Hutcheson patient care excellent
I was a patient at Hutcheson Medical Center in September of this year and a patient there a few years ago.
I was treated in the most professional and compassionate manner possible both times. Everyone from the nurses, lab technicians, radiology technicians, housekeepers and doctors provided excellent service.
It seems that none of the positive side of Hutcheson gets reported. Negative accusations are plastered all over the news.
According to the bankruptcy trustee, the hospital has been inspected on several occasions in the last few months and passed all of them.
The inspections show that there are no patient care issues, but this does not seem to get reported. Every time a negative report comes out in the news, Hutcheson loses more patients.
I do not know where the push to shut the hospital down instead of finding a buyer to keep it open is coming from, but there is definitely an effort by some to close the doors. Based on my treatment provided by Hutcheson and its staff, I will not hesitate to go there if the need arises!
Jeff Smallwood, Flintstone, Ga.
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Christie’s plan not good for seniors
Previously, N.J. Gov. Christie has endorsed “means testing” for seniors on Medicare. Seniors are already “means tested” on both front and back ends.
Medicare premiums are paid through payroll tax deductions of 2.9 percent of gross wages, plus an additional 0.9 percent to help shore up Obamacare, for those roughly in the top 5 percent income bracket.
This amounts to an eight-fold increase for the high rollers versus those in the bottom 50 percent income bracket.
On the back end at retirement, premiums for both Medicare Parts B (provider coverage) and D (prescription coverage) are again subject to an income adjustment, with high rollers paying nearly three times more than those with incomes less than $80,000 annually.
Christie has stated that, if he is elected, those with higher incomes should forego receiving Social Security.
Under his plan, the federal government decides how much is enough for your retirement – a slippery slope. And the additional premiums paid over the years, if not used for your health insurance but only that of others, isn’t this merely just an additional income tax?
I thought Republicans campaigned against higher taxes.
Michael James Zema
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Internet access needed in region
We live in Bradley County where high-speed Internet is not available. Our only access is through a hot spot, which is unacceptable.
Addressing only the issue of education, I homeschool our children and enroll them in external classes. They complete assignments, research and submit reports online. This process is cumbersome and sometimes impossible.
My daughter takes an online college course, and to submit her assignments, I drive seven miles into town to upload assignments to her professor.
The following is a letter my daughter wrote from her heart:
Dear state lawmakers,
I am 10 and my name is Ashlyn, and not having Internet is a big problem. And this is why. There are so many programs on the Internet that I can’t do. If I do get on those learning programs, my mom has to take me somewhere else to get Internet. We do have a JetPack but it’s expensive, slow and very hard to use.
Please let EPB come to my house.
Love, Ashlyn.
We are requesting the right to function as a family living in the 21st century!
Debby Williams, Cleveland, Tenn.