Please help me counter this BS from my rep

[RayOfHope]

Our rep writes "Jeff City Notes" for our local paper. Here is what ran tonight. I am PISSED as hell about this and am going to write a LTTE. (Wait til you get to the part about "Medicaid Welfar System") Can you all provide some input, stats, or facts?

"We’ve spent the first half of this legislative session passing badly needed bills to invigorate our economy. Senate Bill 1, a bill to end fraud and abuse in our workers’ compensation system, and House Bill 393, a bill to rein in the huge mount of frivolous lawsuits filed in Missouri, were both sent to the Governor’s desk and signed into law. These common sense changes will ultimately provide more revenue to the state as business and industry return to Missouri, and will mean new jobs for our working families. Now our attention is focused on restoring financial accountability to Missouri state government. Next year’s budget will contain substantial changes in the way our government operates, and state agencies will become more efficient and more effective as we reduce the waste, fraud and abuse that unfairly burden taxpayers. With that in mind, we are finding solutions such as standardizing our computer information systems statewide to increase security and reduce duplication of operations, computer systems, and software in state offices, ultimately saving the state $2.5million.



In addition, we’re restructuring Missouri’s Medicaid welfare system. Our Medicaid welfare system is out of control, with more than 1 million Missourians enrolled in the program, and it’s estimated that up to 20 percent of those receiving benefits are ineligible. In fact, a report by the state auditor’s office found that less than half of those on Medicaid welfare rolls were verified as being eligible for benefits. Re-verifying Medicaid welfare eligibility each year would save our state $29million annually.



We were elected to responsibly use your tax dollars for the benefit of this state. Waste, fraud, and abuse in our state budget hurt everyone, but those most affected by this are Missouri’s most vulnerable citizens, our children. For the first time in the history of this state we’re spending more money on social welfare programs than we are on education. Our children must be our highest priority. The children of this state deserve the best education we can possibly provide them, and nothing should take precedent over that responsibility. However, I’m sorry to say that our current system falls short of this goal. Missouri’s schools are lagging behind because of the dismal financial straits our school districts are in. No matter what part of the state or income bracket a child is in, we must see that every student receives the highest quality education possible. Increasing accountability in the Medicaid welfare system will result in a savings of more than $170 million that would otherwise be taken from our education budget.



With that responsibility in mind, we’re currently taking decisive action to end the financial deficiencies and inequities that currently plague our school districts and particularly hurt our rural schools. We have currently begun to reform the school funding foundation formula, in order to make school funding more equitable and to create a consistent standard for all our school districts.



Before we can concentrate on education, however, we must bring the reckless spending in our budget under control. If you spent more money than you made every month it wouldn’t be long until you were in financial hot water, and the state of Missouri is no different. This week the House Budget Committee held a hearing on HJR 12, a resolution that ensures revenues will be available during ties of lower income to fund our highest priorities by preventing politicians from spending more than the state collects in any given single year. If we had implemented legislation like this long ago, we could have avoided the huge problems that we are encountering with our state budget today.



This week, the House also passed Senate Bill 202, which eliminates the separate pension plan that Missouri currently provides to Administrative Law Judges and enrolls them in the regular Missouri State employee pension plan. The bill gets rid of loopholes in our pension system that has allowed some former legislators to unfairly inflate their retirement benefits.



The people of this state gave the House a mandate last November to control government spending and fund our most important programs without raising taxes on our already struggling citizens. We take that commitment very seriously, and I am proud of the positive changes that we have already made for the state.



With continued hard work and dedication, we will complete the task before us."

UGH! What drivel.

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Spending on social programs

is EQUALLY important to spending on education. Kids need to be healthy, well nourished and emotionally stable to learn. By eliminating many of these programs (First Steps is a graphic example) the Republicans in Jeff City are merely creating problems for the schools of Missouri.

We have an expression in education that applies here: Spend now or spend more later. Early intervention is the most cost effective way to serve kids with disabilities. Parents as Teachers and First Steps are both excellent early intervention programs that have saved resources and dollars for the taxpayers in Missouri.

If we eliminate preventive health care for children, those kids who need it will have more absences from school due to illness. Another old teacher's expression comes to mind: The kids who come to school learn more than the ones who stay home. Keeping them healthy ensures better school attendance. This is so obvious it is hard to believe legislators apparently don't understand it.

Taking kids off of medicaid is, in effect, depriving them of more cost effective health care. Hospital emergency rooms will replace pediatric care for low income kids. And who do the Republicans in Jeff City think will pay the ER bills? This is already a severe problem because so few doctors accept medicaid. Kicking kids off of medicaid only means the cost of their health care will dramatically increase.

Now if there is a problem with fraud in our medicaid program why don't we address that instead of changing the standards and eliminating families who have NOT abused the system?

[panicbutton02]

2. Well, he's a big liar, for one thing

He and Panic Boy Matt Blunt are lying through their teeth about supporting education. While on the surface they might look like they're not cutting funds, in fact they're trying to use any back-door cuts they can find.

Read this post from our anti-Blunt site, The Panic Button:

Matt Blunt to Missouri Education: Bend Over

So see, they're cutting Internet services or forcing schools to pay more for them--at the very time they're claiming they're committed to education.

Sickening.

[newyawker99]

4. Hi panicbutton02!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[cornermouse]

3. Missouri is a "right to work" state.

In reality, that means they traditionally pay lower wages than other states. They have now passed something that makes it more difficult than it already was to get worker's comp if you are injured on the job. The other states have not.

So, the end result is that you can continue to get less pay, but if you're injured on the job, tough luck for you and your family OR you can move your family to another state, get more pay, retain worker's comp, and come back to Missouri on vacations if you still want to.

Sounds like a brain drain to me.