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The Houston Home Journal
Opinions and ©bsewations
VOL. 107 NO. 43
Houston Hospital Care
Should a patient in the Houston
County hospitals have to pay a few
dollars more per day on his room bill
simply to help pay costa incurred by
the indigent? On the other hand,
should the taxpayers of Houston
County shoulder full responsibility
for paying indigent care costs? We
think the questions deserve careful
scrutiny by all of this county’s
residents.
As it now stands, the Houston
County commissioners use general
tax funds totaling $96,000 per year to
help pay hospital bills for those
residents who cannot afford to pay
themselves. Up until July 1977 the
county was allocating $60,000 per
year. Who currently pays the
remainder of indigent care costs?
At present a person who is already
in the hospital and facing costs of his
own hospitalization must also
shoulder the burden of subsidizing
more than half the costs of the in
digent. It is fairly safe to say that
City Election Coming Up
There is an important Perry city
election coming up on December 6.
Be sure you have a voice in the next
three years of the governing of this
city by voting for the candidate of
your choice.
If you are not registered, do so as
soon as possible. It Is a simple
New Traffic Law
Recent .reports indicate that
Georgia’s modified habitual traffic
offender law is beginning to have the
desired effect of getting dangerous
drivers off the state’s roads and
highways.
Members of the General Assembly
adopted the law about five years ago
as a means of dealing with an
estimated 40,000 habitual traffic
offenders who posed a threat to the
lives and property of everyone using
the roads.
But some technical points in the
law made it difficult to enforce until
the state amended it in 1976. Now the
prospects for enforcement look
much better.
Under the amended law the State
Patrol has the authority to classify
drivers as habitual offenders if they
accumulate three serious offenses
such as drunken driving, hit-run,
homicide with an automobile within
a 10-year period or after being
convicted of 15 moving hazardous
violations within ten years.
The licenses of Such persons can
be revoked for a period of five years
after which they can seek to have
them reinstated. If they continue to
Living On A Budget
Imagine a family with a take
home pay of $l5O a week. That
same family spends 13 percent
more than it earns, or $l7O a week.
How long will it be before the
creditors are knocking at the door
and the family car is repossessed?
If the above sounds absurd, take
a look at what our federal govern
ment is doing.
The Senate-House Budget
Committee last week agreed on a
concurrent budget resolution for
fiscal year 1978. That budget
recommends a spending level of
$458.25 billion with revenue of only
this county’s hospital room rates
would be a few dollars cheaper if
indigent care costs were funded
from tax revenues.
From March 1, 1977 (when the
hospital complex fiscal year began)
through September, the county
general fund had paid $44,000 to the
hospital complex for indigent care.
But actual indigent care costs for the
same period totaled $110,731! This
means other patients had to foot a
$66,731 bill, on top of their own
hospitalization charges!
The county Emergency Medical
Service already is subsidized by the
commissioners, who pay the excess
costs over revenue. The hospital
complex simply submits monthly
bills. Why not have the same
arrangement for indigent care
costs? The hospitals try strenuously
to collect patient bills, but MUST BY
LAW serve indigent patients. Why
should an already burdened patient
have to pay more than his own
costs?
matter of first registering to vote
with the county board of elections in
the courthouse basement, then go to
city hall and register there for city
elections. It all takes only a few
minutes of your time. Get involved.
Vote in this election. Be a part of this
community.
drive while their licenses are
revoked they are subject to a
mandatory prison sentence of one to
five years.
Since the modified law went into
effect the State Patrol has declared
more than 7,000 drivers as habitual
offenders. More than 150 of these
subsequently have been convicted of
traffic violations, according to State
Patrol reports.
Complete reports on what has
happened to the 150 who kept driving
are not yet available, but the State
Patrol recently reported that six
persons had been sentenced to
prison in the Alcovy Circuit.
The state’s traffic laws still are too
lenient. Persons who are killed in
traffic accidents by drunken or
careless drivers do not get even a
second chance.
The laws now on the books should
be rigidly enforced, and even
tougher laws should be adopted.
Persons found guilty of drunken
driving and other serious offenses
should be kept off the roads per
manently. If the only way to achieve
that goal is to put them in jail, then
they should be put in jail.
$397 billion- as planned deficit of
$61.25 billion. The crazy part of this
is that the Senate budget conferees
are congratulating themselves for
reducing by $3,825 billion the deficit
originally approved by the full
senate.
The attitude expressed by the
conferees is akin to a person
congratulating himself for buying a
$75,000 home instead of a SIOO,OOO
home when all he can afford is a
$50,000 home. v
Wondrous are the ways of
Washington!
THURSDAY. OCTOBER 27, 1977
Nobody Asked For Our Verdict, But—
*: : T - * rV.,.
\
/ W|
"a 'Hi Sfemted Side
by joe h,ett
>—
What A Week!!!
Many of you out there probably
are unaware that the Old Slanted
Side just came home from four
days at Perry-Houston County
Hospital. No, I was not preparing a
news story, I was incarcerated for
the second time in about four years
with a kidney stone.
To those of you who have never
been so “lucky” as to have had a
“stone”, I hope you never are so
blessed. How anything could be so
small and cause so much pain is
quite astounding. Anyhow, glossing
over the more basic details, I have
to say a few words of kindness to
those persons who either called
about my health, sent cards and or
flowers or came to see me. Oh, yes,
all those prayers are greatly ap
preciated.
I hope I didn’t miss anyone but
here is an expression of thanks to
my wife, Patsy, son Jeffrey,
minister Robert Morris, Ruby
Law, Annie Mae Johnson, Johnny
Foreman, Helen and Jerry Elkins,
Ollie Knight, Ava Robinson,
the Marvin Harleys, the Doug
Robinsons, and the John Fountains
for dropping in. Whoops, almost
forgot, thanks to Ann Conner too. If
I forget somebody, it was because I
was in a great deal of wooziness
much of the time.
To Dr. Arnall and all the nurses
and employees at the local hospital
goes my heartfelt thanks. You
people are tops in my book. How
anyone can utilize an out-of
county facility when such an
excellent one is already available
is a mystery. Enough said. Just
wanted to give credit where it is
due.
9
The second annual Walkathon for
Health is fast approaching and
already the excitement is building.
The originator, Charlotte Pritchett,
is full of boundless enthusiasm
which spills over to those around
her. Here’s hoping another large
group shows up to walk that weak
lungs might be assisted.
The cause is a good one. When a
walker knocks on your door, sign
his pledge cards. A few dollars
giving for this effort could mean
the difference.
Our schools are most fortunate to
have excellent clubs for our
youngsters and one of the most
active is the Perry High FFA. Last
week we carried an article
outlinging the fact that Wally Dean
had won a first place in statewide
competition in Agricultural
Mechanics competiton. Over the
decades Perry High’s FFA has won
far more than its share of such
prestigious awards, and the
tradition continues.
Congratulations to you, Wally.
The Slanted Side is proud of you
and other teenagers like you. You
all make us realize that the rowdy,
law-breaking teen is a distinct
minority. Most of you are persons
who will carry the mantle of
tomorrow well.
In all my six years of covering
high school sports, I have never
been threatened with having “my”
team penalized-at least not until
last Friday night. It has long been
my custom to shout to Westfield
coaches the location of the ball as it
neared the goal line, since they are
prohibited from following the team
any further than the 30’s. Well,
Friday night one man in black
stripes summarily ordered me to
cease and desist.
I don’t know if his orders were
legal, but since Westfield was on
the one foot line at the time, I didn’t
want to argue. But I cannot figure
out why it is all of a sudden illegal
for me to hold up my hands in
dicating the distance when I have
done so for six years without
anyone saying anything. Wish I had
a rule book. Don’t know how much
jurisdiction the refs have over
news media.
PAGE 4-A
OUT ON A W/Jm
BRANCH " m
v -J
I figured after all the problems we en
countered here at the paper last week that we
were in for a “free ride” this week. But, alas, I
made a serious mistake in judgement believing
we would have a problem free week.
As I reported in this corner last week, our
Compugraphic typesetting system went out on us
last week and we had to set virtually all The
Home Journal news and advertising copy down
at The Hawkinsville Dispatch & News plant in
Hawkinsville. That meant an all night work
session for the entire staff and the net result was
the fact The Home Journal was on the street last
Wed. afternoon an hour ahead of schedule. It was
a happy ending to what started off as a tragic
story in American, weekly journalism.
This week began shaping up as “bad news”
when news editor Joe Hiett was taken to the
Perry Hospital Saturday afternoon
suffering with a kidney stone. At press time,
Joe was still suffering in the hospital. Others on
the staff, including myself, were all suffering
with bad colds but we stuck it out. Right off the
bat Monday morning, the old typesetting system
went down for the count once again. A technician
from Atlanta was rushed in Monday afternoon to
fix the system and he stayed with the job half the
night. Tuesday morning the system was still
giving us problems and the technician was called
back to Perry. ;
On top of that, a double-page advertisement
was cancelled at the last minute for a two-week
postponement; my Volkswagen broke down with
me Tuesday between Perry and Warner Robins
and I had to walk two miles to a service station;
two people cussed me out about an article that
was left out of last week’s paper; the engine in
Sports Editor Phil Byrd’s car blew up, leaving
him without wheels,and on and on the bad side of
Lady Luck went to touch us with a string of
unfortunate incidents.
But to all this I have adopted a philosophical
attitude. I mean, why should one become
frustrated and upset over events that are ap- 4
parently unavoidable. I just simply say—HELP
-HELP-HELP.
Letters To
The Editor
Dear Bobby,
I would like to take this
opportunity to thank all
the Grandpa's that don
ated money for prizes for
the Grandpa's Jack-O-
Lantern Contest to be
held this week at the
Westfield School's
Halloween Carnival.
The sponsoring
Grandpa's are: Charlie
Kersey, Hugh Lawson,
Sr., Gardner Watson,
Arthur White, Jr., Clif
ford Logglns, Ken
Kemper, Sr., Tom
Roberts, Jr., Andy Tal
ton, Sr., Irvin Perdue,
Charles Perfect, L.C.
Walker, Sr., Richard Tal
ton Aubrey Farr, Edward
Mason, Dave Hulburt,
A.L. Pearson, and Paul
Ratcliffe.
Again, thank you!
Mrs. Foster Rhoades
Chairman of the
Grandpa's Jack-O-
Lantern Contest
Dear Bobby,
The Tucker School PTC
Halloween Carnival was
a great success again this
year. The necessary
ingredients were there
and all appreciated:
Mama and Daddy
Goblins hard at work in
all the booths; delicious
bar-b-que turned out
again by the greatest
kitchen sorceress of them
all, Mrs. Bessie Lam,
bert; the Shrine Clowns
for all the joy they added;
the Happy Halloween
Witch Longino and all the
children who created a
very entertaining
costume contest; the
marvelous posters drawn
by the children for the
occasion and the
businesses who allowed
us to display them; the
Exchange Club's magic
machines turning out
snow cones and cotton
candy; all the extra help
from the ghost writer in
Mr. Hill's office at
Tucker (she's really
Barbara St. St. John);
and stirring them all
together for hours and
hours 'till they were just
right was the chief •
magician, Carol Hor
ton, Chairman of the 1977
Carnival. We especially
appreciate Carol and all
the work before and
during the Carnival
which guaranteed its
success.
A special "thank you"
goes to the businesses in
Perry who contributed
items or donations for the
Carnival: The New Perry
Hotel, McDonald's, True
Value, Security Federal,
The Klip Joint, Perry
Bookstore, the Bank of
Perry, Farm Bureau,
Beaver's Insurance,
Shoney's, Sonic Burgers,
Captain "D's", First
National Bank, Perry Car m
Wash, Jones Surveying,
Lasseter's Furniture, 41
Meat Market, World
Electronics, Medusa,
Sing Store, Perry Beauty
Shop, Polly's Beauty
Shop, Goodroe Realty,
Young Ford, Richardson
Realty, Dale's House of
Style, Walker-Rhodes Tr
actor, Elmore's, Pabst,
Gateway Foods, Whipple
Insurance, Crossroads
Crafts, Hardee's, Union
Motor Co., Town &
Country Realty, Plggly
Wiggly, Longhorn's
Butcher Shop, Davis
Brothers' Cafeter
ia, Kentucky Fried
Chicken, Sunbeam
Bread, Houston
Automotive, and Ceramic
Treasures. w
And to you, Bobby, and
Janet Lewsader of your
staff our thanks for
Houston Home Journals
interest in us and the
publicity you provided for
us.
Sincerely,
Lora Arledge
Publicity Chairman
Tucker School PTC