file photo by Boyd Loving
BY DAVE SHEINGOLD AND JOHN C. ENSSLIN
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD
Reforms enacted in 2011 to keep the nation’s highest property taxes in check are showing signs of weakening as a growing number of New Jersey towns fail to stay within the 2 percent cap on increases that formed the cornerstone of the effort.
BY JOHN PETRICK
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
It should have been a prideful occasion. Dr. Adam Jarrett, who was in the very first class of residents at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical School in 1992 to train in a new program focusing on primary care, was recently invited back to his alma mater.
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
RIDGEWOOD – Strong words were spoken at Monday’s Board of Education (BOE) meeting, as members of the Ridgewood Education Association (REA) continued to request a contract agreement they deem fair.
A number of parents spoke on behalf of the teachers, some of them noting the effect that the educators have had on their children.
Resident Jennifer Rupprecht extolled the virtues of the educators, saying that her classified son “has flourished under the guidance of these teachers” while also noting that he made honor roll as a result of their help.
She explained at the March 7 meeting that she moved to Ridgewood in order to get the best education for her children, regardless of the taxes, and said the teachers should get paid according to their value.
“They’re worth it,” Rupprecht told the BOE. “I can’t thank these people enough.
“I trust you to take care of the people who are taking care of our children and the whole future of our town.”
Resident Marlene Burton said she “fully” supports the teachers in their quest for a settlement.
“The anguish they are experiencing, being without a contract for 12 months, is in full display,” she said. “It is imperative that an agreement be reached soon.”
Not all the speakers were upset with the BOE, however.
Resident and former BOE member Bob Hutton spoke up in defense of the group, reminding the members that they took an oath to uphold the laws of New Jersey when they were sworn into their positions.
“Within litigation and so forth, those laws are the guidelines you have to live by,” he said.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/contract-negotiations-continue-1.1526321
” I hope you haven’t been making plans of what to do with that $2,500 a year you’ll be saving on premiums. The NPR poll confirms that that was just another in Obama’s litany of lies. Forty-five percent of respondents said their premiums had gone up, while 46% said their premiums had stayed about the same. Only 4% said their premiums had actually gone down, as Obama promised they would.” Alieta Eck, MD
In Health Care, Politics by Mr. RightMarch 4, 20162 Comments
Most of the country now knows what we were warning about several years ago: Obamacare is horrible. Even the far-left folks at NPR were made aware of it when one of their own polls showed that only 15% of Americans say they have been helped by the law.
From American Thinker:
A thorough repudiation of the (un-)Affordable Care Act comes from, of all places, state-run National Public Radio. Timed to be buried by Super Tuesday coverage, NPR this week released a new study that indicates that Obamacare has failed on almost all levels.
The poll, by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, shows that three quarters of Americans think health care in their state has not improved under Obamacare. The survey says more people think health care has gotten worse (26%) than better (15%). Forty-nine percent of people think health care has stayed about the same.
And I hope you haven’t been making plans of what to do with that $2,500 a year you’ll be saving on premiums. The NPR poll confirms that that was just another in Obama’s litany of lies. Forty-five percent of respondents said their premiums had gone up, while 46% said their premiums had stayed about the same. Only 4% said their premiums had actually gone down, as Obama promised they would.
Along with higher premiums, co-pays and deductibles have gone up for 35% of people.
Read the Rest (give it a click. It’s good)
Yeah, America hates Obamacare. And you can probably guess how NPR reported on the poll results…
From Newsbusters:
This is not all the way NPR reported on its own poll. On Monday’s Morning Edition, they waited until late in a seven-minute segment to mention the Obamacare part of their results on health care, and they completely avoided numbers, especially the notion that more feel harmed than helped…
I support our BOE 100% and feel the REA and their Unions are out of touch with reality, meaning the real world. We must stop kicking the can and giving in to unsustainable contracts. My family of 6 pays $20,000 to $30,000 per year for health care, each of us has a $3,000 deductible, and we get to pay $45 co-pays, up from $30 last year. No raises for the last 3 years, so no additional money to go toward paying these Obamacare increases. Healthcare on a whole is flawed now beyond comprehension. We all must suffer including the teachers, police, and all civil servants suckling off the teat of their Unions.To all teachers, teach us how you can pay your fair share and not push it off to the taxpayers. Same for all civil servants nationwide. Paid unused sick time and vacation needs to go away for all. What happened to getting approval to possible carrying over 5 days like everyone else gets? Stop the sweetheart deals for retiring police chiefs, toll takers, etc. Enough is enough. I support our BOE for their understanding and urge them not to settle. Why is this country siding with a loud mouth Trump? Because we do need real change. Not Obama change which is just change left in your pocket.
BY LINDY WASHBURN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
Sixteen months before the state’s largest insurer launched new health plans that steer patients to its preferred hospitals, called Tier 1, a report from its consultants spelled out how the Omnia health plan would work and what it would do to the state’s health care business.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/health-news/excluded-hospitals-win-right-to-tier-report-1.1522657
March 3,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Donald Trump releases his Healthcare Reform Plan , its time for other candidates to do the same .
“Since March of 2010, the American people have had to suffer under the incredible economic burden of the Affordable Care Act—Obamacare. This legislation, passed by totally partisan votes in the House and Senate and signed into law by the most divisive and partisan President in American history, has tragically but predictably resulted in runaway costs, websites that don’t work, greater rationing of care, higher premiums, less competition and fewer choices. Obamacare has raised the economic uncertainty of every single person residing in this country. As it appears Obamacare is certain to collapse of its own weight, the damage done by the Democrats and President Obama, and abetted by the Supreme Court, will be difficult to repair unless the next President and a Republican congress lead the effort to bring much-needed free market reforms to the healthcare industry.
But none of these positive reforms can be accomplished without Obamacare repeal. On day one of the Trump Administration, we will ask Congress to immediately deliver a full repeal of Obamacare.
However, it is not enough to simply repeal this terrible legislation. We will work with Congress to make sure we have a series of reforms ready for implementation that follow free market principles and that will restore economic freedom and certainty to everyone in this country. By following free market principles and working together to create sound public policy that will broaden healthcare access, make healthcare more affordable and improve the quality of the care available to all Americans.
Any reform effort must begin with Congress. Since Obamacare became law, conservative Republicans have been offering reforms that can be delivered individually or as part of more comprehensive reform efforts. In the remaining sections of this policy paper, several reforms will be offered that should be considered by Congress so that on the first day of the Trump Administration, we can start the process of restoring faith in government and economic liberty to the people.
Congress must act. Our elected representatives in the House and Senate must:
The reforms outlined above will lower healthcare costs for all Americans. They are simply a place to start. There are other reforms that might be considered if they serve to lower costs, remove uncertainty and provide financial security for all Americans. And we must also take actions in other policy areas to lower healthcare costs and burdens. Enforcing immigration laws, eliminating fraud and waste and energizing our economy will relieve the economic pressures felt by every American. It is the moral responsibility of a nation’s government to do what is best for the people and what is in the interest of securing the future of the nation.
Providing healthcare to illegal immigrants costs us some $11 billion annually. If we were to simply enforce the current immigration laws and restrict the unbridled granting of visas to this country, we could relieve healthcare cost pressures on state and local governments.
To reduce the number of individuals needing access to programs like Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program we will need to install programs that grow the economy and bring capital and jobs back to America. The best social program has always been a job – and taking care of our economy will go a long way towards reducing our dependence on public health programs.
Finally, we need to reform our mental health programs and institutions in this country. Families, without the ability to get the information needed to help those who are ailing, are too often not given the tools to help their loved ones. There are promising reforms being developed in Congress that should receive bi-partisan support.
To reform healthcare in America, we need a President who has the leadership skills, will and courage to engage the American people and convince Congress to do what is best for the country. These straightforward reforms, along with many others I have proposed throughout my campaign, will ensure that together we will Make America Great Again.”
BY JOE MALINCONICO
PATERSON PRESS
Paterson school board members reacted with shock and outrage Wednesday night when district officials presented them with a preliminary 2016-17 budget that would increase property taxes by 27.2 percent to support the school district.
After more than 10 years without an increase, the tax levy for the district would jump from $38.9 million to $49.5 million for the school year beginning on July 1, according to budget documents made public Wednesday night.
That proposal comes at a time when Paterson property owners also face a 6.1-percent increase in municipal taxes, a hike that precipitated a partial shutdown of city government this week.
“We just can’t afford to increase taxes at this time,” said board member Nakima Redmon.
School board members asserted that they were blindsided by the proposed increase and vowed to remove it from the budget. But they delayed taking a vote to do that until the district administration provides them with more information on what spending cuts would be made to offset the elimination of the $10.6-million tax increase.
“Why is it you always seem to run out of money?” parent Rainbow Williams asked district officials during Wednesday night’s meeting. “Last year, you were $50 million in the hole. This year it’s $45 million … It seems somebody needs to learn how to do math.”
Eighth-grader Fabliha Zaman bemoaned the impact that last year’s budget cuts had on instruction in city schools, saying she missed terminated teachers who helped her learn. ”It doesn’t make sense to me,” said Zaman who attends School 7. “We all don’t deserve this.”
https://www.northjersey.com/news/paterson-stunned-by-proposal-for-27-school-tax-hike-1.1521121
BOARD UPDATES
Click here to view the backup for the Ridgewood Board of Education’s Fact-Finding Presentation with The Ridgewood Education Association.
BOE Meets on March 7 at 7:30 p.m.
The Ridgewood Board of Education will hold a Regular Public Meeting on Monday, March 7, 2016 at 7:30 p.m.
The public is invited to attend the meeting at the Ed Center, 49 Cottage Place, Floor 3. The meeting may also be viewed on FiOS channel 33, Optimum channel 77 or from computers via the “Live BOE Meeting” tab on the district website.FiOS channel 33, Optimum channel 77 or from computers via the “Live BOE Meeting” tab on the district website.
Click here to view the agenda for the February 22, 2016 Regular Public Meeting.
Click here to view the minutes of the February 8, 2016 Regular Public Meeting.
By Sarah Ferris – 02/29/16 10:09 AM EST
Just 15 percent of people say they have personally benefited from ObamaCare, although more than one-third believe it has helped the people of their state, according to a poll released Monday.
Most Americans — a total of 56 percent — say they haven’t felt directly affected by the Affordable Care Act. Among those who have felt affected, more people say the law has hurt them than helped them, according to polling by National Public Radio and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Twenty-six percent of U.S. adults say they have been personally harmed by the healthcare law since its passage — a fraction that likely reflects those in the poll who said they have noticed rising healthcare costs in the last several years.
https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/271130-poll-majority-of-americans-feel-unaffected-by-obamacare
N.J. public employee unions irked by Christie call to cut health benefits
Gov. Chris Christie’s budget address came with a public challenge to cut $250 million from state employees’ health benefits. Samantha Marcus, NJ.com Read more
US Supreme Court declines to hear case about NJ pensions
BY SALVADOR RIZZO
STATE HOUSE BUREAU |
THE RECORD
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to rule on a major case involving payments to New Jersey’s pension system for public employees.
The case concerned Governor Christie’s decision to cut billions of dollars in payments he had once promised for the retirement system.
Christie began to cut those payments in 2014 despite signing laws in his first term that pledged more than $16 billion over seven years for the troubled retirement system.
Public worker unions sued, arguing that Christie and the state Legislature could not skip the higher payments. The New Jersey Supreme Court disagreed, ruling 5-2 in June that the seven-year plan was not legally binding.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/us-supreme-court-declines-to-hear-case-about-nj-pensions-1.1519692
The unions sure all seem to think the state and municipalities can afford “platinum” health benefit coverage which covers 95% of all essential care with low deductibles and $5-15 copays. For that public workers are paying 35% or less of the premiums. From 2020 those plans will also be subject to a 40% excise tax and who pays for that? Well according to the unions like NJEA and our local PBA, taxpayers should pay that in addition to subsidizing their platinum coverage.
Most large private sector employers offer “bronze” level equivalent coverage with higher co-pays and higher deductibles. It’s time for all public sector workers to face this same reality; taxpayers cannot afford to subsidize your platinum level benefits anymore. Here in Ridgewood the REA and the PBA refuse to accept this and claim were not being “fair”? Let’s be honest: platinum level health benefits for the select few, paid for by the rest of us, are what is not fair. It’s time for these unions -and their full-time labor lawyers from the state unions behind the curtains – to negotiate with the Village in good faith, instead of these hostile negotiations over platinum health benefits.
February 22, 2016 8:52 PM
RAMSEY, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) — NJ TRANSIT commuters are preparing for the worst if a strike happens next month.
Commuters tell 1010 WINS’ Glenn Schuck that nerves about a possible walkout are starting to set in.
“Just like anything else, you just have to get to the table and hash it out, working around the clock and avoid those last-minute negotiations that keep everybody biting their fingernails to the morning of,” one person told 1010 WINS.
Another commuter was concerned about the bus capacity.
“The bus doesn’t run as efficiently,” he said. “It could get crowded and it definitely could affect people.”
At NJ TRANSIT’s board meeting earlier this month, the head of the union that represents conductors said more than a dozen unions affected by the contract negotiations have authorized a strike if necessary.
https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/02/22/commuters-nj-transit-strike/
By Paul Nichols
Monday, Feb 22, 2016
Congressman Scott Garrett, the U.S. Representative for New Jersey’s 5th congressional district, met with employees of Crestron on Monday to tour it’s the company’s Experience Center located at its headquarters in Rockleigh, New Jersey.
Crestron, a global organization with more than 90 offices around the world, employs 1,500 employees from Bergen County and the surrounding area at its worldwide headquarters and campus in Rockleigh, New Jersey.
The campus includes the Experience Center, Research Center, manufacturing plant, pre-production facility, and distribution center.
The tour provided Garrett with an in-depth look into the world of Crestron and its award-winning, advanced control and automation technology. Crestron’s solutions have led the way for over four decades, supporting Fortune 500 companies, government organizations, leading hospitals, universities and prestigious homes.
The Crestron Experience Center combines the finest design with cutting-edge technology, for the ultimate immersive demonstration of its innovative solutions. Congressman Garrett saw firsthand how the company has evolved from a pioneer in A/V and control systems, to the world-class enterprise management company it is today.
Open Letter to Patients, Physicians, and Lawmakers
February 14, 2016 By Sharon Jellinek MD
This is the first letter I’ve ever written to a political figure and I pray that someone on your staff will bring this letter to your attention. I have been a physician for close to 30 years. I am a second-generation pediatrician struggling to keep an independent solo practice alive. Not one politician has addressed what I feel is the major threat to health care…the physician-patient relationship. Without this, there is no quality of care no matter what you do. Physician patient relationships require time with the patient.Most of my diagnosis is derived from my patient-parent interview and a “hands on exam” of the child. You cannot possibly read a cookbook of medical questions and treatments and have the same result. The current insurance treadmill model of primary care makes this impossible. There is a hemorrhaging exodus of well-trained physicians unwilling to jeopardize this patient relationship. Insurance companies are pushing the small man (or woman), like myself, out and replacing us with cheaper, less qualified “health care extenders” i.e. nurse practitioners, physician’s assistants, pharmacists, or whomever they can place in a white coat for less money. This is at the expense of the patient and the profit of the insurance company.
I have done everything by the book. During my 12 years of postgraduate training I earned a degree in chemistry and biology, a Masters degree in Microbiology, and MD degree from Georgetown University Medical School where I also completed my pediatric residency. I am board-certified and recertified. I have a spotless record and a loyal patient following. I am not saying this to fluff my feathers but to emphasize my dedication to my calling. It is not just a job to me. This is what I was meant to do, and I will only do it the correct way.
Coming from generations of physicians, I take my job very seriously. My father was also a pediatrician and started his office in the basement of our home. I know what quality care is, and what it is not. I grew up knowing that medicine can exist without the interference of insurance companies. At that time, people paid a fair price for an office visit and had catastrophic hospital coverage for hospitalization and procedures. (My father actually was the physician who saved John F. Kennedy’s son, John John. His name is Dr. Ira Seiler M.D. It is a true story accessible through the archives. He also attended John F. Kennedy’s inaugural ball and parade).
My father instilled in me a respect for the patient-physician relationship without which there is no quality care. Insurance companies have continued to decrease our payments knowing that we will need to see more patients in a shorter amount of time to make up for the decreasing reimbursement rates. You do not have time to foster a relationship. This may result in more medical mistakes but ultimately bring in more money to the pockets of the insurance company. This is a very dangerous game, and I have refused to play it. For that I have been threatened and penalized.
I am trying desperately to keep my small practice alive. I spend at least 30 minutes with each patient, they have access to me via my personal cell phone 24/7. I have no wait times, will always see a sick patient that day, try to avoid ER/Urgent Care visits by seeing the patient after hours myself ( to avoid medical mistakes since after hours clinics usually are not staffed by pediatricians and I end up correcting the mistakes at 3am for free anyway). Many times I’ll bring a chart home and research a condition and if I don’t know something I will find out. And for this I am listed as a physician that is not cost effective, or in other words I spend too much time per patient, which results in less revenue to the insurance company.
Medicine is not a 9-to-5 job, it is a calling and my greatest fear is that no one is going to want to do this job for a salary of $6000 a year, which after all my office expenses, I earned. And that is not from poor business skills or lack of patients. It is from decreasing reimbursement rates and higher overhead. This is why most physicians have left private practice to join hospital settings or larger groups. Many people don’t know that I have to pay not one but two malpractice payments in the state of Pennsylvania, licensing and board fees, rising medical and office supply fees which total @ 15,000 a month. I have one nurse, a receptionist, myself and one part-time relief doctor who is amazing, having trained at both Duke and Northwestern. I have not taken a paycheck in 8 months.
I continue to do this job because that’s what I was meant to do and I don’t want to give up on my patients. I should not be subject to prejudice for practicing good medicine. I am scared who will take care of these children or my family when those like me are finally forced out completely.
I am not a “healthcare provider”. I am a physician and there is a very big difference. I hope that you will think about this in your fight to fixthe problems in healthcare, because it’s more than just repealing Obamacare. It is putting medicine back into the hands of the patient, consumer, and the physician. Insurance companies are for profit companies, parasitizing my expertise and exploiting your savings. If they are getting paid for my expertise and training, maybe the CEO’s of these insurance companies should try doing the surgeries and treating the patients themselves.
Sincerely,
Sharon S. Jellinek M.D.
