Oregonians' will have the opportunity to vote on ballot measure 50, this measure could provide health insurance for Oregon's' kids, while many feel that this is a good idea, I have some reservations on voting yes on measure 50. I have never supported any ballot tile that changes the constitution of Oregon. Although I support health care for our kids and health care for everyone, I feel that measure 50 is not the answer to our health care problems. Some of the wording on this measure troubles me, for example a portion of the monies collected will go to "other" what is other? As we all know when the money is not designated to a certain dept. than the money can be spent on any thing, if measure 50 is intended to provide health care why must some of the funds be diverted to "other"?
I do not agree with targeting cigarette smokers again and again, I do believe that cigarettes are a drain on our health care system and I do believe that cigarette smoke, and cigarettes cause health problems for our citizens but so do many other factors in our society. For example: There have been many studies done that report that Americans are obese and so are our children, the rise of diabetes in young people and even children is becoming a tremendous problem for our society and health care system. And the culprit is fast foods, soda pop, and lack of exercise.
Why don't we consider taxing fast food corporations for their contribution to adverse health problems for Americans? After all diabetes is a major health problem that will require health care for many years, not to forget the health problems that is associated with diabetes, such as kidney disease, dialysis, amputated limbs, blindness, heart problems.
There are 20.8 million children and adults in the United States, or 7% of the population, who have diabetes. While an estimated 14.6 million have been diagnosed, unfortunately, 6.2 million people (or nearly one-third) are unaware that they have the disease. The total annual economic cost of diabetes in 2002 was estimated to be $132 billion, or one out of every 10 health care dollars spent in the United States.
Another problem that burdens our health care system is health issues derived from pollutants from energy companies. Studies indicate that exposure to air pollutants such as particulate matter, sulfate, sulfur dioxide gas, and ozone can result in reduced lung function and asthma attacks. Over 25 million children in the U. S. live in counties that violate national air quality standards for the common pollutants ozone, particulate matter and sulfur dioxide; Cases of asthma have rapidly increased, more than doubling in the past two decades. Six percent of U.S.children have asthma; Thirty-five million of our children live within 30 miles of a power plant a distance within which local communities may reasonably be affected by a power plant's smoke plume, an estimated 2 million of these children are asthmatic and are particularly susceptible to these pollutants; 72,000 of our schools are within 30 miles of a power plant. Average health risks to children due to exposure to power plant combustion wastes could be up to 10,000 times higher than EPA's allowable risk levels for cancer and other illnesses Power plants are a major source of the most common pollutants in the air that harm children. Power plants emit 67 percent of the sulfur dioxide (SO2), 23 percent of the nitrogen oxides (NOX), 33 percent of the mercury, and 38 percent of the carbon dioxide from energy related sources Coal-fired power plants are also the largest U.S.source of air toxics. Based on an analysis of 1998 Toxics Release Inventory data, power plants ranked 5th in releases of developmental and neurological toxins with a total of 78 million pounds released to the air and surface waters.
What I think should be done to fund our health care system, is to charge corporations a tax on their GROSS profits, take this money and fund health care, fund schools, I believe that taxing the corporations would provide ample monies to take care of our children, after all the vast majority of corporations that are in our state pay little or no taxes many pay Only $10.00 per year. After all many companies are actually causing our health problems.
I also believe that we need to update all of our industries, with state of the art pollution control systems, we as a country must demand from our leaders, swift action to minimize our pollution and our dependency on fossil fuels. Why keep spending money on health costs, when we could omit part of our ill health problems in the first place?

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

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