HEALTH CARE
Uncompensated care costs area hospitals
Two stories in Tuesday’s AJC made for interesting reading, about Southern Regional Medical Center (“Hospital seeks to help offset debt,” Metro, Feb. 18) and ACA opponents (“ACA opponents rally in Georgia,” Metro, Feb. 18). One of the reasons for the hospital’s financial troubles is “uncompensated care,” according to James Crissey, the chief executive. According to the AJC, 30 percent of 80,000-plus emergency room patients visits resulted in uncompensated care. To keep the hospital afloat and 1,850 jobs from being lost, Clayton County leaders may have to raise property taxes, use the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, or both. Yet the “anti-tax” group Americans for Prosperity rallied against the very law that could save Southern Regional without raising taxes. The mind boggles.
CHARLES M. JOHNSON, SANDY SPRINGS
Governor seeks cover on Medicaid expansion
Medicaid expansion, helping more poor people to get essential medical care, is a “no-brainer,” technically. The Feds pay 100 percent for 3 years. After that, the state only pays 10 percent of the cost, a great deal for any matching grant. In normal times, the governor, who now has sole power to move on it, would have already approved it. But, these are the days of the tea party. Deal is scared to death of being primaried, so he and the GOP’s so-called leaders are proposing legislation requiring the Legislature to also approve of the expansion before it can go to the feds. Ignored during their discussions is the fact that 22 percent of Georgian are uninsured, one of the highest rates nationally. It is also convenient to never mention expanding Medicaid would create 70,000 private-sector jobs in our state at a time of high unemployment, generating hundreds of millions in state and local taxes. Meanwhile, the federal tax money that my fellow Georgians have paid is going to take care of citizens in “blue” states. It is time for the Legislature and governor to stop playing politics and approve Medicaid expansion.
JACK BERNARD, MONTICELLO
COLUMNISTS
Sowell’s comments on women are insulting
I enjoy reading the Opinion Page in the AJC, and while I find myself agreeing more often with the views from the left, I appreciate the days when the view from the right is well argued and provides food for thought. This rarely occurs on Tuesdays when reading Thomas Sowell’s column. It is typically filled with nothing more than hyperbole and rants. With his “Random Thoughts” (“In a liberal world, others will make your decisions,” Tuesday, Feb. 18), Mr. Sowell took it to a whole new level. His thoughts on women’s attention to their appearance and corresponding ability to keep a husband were completely irrelevant and beyond insulting. It disturbs me that he is actually paid to share this kind of nonsense and that I have to read it in the AJC.
MICHELLE C. NELSON, ATLANTA
