Letters – May 13, 2011

Published 3:11 pm Friday, May 13, 2011

Health Care Reform

Prescription drug ‘donut hole’ leaves many in a black hole

If you are having to buy expensive medications and Medicare puts you into Part D, you will go through the donut hole, half way through the year, whether you like it or not.

When you’re in the donut hole, you’re on your own.

You’ll pay almost the full price for your expensive meds.

More than a year ago, President Obama signed a bill, with a flourish, “Well, that takes care of the donut hole.”

It didn’t, not by a long shot, and we won’t stop going into the donut hole until 2020. And while we are still in the donut hole we’ll have to keep paying our monthly premiums – does that make sense? Paying monthly premiums while we have almost no coverage at all.

A few years ago Congress passed a bill that would put us into the donut hole to help out the insurance and pharmaceutical companies so they would continue to make gobs of money. Why do other countries pay a fraction of the cost for the same meds while we in the U.S. bare the brunt of research?

Our country is in the throes of a deep recession with the interest payments alone to China going from bad to worse. Our poor children face debts unlike none we’ve had to pay ourselves. We need leaders who will tell us the truth and side with the people instead of big corporations. For example, look at General Electric with its tremendous profits and yet not a penny to the IRS. Is something wrong here?

Florence Meyer

Bremerton

Community service comes through

Thanks to volunteers

On Saturday, April 30, Holly Ridge Center joined forces with Comcast employees, as well as their family and friends, as part of Comcast Cares Day, the company’s annual day of service. More than 30 volunteers assisted with our playground and landscaping cleanup after a very long winter.

On behalf of Holly Ridge Center, I would like to express my gratitude to the company and its employees for the hard work, dedication and spirit of volunteerism that they displayed. With community support our children with special needs have a safe and beautiful play area.

A huge thank you to the Bremerton employees.

Roxanne Bryson

Executive Director

Holly Ridge Center