To whom is the budget fair?

Regarding recent articles in West Hawaii Today about Mayor Billy Kenoi’s budget and councilwoman Margaret Wille’s proposed amendment to take $179,565 from the $462,856 (Hilo) golf course budget to fund transfer station attendants in Hilo, Kona and Kohala, I would like to commend Wille for taking this unpopular stand, and for attempting to distribute the money among several communities.

It came as no surprise that her amendment was soundly defeated, but thank you Ms. Wille for trying. Further, to the unfortunate souls in Hilo who must pay $25 for a monthly card and then $1 green fees, I must say I have a hard time shedding too many tears. You see, I am a senior citizen living in West Hawaii where we still do not have a municipal golf course. Forty-five dollar green fees are the lowest I can find for me to play a round of golf and I must drive 50 minutes to get there. I also contacted two West Hawaii courses and asked about their rates for 12 year olds, the same age as the young golfer quoted in your June 2 article as saying, “if those (Hilo) green fees should increase, many kids won’t be able to afford to practice.”

It might surprise that young lady, and others, to know that of two West Hawaii courses I contacted, a $25 green fee was the lowest price quoted for a 12-year-old player. We don’t see many youngsters on the courses over here. And, lastly those of us in West Hawaii who pay a much higher rate to golf than our fellow residents in East Hawaii, get hit with a double whammy: certainly more than half of that $462,856 golf course budget is funded with our tax dollars. So when the council describes the budget as “fair,” in this particular instance I ask, “fair to whom?”

Judy Armstrong-Burger

Kailua-Kona

Health care is a universal right

I am old enough to remember standing in line in elementary school waiting for the nurse to put a drop of vaccine on a sugar cube for me to place under my tongue. Polio is now no longer a threat to the American public because of Dr. Jonas Salk’s vaccine placed on that sugar cube. Do you know how much money Salk made on the development of this vaccine? Zero, nothing. It was reported that when asked about patenting the vaccine Salk said, “Can you patent the sun?”

What an embarrassment Salk would feel if he were alive to hear HMSA CEO Michael Gold, who makes $1.3 million a year, ask for a 49.1-percent premium increase for health plans under the Affordable Care Act. Many of our fine doctors do a wonderful job for a decent salary. Salk would be proud of them and the advances made but our obsession with medicine as a business that can sustain $1.3 million dollar salaries for insurance CEO’s would surely have him turning in his grave.

If approved, this premium increase will drive patients away from getting the insurance they need to stay healthy. This will result in an inevitable death spiral as rates continue to increase and people flee the market. The effect on public health could be devastating as preventable diseases will go undiagnosed and spread throughout the population. Do you want the person who prepares your hamburger to have a hepatitis vaccination and have their cold effectively treated? I do.

Single payer universal health coverage is the only answer to the over-the-top greed demonstrated by Gold. Health care is a universal right and obligation of government. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are just words on a page if you don’t have your health.

Joe Appleton

Waimea