically for wealthy people.
According to the Brookings Tax Policy Center, a nonparti
san think tank, these new tax cuts will be added on to existing
cuts that provide tax breaks of just over $100,000 a piece to
individuals earning over $ 1 million a year.
If legislators fail to deliver a plan that puts the needs of
America’s neediest citizens over corporate interests, then we
must do our part and vote them out of office come election time.
The health and w elfare o f A m ericans should be the
government’s top priority; our vote is our strongest weapon
in ensuring that it is.
Judge Greg Mathis is chairman of the Rainbow PUSH-
Excel Board and a national board member o f the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference.
Holiday Help W ith M edicare
Help a friend or
relative with
new drug plan
by
C laudia G rimm
If you have a friend or re la
tive w ith M edicare, one o f the
best g ifts you can offer this
h o lid a y se a so n is help w ith
M e d ic a re ’s new p re sc rip tio n
drug benefit.
Many people will save money
and improve their health with this
coverage. However, they must
select a drug plan from dozens
that are available from private
insurers, and this will require
some homework.
All seniors and those with dis
abilities who have no drug cover
age will want to at least consider
joining a drug plan to save money
now or to guard against future
drug costs.
On the other hand, people with
existing drug coverage through
an em ployer, a union or a govern
ment agency, may want to stay
with the existing plan if the drug
benefits are at least as good as
M edicare’s. C ontact your friend
or loved o n e 's benefits adm inis
trator for this information.
People who already have drug
coverage through a M edicare
Health (A dvantage) Plan should
contact their health plan before
making any changes.
A lthough en ro llm en t is un
der w ay, people have until May
15 to select a prescrip tio n drug
plan w ithout facing a late p e n
alty. T his leaves plenty o f tim e
for hom ew ork. T hose w ho sign
up for a plan by Dec. 31 will
have ben efits startin g Jan. 1.
O therw ise, co v erage w ill start
the m onth a fte r en rollm ent in a
drug plan. Future annual e n
ro llm e n t p e rio d s w ill allo w
people to change plans.
If you start your holiday hom e
work now, your friend or relative
may be able to receive benefits
by New Y ear's Day.
H ere's how to get started;
G ather inform ation. T his in
cludes you M edicare card, any
o th e r in su ran ce card , list o f
drugs and dosages and nam e o f
th eir preferred pharm acy. The
best way to get this is to go w ith
your friend or relativ e to the
pharm acy and request a p rin t
out o f drug purchases for the
past six m onths.
See if the person yo u ’re assist
ing qualifies forextra help paying
for this benefit
People who meet incom e/as
set tests qualify for extra help
paying for the drug benefit. Con
tact the Social Security A dm inis
tration: 1-8OO-325-O778 or fill out
an application for extra help at:
w w w .socialsecurity.gov.
Com pare plans. If you have
access to a com puter. M edicare’s
d ru g p la n fin d e r to o l at
www.medicare.gov will compare
plans for you. Click on “Compare
M e d ic a re P re s c rip tio n D rug
Plans." Enter inform ation on the
prescriptions and pharmacy of
choice. The tool will rank the plans
by price.
Or, call 1-800-M edicareat800-
633-4227 and ask for help. Call 24
hours a day, seven days a week.
There will be few er calls from
people in Eastern and Central time
zones after 9 p.m.
A nother resource is Senior
Health Insurance Benefits A ssis
tance at 1 -800-722-4134. SHIB A
is a volunteer organization; you
w on’t necessarily be able to get a
volunteer on the phone im m edi
ately. Call in advance for a per
sonal appointm ent. Make sure
you understand what to bring to
the meeting.
Claudia Grimm is the coordi
nator fo r the State of Oregon's
Senior Health Insurance Benefits
Assistance program.