Politicians in Tennessee would do well to look beyond the state’s borders for innovative actions they could emulate for the benefit of their constituents. State Senator Stacey Campfield, for example, could do more for his constituents than offer up a bill to permit guns in city and county parks. He could follow the example of the State of Utah, which has a goal of eliminating homelessness by 2015. Or, he could follow the lead of State Senators in Maine who introduced a bill permitting the importation of prescription drugs from licensed pharmacies in Canada.
Utah has achieved 75% of its goal by providing housing to the homeless. A body has to wonder, “Why would they do that?” Well, it turns out that it’s less expensive than covering the costs of emergency health care for some, and incarceration for others (which also includes health care). It means giving people the comfort and security of knowing they have a place to call home. From there, they can focus on improving their conditions. Apparently, Tennessee politicians never read or understood Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. http://www.nationofchange.org/utah-ending-homelessness-giving-people-homes-1390056183?utm_content=buffer53f8f&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
"How did Utah accomplish this? Simple. Utah solved homelessness by giving people homes. In 2005, Utah figured out that the annual cost of E.R. visits and jail stays for homeless people was about $16,670 per person, compared to $11,000 to provide each homeless person with an apartment and a social worker. So, the state began giving away apartments, with no strings attached. Each participant in Utah’s Housing First program also gets a caseworker to help them become self-sufficient, but they keep the apartment even if they fail. The program has been so successful that other states are hoping to achieve similar results with programs modeled on Utah’s."
"This happened in a Republican state! Republicans in Congress would probably have required the homeless to take a drug test before getting an apartment, denied apartments to homeless people with criminal records, and evicted those who failed to become self-sufficient after five years or so. But Utah’s results show that even conservative states can solve problems like homelessness with decidedly progressive solutions."
Maine’s Senators, Thomas (R) and Jackson (D) collaborated (that means worked together) to bring into existence a law that is saving cities like Portland hundreds of thousands of dollars, and corporations many times that.
"City employee Jeff Tardif signed his 7-year-old son up for the plan this year to get asthma meds.
JEFF TARDIF: My big thing is I'm saving money. So, you know, it's 100 bucks that I'm saving monthly-- through this program.
RICK KARR:
Take the example of a three-month supply of the asthma drug Advair: Under the city’s regular health plan, at Portland pharmacies it costs a little under $600. The CanaRx plan imports it for a little over a $150 -- shipping included. With discounts like that, the city of Portland saves $200,000 a year on health care -- and there’s no copay for employees. Two years after the city launched its program, the largest employer in one of Maine’s poorest counties followed suit. Hardwood Products makes food sticks -- the wooden handles that go into popsicles, ice cream bars, corn dogs, and so on. Chief financial officer Scott Wellman says the family-owned company can do a lot with the $400,000 a year it saves on the plan.
SCOTT WELLMAN: That money can be used for employee raises. That money can be used to offset the cost of their health care. It also can be used to invest in equipment so we can produce new products.
Separate report highlights significant savings:
"But many state employees, as well as workers at the city of Portland and one large company, claimed they had saved some $10 million through Internet purchases over several years. For this reason, the bill had some backing from the business community and dissuaged the Republican governor from issuing a veto. Similarly, state and local governments may also save money
. The state employee's union estimates savings of $6 to $10 million, according to Troy Jackson, the state senator who introduced the bill." http://www.drugs.com/news/maine-residents-can-now-import-foreign-pharmacies-45561.html
Of course, in both cases, it meant that politicians had to ask, “What can we do to improve the lives of our constituents. How can we fulfill the implied charge of all who serve in public office, to serve the needs of the people. If the citizens of Tennessee were to look closely at their elected officials, how many would be able to point to something they actually did that benefitted the state?
Don’t Stop There
Let's not limit ourselves to these two examples. Education is another area where truly caring officials could make a huge difference. Let's say they looked at the example of Indian casinos in North Carolina. They'd find that the community shared in the profits from the casino, initially to the tune of $6,000 per person (now, around $9,000). Children in the community became better students, with higher grades, fewer absences, less acting out in class. Other studies found the same results. It also demonstrated that parents had the financial freedom that gave them time to be better parents. All of this is consistent with research done under GW Bush. That research looked at the variables that impact performance in school. The only variable that did correlate was poverty. Less poverty, better performance.
There is so much that our politicians can do that would benefit our citizens, whatever age. They don't even have to come up with novel ideas. All they have to do is look at what others are doing.
Excellent reporting Joe...thanks
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