SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
July 27, 2017
Sullivan’s
Salvos 8/1/17
In this edition:
*Medicaid Cuts Are Evil!
*Budget Amendments
*Soul Fest
*Did You Know?
*Medicaid Cuts Are Evil!
As
you know, Republicans in the US House and Senate continue to push for cuts to
the Medicaid program. This is near and dear to me, as I spent several years
working with Iowa’s Medicaid program.
What
you need to understand, is Medicaid only covers people who are extraordinarily
poor! Most of the people covered are children. The next biggest group is people
who live in nursing homes. There are many people with disabilities who receive
community-based services. Throw in a few pregnant mothers, and that is it!
NO ONE in this group has any money to put toward their medical
care! That is precisely WHY they are on Medicaid! These are our poorest, most
vulnerable citizens. When we talk about a “safety net”, this is it!
I really believe it is time to call the proposed cuts to Medicaid
exactly what they are: EVIL. I know, I know. I am going to get a lot of
blowback for this. But we need to really look at this behavior!
I looked evil up in the dictionary. The first three definitions
listed are:
1. morally wrong or bad; immoral; wicked.
2. harmful; injurious.
3. characterized or accompanied
by misfortune or suffering; unfortunate; disastrous.
Each
of those perfectly describes the GOP plan to reduce Medicaid. To really do
something evil, you need to have a good idea of the result of your actions.
These Republican lawmakers know what is going to happen if they pursue these
cuts. When you know what will happen, and do it anyway? That is evil.
Most
of us were raised to believe some very basic teachings. Most fundamental of all
was, “That which you do to the least among us, you do to me.” Cutting Medicaid
is probably the single, least-Christian thing a Legislator can do. Yes, I am
judging here. But I’d rather these folks simply changed their ways on earth
rather than spend eternity in Hell. It would be better for everyone.
So,
I am just going to say it – the Republican plan to cut Medicaid is evil. Pure
and simple evil. And I think we need to call it that.
*Budget Amendments
You
know the old saying, “Damned if I do, damned if I don’t”? That must certainly
reflect how Johnson County’s Department Heads feel when it comes to their
budgets.
A
bit of background: County budgets are due to the State by March 15, but because
of publishing and public hearings schedules, decisions start getting made in
January.
In
order for the Board to make these January decisions, Department Heads are
required to get their proposed budgets in by October. That makes budgeting
tricky. A budget submitted in October of this year will cover a period that
runs all the way to June of 2019. That means Department Heads need to project
out almost two full years!
In
recognition of this, State law has long allowed a process for amending these
budgets. There are fall and spring amendments, both of which allow the County
to move money around. You cannot increase taxes during this time, but you can
add or subtract reserve funds. Every county does a fall and spring amendment;
Johnson is no different.
For years, Department Heads were terrified of having a budget
issue. If that happened, they were going to get called onto the carpet, on
television, and upbraided. It simply wasn’t a good process for anyone.
So Department Heads would pad their budgets. You add an imaginary
$250,000 in expenses, and underestimate your revenues by another $250,000. Now
you have $500,000 “just in case”, and you don’t need to worry about being
called out.
This approach has some issues. When a Department Head
misrepresents the actual figures, we are making decisions based on bad
information. That inevitably leads to bad decisions.
I didn’t care for this. I thought it would be a much better
process if we had more accurate budgets submitted. In exchange, the Board
needed to be understanding if we received an amendment request.
So what has happened? Department Heads held up their end of the
bargain – budget projections are now much closer to actual numbers.
Problem is, the Board has not kept its’ promise. Department Heads
who come to us requesting money for an unbudgeted expense get excoriated. That
is not the promise we made.
I hope the Board can see fit to allow Department Heads to come to
us with requests without being treated poorly. That is the only way this system
can work.
*Soul Fest
The Iowa Soul Festival is a
celebration that features the dance, music, food and art of the African and
African-American communities. This event is designed to highlight the positive
influences that the culture has on Iowa City, the Creative Corridor and Eastern
Iowa. This event will feature locally, regionally and nationally recognized
artists. Enjoy live entertainment, soul food, African-American inspired art, a
FUN Zone for the kids, and much more!
Soul Fest
happens Friday, August 4 and Saturday, August 5 in downtown Iowa City. For more
details, see: https://summerofthearts.org/sota-events/iowa-soul-festival/
*DID YOU KNOW?
One in five Iowans receives some type of Medicaid service. (Source: Iowa
Medicaid.)
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 4:59 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home