Docs may quit medicine
if health plan passes

I read in The Daily Sentinel that 3rd District Congressman John Salazar intends to vote for the House health care bill because, “any American that has insurance will be able to keep their doctor and their plan.” I just signed an application for a new Medicare supplement plan because my current plan has opted to cancel its Medicare insurance coverage.  

Apparently after considering all the new demands, regulations and reduction of reimbursement, the company feels it is not worth continuing its Medicare plan. I am sure there are many others in Grand Junction who are also affected by this cancellation.

Fortunately, my current doctor has not made a decision yet to stop practicing medicine, but a very good doctor friend of mine in Alaska is planning an early retirement to Texas if this health care bill is passed.  

A little common sense needs to be exercised by our congressmen and senators. They are showing no regard to the members of the population who are objecting to this plan. How many insurance companies and doctors are going to decide this very confusing 2,000-page bill makes it not worth their staying in the medical field?

Oh, I forgot, the government will offer us an insurance plan. But how will it prevent the doctors from exiting the health care field?

JOAN KELSEY
Grand Junction

Older workers ignored
when people are hiring

I am 56 years old and I have been actively seeking employment since February, when I was unfortunately laid off by my employer. I have used many job-search sites and I have acquired counseling on my resumé. I feel I do all the right adjustments to my submitted documentation to gear toward the position for which I have applied.

I can count on one hand the total number of acknowledgements I have received for my efforts and I have not yet even been given an opportunity to interview for an applied-for position.

I realize the economy is in shambles, but I do believe that the age group I am in, 50-62 years, is not generally being considered for many, if any, of the positions available.

The advantages of our group, I feel, are that we have a strong work ethic, extensive work experience, are more dependable and have more of a moral approach to how we conduct ourselves in our interactions within our workplace and our communities. I am surprised that our group is not being considered more of a strong asset to the business community instead of a liability.

I hope the trends can be changed and businesses again realize the importance that experience, work ethic and job commitment can mean to success of business in our great country.

TOM VITALE
Grand Junction

Too many restrictions
encumber state colleges

Mesa State President Tim Foster said on Oct. 25 that, “he favors accepting a block of money from the state and having more control over hiring, purchasing and reporting fiscal data.” This would permit him to report such data through one system rather than three, “… eliminating mandates on awarding financial aid, letting college governing boards sell and receive property, allowing schools to hire PERA retirees more than 110 days … and exempting boards from state fiscal rules restricting them from approving schoolwide fiscal policies.” Foster concludes all this would make schools more efficient.

I agree. With 35 years in the Colorado higher education system, I saw college presidents stymied by an arcane bureaucracy that prohibited them from managing effectively, most often due to a lack of trust. As the chief executive officer of a multi-million dollar, complex organization, Foster and his colleagues should be given the greatest authority to operate their campuses with the fewest number of restrictions. Make them fully accountable to a single state entity, but otherwise they should be free to run their operations without interference.

As Foster correctly notes, he is already accountable to the students, faculty, governing board and our local community. And most business leaders would agree: Let him manage responsibly without excessive restraint and let him be accountable to those who use and are most affected by the product he produces. This is a business model worth considering, and produces the greatest good for the greatest number of consumers.

JOHN RODWICK
Fruita

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 at 10:24 am and is filed under Printed letters. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.