RE: [QUAD-L] Fw: Prayer-It's a good thing
But, if we do not fight for the religious beliefs upon which your freedom of thought come from, then we'll die standing still. I'd rather have the long runwith the possibilityof doing good. I agree with most of the views in the chain-mail below. In other words, I fight for keeping us free through maintaining what set us free. And, for what allows you to stand for freedom of thought. From: Lori Michaelson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 5:29 PMTo: QuadSubject: Re: [QUAD-L] Fw: Prayer-It's a good thing *I* stand for FREEDOM OF THOUGHT. If we keep fighting over religion and thought ... we're killing ourselves in the long run. "A man's ethical and moralbehavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is absolute andnecessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death." -- Albert Einstein ---Original Message--- Sent: Thursday, October 13, 2005 3:19 PM Subject: Prayer-It's a good thing This Pastor has guts!!Thought you might enjoy this interesting prayer given in Kansas at theopening session of their Senate. It seems prayer still upsets some people.When Minister Joe Wright was asked to open the new session of the KansasSenate, everyone was expecting the usual generalities, but this is whatthey heard:"Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and toseek your direction and guidance.We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that isexactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium andreversed our values.We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.We have killed our unborn and called it choice.We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building selfesteem.We have abused power and called it politics.We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called itfreedom of _expression_.We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called itenlightenment.Search us, Oh, God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sinand set us free. Amen!"The response was immediate.A number of legislators walked out during the prayer in protest.In 6 short weeks, Central Christian Church, where Rev. Wright is pastor,logged more than 5,000 phone calls with only 47 of those calls respondingnegatively.The church is now receiving international requests for copies of thisprayer from India , Africa and Korea.Commentator Paul Harvey aired this prayer on his radio program, "The Restof the Story," and received a larger response to this program than anyother he has ever aired.With the LORD' s help, may this prayer sweep over our nation andwholeheartedly become our desire so that we again can be called "onenation under God."If possible, please pass this prayer on to your friends. "If you don'tstand for something, you will fall for everything."If you forward this prayer to everyone on your e-mail list, in less than 30days it would be heard by the world. How many people in your address bookwill not receive this prayer.do you have the COURAGE to pass it on?"If you hold to my teachings, you are really my disciples. Then you willknow the truth and the truth will set you free." John 8:31-32 Find e-mail, documents and more on your PC instantly with Windows Desktop SearchFREE!
Re: [QUAD-L] She Sits With Beauty
Great job! I could picture ever word. Silas - Original Message - From: ~LittleQuad~ To: Quad-list post Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 5:41 PM Subject: [QUAD-L] She Sits With Beauty She Sits With Beauty She sits with beauty watching the sunrise leisurely through her window, The beams shining on her delicate pale skin, warming her with joy. The joyous spirit of the moment carries her to heights of perseverance. Illuminating splendor she can capture only through serene calmness. She sits with beauty in her special chair on the fresh-cut green grass, Reading a book of love and romance that strengthens her spirit to soar high. As the warm, quiet breeze softly blows her hair aside and revealing her ears, Whispering a melody of music in her ears, securing her sanctuary indefinitely. She sits with beauty and sense of self that remains innocent, pure, and unbroken. Resting her worries, eluding all thoughts to unburden her disposition, to escape away, To a secret place so fragile and untainted, cherished possession of mind and spirit. Where a dream, a hope, an idea, a passion for love can survive all circumstances. She sits with beauty as the warm sun fades into the fresh yellow moon. Rendering to the nightfall, she coerces herself to enter the place she claims as home. Lying upon fresh, soft sheets and relaxing her head against the feathery pillow, Respectfully waiting a new dawn with a peaceful smile, she drifts off to sleep. Amy Elizabeth Thomas April 25, 2001 Copyright ©2001
Re: [QUAD-L] Fw: Prayer-It's a good thing
Prayer is very good and important in this life--- It has NOTHING to do with fighting over religion...all religions pray or meditate. This society is in a MORAL MESS - Just think if only mankind would follow the simple basic 10 commandments ... WE would not even need a single prison or jail. Dan
[QUAD-L] poem
by jeffrey Ross Roses are red Violets are blue I'll take a knee when you take two
Re: [QUAD-L] Thanks Dianna
ron writes: I guess Im not good enough for Lori to answer - Um, Ron. You might have jumped the gun. Some of us don't check our mail everyday. Keith/c4-5/NJ
Re: [QUAD-L] She Sits With Beauty
Can I have a seat? Mark ---Original Message--- From: ~LittleQuad~ Date: 11/16/05 19:41:03 To: Quad-list post Subject: [QUAD-L] She Sits With Beauty She Sits With Beauty She sits with beauty watching the sunrise leisurely through her window, The beams shining on her delicate pale skin, warming her with joy. The joyous spirit of the moment carries her to heights of perseverance. Illuminating splendor she can capture only through serene calmness. She sits with beauty in her special chair on the fresh-cut green grass, Reading a book of love and romance that strengthens her spirit to soar high. As the warm, quiet breeze softly blows her hair aside and revealing her ears, Whispering a melody of music in her ears, securing her sanctuary indefinitely. She sits with beauty and sense of self that remains innocent, pure, and unbroken. Resting her worries, eluding all thoughts to unburden her disposition, to escape away, To a secret place so fragile and untainted, cherished possession of mind and spirit. Where a dream, a hope, an idea, a passion for love can survive all circumstances. She sits with beauty as the warm sun fades into the fresh yellow moon. Rendering to the nightfall, she coerces herself to enter the place she claims as home. Lying upon fresh, soft sheets and relaxing her head against the feathery pillow, Respectfully waiting a new dawn with a peaceful smile, she drifts off to sleep. Amy Elizabeth Thomas April 25, 2001 Copyright ©2001
Re: [QUAD-L] Thanks Dianna
In a message dated 11/17/2005 2:52:13 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: I guess Im not good enough for Lori to answer Naa, it's all good, she's probably out enjoying that az sun. I also thought I'd tell you after I gained the weight from elavil, my doc put me on prozac and I took off 40 of those pounds I gained. So pills CAN mess with that weight scale :-) Diane
Re: [QUAD-L] poem
Spinal cord injury Stem cells jigglin' Toes a wigglin'TimEric Olson [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: by jeffrey RossRoses are redViolets are blueI'll take a kneewhen you take two Yahoo! FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click.
[QUAD-L] Fwd: We Got Your Back
FYI : probably a good idea to write your congressman about this important issue.Dana (C4-5, 31 years post, 52, KC) ---BeginMessage--- Asclepios Your Weekly Medicare Consumer Advocacy Update We Got Your Back November 17, 2005 Volume 5, Issue 46 When the ball drops in Times Square on New Years Day, 6.4 million poor people will lose the prescription drug coverage they now receive through Medicaid. Will they all get the Medicare drug coverage that theyre entitled to on January 1? Michael Leavitt, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says the administration is working on contingency plans. Thats not good enough. And thats why the Medicare Rights Center, along with groups from Maine to California, filed suit this week against Secretary Leavitt. The suit seeks to force the administration to ensure continuity of coverage for any person with Medicare set to lose Medicaid drug coverage on January 1. Earlier this week the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) gave a briefing to Senator Max Baucus of Montana, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee and a major sponsor the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act that created the new Medicare drug benefit. The GAOs conclusion: Secretary Leavitts plans are not adequate to ensure that the oldest, sickest and most impoverished Americans will not lose access to the medicines they need come January 1st. Current contingency plans rely heavily on the ability and willingness of pharmacies to assist beneficiaries and on the ability of beneficiaries to take action on their own behalf to resolve problems, the GAO found. If even a fraction of this vulnerable populationpeople with both Medicare and Medicaidfall through the cracks, they could lose access to medicines that keep them alive. These 6.4 million Americans generally take multiple medications and have far greater health care needs than other people with Medicare. About one-third are disabled and nearly 40 percent have a cognitive or mental impairment. These are the Americans most at risk of being worse off as a result of the new drug program for people with Medicare. And they are least able to help themselves. After the suit was filed early this week, the American Society of Consulting Pharmacists voted to join the MRC lawsuit, and Senator Jay Rockefeller, Democrat of West Virginia, called the suit a necessary step to force Secretary Leavitt to obey the law. There is a disconnect between the truth and the Bush administrations assurances that the transition will go smoothly and everyone will be fine. Not to worry, were told. Its under control. But its not. Human error is inevitable, and a massive transition of 6.4 million people from one program to a completely different, remarkably complex program will be full of mishaps. Look what has happened already. People with Medicare and Medicaid were misinformed about which plans were available for full premium subsidies in the Medicare and You 2006 handbook sent out to 43 million people with Medicare. Thousands of mailings that were supposed to inform people with Medicare and Medicaid about the pending change in drug coverage were instead empty envelopes. Major data errors resulted in the Bush administration mistakenly enrolling tens of thousands of people in Illinois in drug plans. Those errors resulted in thousands of people receiving wrong information on the steps they need to take to get the drug coverage they need. To be sure, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) staff is working long hours dealing with a myriad of problems, most of them stemming from the fact that private for-profit plans deliver the drug benefit. But people whose lives depend on access to medicine need more than empty political promises and the best efforts of an overstrapped staff at CMS. The administration should come to court with a transition plan that will work. Taking that step is not an admission of failure for CMS. It is a guarantee of success. Click here to send a letter to HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt urging him to take responsibility for the Medicare drug benefit by using Medicaid as a fail-safe mechanism that will guarantee continued drug coverage for the people who need it. Medical Record The lawsuit filed to enjoin the end of Medicaid for people with both Medicare and Medicaid warns that countless numbers of poor men and women will fall through the cracks of this massive program transition, and these impoverished people will face the loss of medicines needed to function or survive. It also says that the characteristics of the people at risknearly 40 percent are cognitively impaired and only 39 percent have a high school diplomawill prevent up to a million poor older Americans from immediately mastering the complexity of the new Medicare drug benefit so they can maintain access to needed medicine (Lawsuit Seeks Injunction to Protect Poorest
[QUAD-L] Worth believing fighting for
I really meant to quote this: "This I believe:That the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world. And this I would fight for: The freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected. And this I must fight against: Any idea, religion, or government which limits or destroys the individual." -- John Steinbeck Lori Michaelson Age - 41 C4/5 complete quad, 26 years post Tucson, AZ ---Original Message--- From: Aaron Mann Date: 11/17/05 06:44:40 To: Lori Michaelson; Quad Subject: RE: [QUAD-L] Fw: Prayer-It's a good thing But, if we do not fight for the religious beliefs upon which your freedom of thought come from, then we'll die standing still. I'd rather have the long runwith the possibilityof doing good. I agree with most of the views in the chain-mail below. In other words, I fight for keeping us free through maintaining what set us free. And, for what allows you to stand for freedom of thought. From: Lori Michaelson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 5:29 PMTo: QuadSubject: Re: [QUAD-L] Fw: Prayer-It's a good thing *I* stand for FREEDOM OF THOUGHT. If we keep fighting over religion and thought ... we're killing ourselves in the long run. "A man's ethical and moralbehavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is absolute andnecessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death." -- Albert Einstein ---Original Message--- Sent: Thursday, October 13, 2005 3:19 PM Subject: Prayer-It's a good thing This Pastor has guts!!Thought you might enjoy this interesting prayer given in Kansas at theopening session of their Senate. It seems prayer still upsets some people.When Minister Joe Wright was asked to open the new session of the KansasSenate, everyone was expecting the usual generalities, but this is whatthey heard:"Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and toseek your direction and guidance.We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that isexactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium andreversed our values.We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.We have killed our unborn and called it choice.We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building selfesteem.We have abused power and called it politics.We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called itfreedom of _expression_.We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called itenlightenment.Search us, Oh, God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sinand set us free. Amen!"The response was immediate.A number of legislators walked out during the prayer in protest.In 6 short weeks, Central Christian Church, where Rev. Wright is pastor,logged more than 5,000 phone calls with only 47 of those calls respondingnegatively.The church is now receiving international requests for copies of thisprayer from India , Africa and Korea.Commentator Paul Harvey aired this prayer on his radio program, "The Restof the Story," and received a larger response to this program than anyother he has ever aired.With the LORD' s help, may this prayer sweep over our nation andwholeheartedly become our desire so that we again can be called "onenation under God."If possible, please pass this prayer on to your friends. "If you don'tstand for something, you will fall for everything."If you forward this prayer to everyone on your e-mail list, in less than 30days it would be heard by the world. How many people in your address bookwill not receive this prayer.do you have the COURAGE to pass it on?"If you hold to my teachings, you are really my disciples. Then you willknow the truth and the truth will set you free." John 8:31-32 Find e-mail, documents and more on your PC instantly with Windows Desktop Search–FREE!
[QUAD-L] Help for nerve pain
Before my shunt surgery the Dr thought I should try Amitriptyline for pain spasms. While it didn't control the horrid throwing-my-body back spasms .. it DID help me sleep very hard which I loved. He put me on 50 mgs at bedtime. I went ahead with the surgery and, while it seemed to help my spasticity from the syrinx it didn't do what I expected. When shoulder/neck/spine pain came into the picture (TWO YRS post surgery!)I sought another neuro near home. She suggested Oxycontin. I was afraid to take it at first and did not until an lpn aide-fill-in fell on me when turning me! Long story. I went on it noticed it helped both my spasms pain. 20mgs b.i.d. When it began being misused by teenagers ... the price went sky high I have no drug coverage. I tried going off it in 2000 using the duragesic patch but, nope, my body reacted violently. Am still on it today. still 50mgs at bedtime. As well as the Amitrip. I didn't notice much of a weight gain but I was on a listserv for folks with syringomyelia and chairi syndrome and many were on it ballooned up from it. Lori Michaelson Age - 41 C4/5 complete quad, 26 years post Tucson, AZ ---Original Message--- From: RONALD L PRACHT Date: 11/16/05 20:37:38 To: quad-list@eskimo.com Subject: [QUAD-L] Re Diane Wow, How many mgs of it were you on? People try to tell me that medication cant make you gain weight, lol. Im taking this amytriptyline to help with syrinx nerve pain. Could you suggest any alternatives? Thanks Ron c7
Re: [QUAD-L] Hi Lori, one question
I check email daily but had company for 2 days. In 1997 I went down to 25mgs from my 50 at bedtime with no problem. I went back up when the breakthrough pain began in 1999 or so. Our bodies change. I hate it! I wonder how peri-menopause and menopause will affect me. Oh help! Everyone says that it is causes huge weight gain. Guess I was/am lucky in THAT respect. Lori Michaelson Age - 41 C4/5 complete quad, 26 years post Tucson, AZ ---Original Message--- From: RONALD L PRACHT Date: 11/16/05 20:20:44 To: quad-list@eskimo.com Subject: [QUAD-L] Hi Lori, one question Hi, I remember you saying you were on 50mg amytriptyline for a few years. Did this medication make you gain weight over time? Im on 50mg and notice a slight weight increase Im just trying to be proactive because weight gain is no fun for us. You are a strong woman to have rolled on for 25 yrs thus far. I often wonder if I can make it that long. Thanks, Ron c7
[QUAD-L] Fwd: We Got Your Back
FYI this will help you write a letter to HHS, Secretary Michael Levitt to urge him to think continue Medicaid for filling in gaps between Medicare and Medicaid.Dana ---BeginMessage--- Asclepios Your Weekly Medicare Consumer Advocacy Update We Got Your Back November 17, 2005 Volume 5, Issue 46 When the ball drops in Times Square on New Years Day, 6.4 million poor people will lose the prescription drug coverage they now receive through Medicaid. Will they all get the Medicare drug coverage that theyre entitled to on January 1? Michael Leavitt, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says the administration is working on contingency plans. Thats not good enough. And thats why the Medicare Rights Center, along with groups from Maine to California, filed suit this week against Secretary Leavitt. The suit seeks to force the administration to ensure continuity of coverage for any person with Medicare set to lose Medicaid drug coverage on January 1. Earlier this week the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) gave a briefing to Senator Max Baucus of Montana, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee and a major sponsor the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act that created the new Medicare drug benefit. The GAOs conclusion: Secretary Leavitts plans are not adequate to ensure that the oldest, sickest and most impoverished Americans will not lose access to the medicines they need come January 1st. Current contingency plans rely heavily on the ability and willingness of pharmacies to assist beneficiaries and on the ability of beneficiaries to take action on their own behalf to resolve problems, the GAO found. If even a fraction of this vulnerable populationpeople with both Medicare and Medicaidfall through the cracks, they could lose access to medicines that keep them alive. These 6.4 million Americans generally take multiple medications and have far greater health care needs than other people with Medicare. About one-third are disabled and nearly 40 percent have a cognitive or mental impairment. These are the Americans most at risk of being worse off as a result of the new drug program for people with Medicare. And they are least able to help themselves. After the suit was filed early this week, the American Society of Consulting Pharmacists voted to join the MRC lawsuit, and Senator Jay Rockefeller, Democrat of West Virginia, called the suit a necessary step to force Secretary Leavitt to obey the law. There is a disconnect between the truth and the Bush administrations assurances that the transition will go smoothly and everyone will be fine. Not to worry, were told. Its under control. But its not. Human error is inevitable, and a massive transition of 6.4 million people from one program to a completely different, remarkably complex program will be full of mishaps. Look what has happened already. People with Medicare and Medicaid were misinformed about which plans were available for full premium subsidies in the Medicare and You 2006 handbook sent out to 43 million people with Medicare. Thousands of mailings that were supposed to inform people with Medicare and Medicaid about the pending change in drug coverage were instead empty envelopes. Major data errors resulted in the Bush administration mistakenly enrolling tens of thousands of people in Illinois in drug plans. Those errors resulted in thousands of people receiving wrong information on the steps they need to take to get the drug coverage they need. To be sure, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) staff is working long hours dealing with a myriad of problems, most of them stemming from the fact that private for-profit plans deliver the drug benefit. But people whose lives depend on access to medicine need more than empty political promises and the best efforts of an overstrapped staff at CMS. The administration should come to court with a transition plan that will work. Taking that step is not an admission of failure for CMS. It is a guarantee of success. Click here to send a letter to HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt urging him to take responsibility for the Medicare drug benefit by using Medicaid as a fail-safe mechanism that will guarantee continued drug coverage for the people who need it. Medical Record The lawsuit filed to enjoin the end of Medicaid for people with both Medicare and Medicaid warns that countless numbers of poor men and women will fall through the cracks of this massive program transition, and these impoverished people will face the loss of medicines needed to function or survive. It also says that the characteristics of the people at risknearly 40 percent are cognitively impaired and only 39 percent have a high school diplomawill prevent up to a million poor older Americans from immediately mastering the complexity of the new Medicare drug benefit so they can maintain access to needed
[QUAD-L] oxycont news
Oxycont became available as generic a couple months ago. The price has come down substantially. From: Lori Michaelson [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: Lori Michaelson [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: RONALD L PRACHT [EMAIL PROTECTED], Quad quad-list@eskimo.com Subject: [QUAD-L] Help for nerve pain Date: Thu, 17 Nov 2005 16:43:35 -0700 Before my shunt surgery the Dr thought I should try Amitriptyline for pain spasms. While it didn't control the horrid throwing-my-body back spasms .. it DID help me sleep very hard which I loved. He put me on 50 mgs at bedtime. I went ahead with the surgery and, while it seemed to help my spasticity from the syrinx it didn't do what I expected. When shoulder/neck/spine pain came into the picture (TWO YRS post surgery!) I sought another neuro near home. She suggested Oxycontin. I was afraid to take it at first and did not until an lpn aide-fill-in fell on me when turning me! Long story. I went on it noticed it helped both my spasms pain. 20mgs b.i.d. When it began being misused by teenagers ... the price went sky high I have no drug coverage. I tried going off it in 2000 using the duragesic patch but, nope, my body reacted violently. Am still on it today. still 50mgs at bedtime. As well as the Amitrip. I didn't notice much of a weight gain but I was on a listserv for folks with syringomyelia and chairi syndrome and many were on it ballooned up from it. Lori Michaelson Age - 41 C4/5 complete quad, 26 years post Tucson, AZ ---Original Message--- From: RONALD L PRACHT Date: 11/16/05 20:37:38 To: quad-list@eskimo.com Subject: [QUAD-L] Re Diane Wow, How many mgs of it were you on? People try to tell me that medication cant make you gain weight, lol. Im taking this amytriptyline to help with syrinx nerve pain. Could you suggest any alternatives? Thanks Ron c7
[QUAD-L] Appreciate your response Lori
Thanks, Sorry if I seemed a lil out of line. Pain gets my moods up and down. I knew you would have experience in the pain med situation. Its like a catch 22, you take it and have side affects, or you dont and have pain, lol. Im only about 8 years into my injury guess I have lots to learn and realize. One thing for sure its amazing we all can live as good as we do with about a quarter of our bodies working. Ron c7
[QUAD-L] No Budget Cuts
House Rejects GOP Leaders' Budget Cuts By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 45 minutes ago WASHINGTON - Republicans suffered a startling setback in the House on Thursday, losing a vote on cu! tting spending for education and health care programs. A broader budget-cutting blueprint targeting the poor, college students and farmers also was in danger. ADVERTISEMENT Both bills are part of a campaign by Republican leaders to burnish their party's budget-cutting credentials as they try to reduce a deficit swelled by spending on the Iraq war and Hurricane Katrina. In both cases, GOP moderates balked. The 224-209 vote against a $602 billion spending bill for health, education and labor programs disrupted plans by the Republican leaders to finish work on 11 spending bills that would pay for government operations and freeze many agency budgets through next September. Democrats were unanimous in opposing that one-year appropriations bill. "It betrays our nation's values and its future," said House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md. "It is neither compassionate, conservative nor wise." A companion deficit-reduction bill that would slice $50 billion from the deficit through the end of the decade, also faces unanimous opposition from Democrats, as well as from many moderate Republicans who are unhappy with cuts to Medicaid, food stamps and college loan subsidies. It would cut from so-called mandatory programs whose budgets increase automatically every year. The proposed savings are modest considering the $14 trillion the government is set to spend during the five-year period. Republicans say the measure is a first step to restoring fiscal discipline by curbing rapidly growing benefit programs whose budgets spiral upward each year unless reined in by Congress. "What we want to have is a good first step in reforming out-of-control entitlement spending," said Rep. Jeb Hensarling (news, bio, voting record), R-Texas. GOP leaders sent the House into recess after the embarrassing defeat of the spending bill. The 22 GOP defections on that vote cast doubt on whether House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., would bring the broader deficit-reduction bill t! o the floor later in the day. "There's a message in this," Sen. Dianne Feinstein (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., said of the House vote, "and that's that the people of America are only going to accept so many cuts in health care, in Medicaid, in Medicare, in transportation and other vital areas." Earlier Thur! sday, House GOP leaders eased their planned five-year cuts to health and nutrition programs for the poor, trying to win votes from reluctant moderates for the contentious deficit-reduction bill. That measure would cut the deficit through a combination of new revenues from auctioning television airwaves to wireless companies and myriad cuts to entitlement programs like Medicaid. The latest concession to moderates involved leaving co-payments for the poorest Medicaid beneficiaries at $3 instead of raising them to $5 and dropping a provision that would have denied free school lunches to about 40,000 children whose parents would lose their food stamps. A provision denying Medicaid nursing home benefits to people with home equity of $500,000 was modified by raising the cap to $750,000. Those changes came on top of concessions made last week. Then, GOP leaders dropped plans to open an Alaskan wildlife refuge to oil drilling and to allow states to lif! t a moratorium on oil drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Despite the changes, the core of the five year, $50 billion deficit-reduction bill remains intact. The most recent changes only chipped away at more than $800 million in cuts realized through cutting 300,000 working families from the food stamp program. On Medicaid, the bill would generate almost $12 billion in savings through new cost-sharing burdens on beneficiaries and by letting states scale back coverage. It also would tighten rules designed to limit the ability of elderly people to shed assets to qualify for nursing home care, lower pharmacy profit margins and encourage pharmacies to issue generic drugs. Democrats are united in opposition to the measure, objecting to both cuts in programs for the poor and the fact that the deficit-reduction bill would actually increase the deficit when combined with a tax cut bill slated for a vote Friday. "Only in Washingto! n would you have a deficit reduction project that increases the deficit," said Rep. Earl Pomeroy (news, bio, voting record), D-N.D. That bill has also run into fierce resistance from moderate Republicans. And more conservative lawmakers such as Jim Ramstad, R-Minn., and Tim Johnson, R-Ill., are unhappy with a provision to increase intere! st rates and fees paid by student and parent borrowers to help save $14.3 billion from student loans. The deficit-reduction bill is the first effort in eight
