Gold Dome Live is moving!
Our new spot will allow us to get the news to you even faster and make commenting easier. Please bookmark the new site and sign up for our rss feed:
http://blogs.ajc.com/gold-dome-live/
AJC.com > Legislature > Blog > Archives > 2007 > February > 08
Thursday, February 8, 2007
Sanitizer comes in handy for lawmaker
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The huge bottle of hand sanitizer that permanently sits on state Rep. Martin Scott’s desk is a constant reminder of the health hazard politicians face every day: Handshakes.
Handshakes carry germs. And germs can make people sick.
Martin (R-Rossville) knows that all too well. He got sick with the flu in 2005, when he was a freshman in the House of Representatives.
“Everybody had it and I tried to avoid it but it got me,” Scott, a business consultant, said of his bout with the flu. “It was the worst I ever had.”
Scott speculated his illness might have come from someone he came in contact with at the State Capitol. Constituents and lobbyists routinely seek handshakes with lawmakers at the Capitol every day.
“I’m the world’s worst. I walk around shaking everybody’s hands,” Scott said.
Once he recovered, Scott returned to his seat in the House of Representatives with his large bottle of germ-X hand sanitizer. Then he handed out smaller bottles of the sanitizer to lawmakers sitting around him.
Scott periodically squirts some of the cool, clear liquid into his hands every day the legislature is in session.
“One has to be careful of rubbing shoulders with politicians,” Scott joked. “I would definitely recommend that constituents use germ-X after shaking hands with their local politicians. I’m probably no exception.”
Permalink | | Categories: politics
Citing finances, PeachCare closes door on new enrollments
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia’s program that provides health insurance to children of families of the working poor will accept no new enrollees starting March 11, the commissioner of the Department of Community Health said Thursday.
Dr. Rhonda Medows blamed funding problems, including an impasse in Washington over Congress’ failure to renew funding for insurance for children of the working poor, including 273,000 in Georgia.
“I don’t care how they get it,” she said. “I need them to show me the money. Show me the money. I need them to quit with the blame and the rhetoric and show me solve resolve. I need the money. This is a crisis. I hate to use that word, but it’s appropriate.”
She said the department has enough money to “get into the first couple of weeks of March” unless families stop paying premiums or there’s a scramble by people now to go to doctors before the program shuts down, which is possible.
She said in a statement that “it is difficult for hard-working parents to try to provide health care for their children. We continue to wait for an act of Congress to occur so that we can provide care for the children currently enrolled in the program through October 2007.”
Georgia participates in the federal State Children’s Health Insurance Program as a partner with the federal government. The state has reserved its share of funds needed, but the program has a $131 million federal funding shortfall for the current fiscal year.
Department of Community Health officials have said funds will run out at some point in March unless Congress acts, or the General Assembly passes legislation that would provide a temporary infusion of funds.
Medows said a public notice has been filed to “cease the allowance of new members to the PCK (PeachCare for Kids) program.”
Effective March 11, she said, “Only those currently enrolled in the PCK program may continue to receive services via the state.”
She said parents and guardians of children now enrolled “should not be alarmed by this notification” and that she is hopeful Congress will meet its obligation to fund the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, which is also called SCHIP.
In a related development, She said she fears that “with today’s announcement we may see a rush of people trying to get enrolled. We may see people who in the past have forgotten to pay premiums pay it to keep from getting dropped off, and we may see a rush of people trying to get treatment in fear that this program won’t be around.”
Permalink | Comments (84) | Categories: Health Care
Services »
