A4
Opinion
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Measure
101 is a
Band-Aid
T
he one-issue ballot that
arrived in your mailbox
earlier this week, and the
complicated question therein, is
proof that something is rotten in
the state of Oregon.
It’s a confusing, complicated
decision that asks a lot — too
much, we’d argue — of voters.
The voters’ pamphlet (again,
all that for just one question)
includes arguments in favor and
in opposition that are often too
thick to penetrate.
In short, Oregonians are asked
to decide the fate of a two-
year, 0.7 percent tax on some
hospitals that was approved by
the Legislature in the last session.
A 1.5 percent tax also extends to
insurers, the Public Employees
Benefits Board and coordinated
care organizations.
Voting “yes” keeps the taxes;
voting “no” repeals them.
If the tax is repealed, the
state would lose anywhere from
$210 million to $330 million
in revenue, in addition to $630
million to more than $1 billion
in federal Medicaid matching
funds. Proponents say as many
as 350,000 low-income residents
could lose health insurance,
while opponents say the state
could find other ways to cover
them (though they haven’t been
able to clearly identify any).
There is a lot at stake, but
voters have a right to feel like
legislators — and initiative
proponents — have put them in
a vise.
One jaw of the vise is the fact
that we know access to health
care for people who cannot
afford their own insurance comes
at a cost. The cost is on those
who can afford it — they pay a
little extra to cover those who
cannot.
Supporting the sick and
suffering is something that many
believe is a moral and financial
obligation. And the fiscal
conservatives among us also
understand that the obligation is
lessened if we pay a little bit up
front (in the form of insurance)
instead of a lot more in the end
(loss of societal production,
emergency room visits, delayed
care, and avoidable suffering and
deaths).
Yet there is pressure from the
other side of the vise, too.
Measure 101 isn’t fair —
not everyone in the state pays
equally. People covered by
self-insured medical plans
through their employer (the East
Oregonian, for one) and unions
are exempt, among others. Small
businesses, school districts,
nonprofits and college students
Blue Mountain
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aren’t. Shouldn’t everyone
bear the burden of supporting
the neediest in our society?
The insurers and hospitals are
likely to push their costs onto
customers, many of whom count
the high cost of health care as
one of the biggest challenges in
their lives.
Fiscal conservatives are
also justified in feeling that
the Legislature is holding the
state’s most vulnerable residents
hostage in its thirst for ever-
increasing taxes. Who is going to
argue against medical coverage
for sick kids? But why weren’t
deeper cuts made in other
programs to offset this expense?
That’s the pattern of the
Legislature. As long as powerful
interests — such as the public
sector employee unions —
carve out their pieces of the pie,
solutions to complex problems
such as health care will continue
to be unevenly applied. And
applied poorly, like a two-year
Band-Aid over an open wound.
And this is a Band-Aid — a
temporary solution that does
real good. It will make many
Oregonians healthier and less
financially stressed. But it does
mask the deeper issues beneath.
Yet at the same time, we’re
not comfortable with complex
legislation being picked apart by
the initiative process. We live in
a representative democracy, and
we elected our representatives
to run our state — to make laws,
make sure the bills are paid and
the right investments made.
The initiative process is an
excellent way to decide on easily
understood social issues like
same-sex marriage or marijuana
legalization. But complicated tax
policy should not be nit-picked
this way, and repealing these
taxes would set a bad precedent.
Business and the government
both need stability in revenue
and expenditure in order to make
decisions and plan for the future
— the rug cannot be pulled
out from underneath either at a
moment’s notice.
We sent our legislators to
Salem to do a job and this is the
job they did. If we don’t like it
(and we don’t), then we should
vote them out. Until such time,
voters should approve Measure
101.
In recent years, we’ve seen the
number of insured Oregonians
increase dramatically in the state.
And with the help of coordinated
care organizations, we’ve seen
health outcomes improve, too.
The opioid epidemic is lapping
at these gains, however, and we
cannot be complacent.
L ETTERS TO THE E DITOR
Republican senator
endorsed tax bill
To the Editor:
Sen. Ted Ferrioli deserves the
honor he received from the Oregon
Association of Hospitals and Health
Systems’ Small and Rural Hospital
Committee as the 2017 Rural Leg-
islator of the Year. He has indeed
fought long and hard for the finan-
cial stability of rural hospitals. Sen.
Ferrioli has endorsed Measure 101.
He says in the Voters’ Pamphlet
(page 21), “There’s no question: Or-
egonians should vote Yes. Oregon
has a plan for funding healthcare that
really works for all of us. That plan is
Measure 101.”
It is important to know that the tax
on hospitals that is included in Mea-
sure 101 has in fact been in effect for
years and was re-authorized in 2017.
And it is important to know that this
tax on larger hospitals leverages
about $2 billion every two years from
the federal government, which goes
to the Oregon DHS. Those funds are
then delivered back proportionately
to Oregon hospitals, including rural
ones, some of which are not taxed but
do receive some of the funding. This
tax returns about a 5-for-1 investment
for health care in Oregon. This is why
hospitals support paying this tax.
Please vote yes on Measure 101.
We must continue to maintain this
funding resource that has been so im-
portant for our rural hospitals.
Nancy Nickel
John Day
‘Shotgun’
approach misses
To the Editor:
Anyone out there still doubt the
United States just witnessed the
greatest threat of tax dollars in the
country’s history? Honest tax reform
took over a year under Ronald Rea-
gan. Over 30 years later, the “shot-
gun” approach succeeded in ram-
ming through legislation in roughly
a month. The bottom line is that
the majority of Congress has been
bought and paid for by special inter-
ests. It appears the best solution might
be to simply flush Congress.
Fred Fitzgerald
Monument
Tax, tax, tax
To the Editor:
Tax. Tax. Tax. Our Democrat-con-
trolled state legislature recently voted
to push another tax on the people of
Oregon. This insidious tax measure
is disguised as an assessment by
the drafters of this measure. Calling
this tax an assessment is like putting
lipstick on a pig, hoping to fool the
Oregon voters into thinking they’re
eating beef.
This tax raiser for Medicaid is to
fund abortions and open the door for
a flood of free medical care for illegal
immigrants. It is a tax on you, the tax-
payer, a tax on our health care insur-
ance, state health care organizations,
school medical insurance, college
student insurance, small businesses,
nonprofits and our hospitals — but, of
course, exempting big corporations,
unions and insurance companies and,
of course, the state legislature from
this tax. It is a tax on our health care
Grant County’s Weekly Newspaper
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system for you and me, exempting
the elite. Make no mistake the costs
incurred by business will be passed
on to you.
The sneaky little Democrats
moved the election to January when
everybody is still recovering from the
holidays, hoping for a low voter turn-
out. The Democrats that wrote this
bill, along with the governor, were
bought and paid for by accepting
Medicaid campaign cash after the law
passes. (Source: Voters Pamphlet.)
Tell these greedy Democrat politi-
cians “no” and take back our health
care system.
It’s too bad they couldn’t use that
gas tax they passed to subsidize the
alcohol producers, or the bike tax, or
maybe the vehicle registration tax to
prop up Medicaid for illegals. Been
waiting for the Democrat-controlled
legislature to start taxing toilet paper
— that’s about the only thing they ha-
ven’t tried putting a tax on.
Chuck Chase
Baker City
Oregon voters beware
To the Editor:
Measure 101 is no good. Purport-
ed “temporary assessments” translate
to another list of permanent taxes.
“May not increase rates on health
insurance premiums” likely means it
shall happen. HB 2391 has already
socked it to us this past October. Care-
fully read the summaries and see who
really benefits from this, and it cer-
tainly isn’t the public taxpayer. It is
the politicians, insurance companies
and the Public Employees Benefit
Board who want the 1.5 percent as-
sessments on premiums and premium
equivalents for two years and then
another increase of 0.7 percent. Read
page 16 “Text of Measure.” These
assessments are in addition to current
assessments, not in lieu of them. Pay
particular attention to pages 39 and 40
of your Voter Pamphlet, then follow
the money trail. Oregon doesn’t need
more taxes. It needs to learn to bud-
get its expenditures like the taxpayers
have to do. Vote no on 101.
Peggie Longwell
Baker City
Will wolves attack
human beings?
To the Editor:
There have been lively debates on
the subject of wolves being reintro-
duced into Oregon. There have been
studies and considerable research on
wolves, and many researchers believe
the animal has a place in the ecosys-
tem. Based on their studies and data
collected, many have strong opinions
in favor of introducing wolves back
into Oregon. Others, based on their
own studies and personal experience,
have very strong opinions against
their reintroduction. So how danger-
ous are wolves to human beings?
I would suggest people look at this
question based on actual well-docu-
mented events being expressed by the
source or sources (without opinions).
Go to your computer or other device
and type in the address bar “List of
wolf attacks in North America.” On
your screen you will see two Wiki-
pedia sites. Click and read the lists
of attacks from both sites. The at-
tacks listed contain well-documented
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without opinions.
Lee Bouchard
Fossil
Bring back the
businesses
To the Editor:
First of all, I want to make it clear
that this is my personal opinion only.
If I’m wrong, then so be it. I see and
read in the paper where Mr. Green
and the city of John Day have applied
for and received numerous grants
with which they have bought up
numerous properties and run-down
buildings. While this is all good and it
seems they can afford it, what I’d like
to know is: What about all the empty
stores for rent or sale that John Day
has now? Offhand, I can count 10 to
12 empty stores where there used to
be a business. We’re told to shop lo-
cally, and I would love to, but where?
Where can we buy men’s, women’s,
kids’, toddler and baby clothes for
all sizes and ages? Where can you
get linens, towels, etc.? I could go on
and on. So I’m asking: Why not do
your best to bring the business back
to John Day where we need it and
maybe we will shop locally again? It
would be worthwhile to everyone.
Jan Lowry
Mt. Vernon
Stand with Ferrioli,
vote yes on 101
To the Editor:
Sen. Ted Ferrioli has worked hard
for what he believes is in the best in-
terests of his constituents. His state-
ment in favor of Measure 101 in the
Voters’ Pamphlet (page 21) states his
position loud and clear: “There’s no
question: Oregonians should vote
Yes. Oregon has a plan for funding
healthcare that really works for all of
us. That plan is Measure 101.”
We agree with Sen. Ferrioli. Mea-
sure 101 secures affordable health
care coverage for rural and small
town Oregon. It is also critical for
rural economies. Health care access
creates good jobs in rural areas like
Grant County.
We stand with Sen. Ferrioli on this
issue. Vote yes for health care!
Adele and Mark Cerny
Bear Valley
Vote no on Ballot
Measure 101
To the Editor:
Ballot wording for Measure 101
tries to mislead us that this isn’t an-
other new tax that our Salem politi-
cians have come up with. By calling
it an assessment, they try to fool us
into voting for it. Calling a tax an
assessment is like calling a rose by
another name — it is still a rose. In
reality Measure 101 is nothing but a
new tax on hospitals, health insurers
and coordinated care organizations.
This new tax will be passed on to you
and me, thus driving up the cost of
our health care. It is time to tell Sa-
lem to live within their means just as
we have to do. If you are tired of new
taxes, vote no on Measure 101.
Terry W. Speelman
Baker City
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