WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JULY 25, 2019 13
LETTERS AND COMMENTS
FIGHTING
ALZHEIMER’S
DISEASE
I would like to offer my sincere
thanks once again to congressman
tom suozzi for his continued support
for those living with alzheimer’s
disease and their caregivers. he has
recently agreed to co-sponsor two
very important pieces of legislation,
the more hope for alzheimer’s act
and the younger onset alzheimer’s
disease act.
the hope act would educate
providers and individuals living with
dementia about the reimbursement
under medicare for care planning
services. it is important that, after a
diagnosis of alzheimer’s, patients and
their families are apprised of services
available in the community to assist
them during the long road that they
are about to embark upon.
this type of care planning
consultation would have been
very helpful when my mother was
diagnosed. instead, we were pretty
much left to fend for ourselves.
over 200,000 people under the
age of 60 have been diagnosed with
alzheimer’s disease. individuals
living with younger-onset alzheimer’s
primarily show symptoms of the
disease beginning in their 50s, but
some show signs of the disease as
early as their 30s or 40s. without this
younger-onset act, these individuals
and their families are unable to
qualify for much-needed assistance
under the older americans act.
the nutritional programs, inhome
services, transportation, legal
services and respite care would have
been invaluable to my mother, who
was diagnosed at age 57, and my
father and me, who were her primary
caregivers.
we look forward to continuing to
work with congressman suozzi to
make life more bearable for those
suffering with this disease and their
families and to provide funding for
research necessary to fi nd a cure for
this horrible disease.
Kathy Distler, Jericho,
Alzheimer’s Association
Ambassador To Congressman
Suozzi
LOUD PRAISE
FOR SILENT FLICKS
anyone who thinks that silent and
black-and-white fi lms are “something
that mass audience wouldn’t care
to see” (“grassroots forest hills fi lm
festival enters the big leagues with
new name and scale,” qns.com, july
11) hasn’t been among an audience
of hundreds at the silent clowns fi lm
series in manhattan.
they also haven’t been among the
equally enthusiastic crowds that
regularly show up for the laughs
to be found at that slapstick show’s
early black-and-white comedy shorts
and cartoon carnival’s silent and
early sound animated shorts, both
at various locations in queens and
brooklyn.
Joel Schlosberg, Bayside
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OP-ED
Cuomo’s MTA plan isn’t
worth the aggravation
worth the aggravation
Governor Cuomo’s
reorganization plan, like all his
previous special commissions
and advisory committee
reports, is not worth the paper
it was printed on.
Promised savings by
consolidation NYC Transit, Long
Island Rail Road and Metro-
North Railroad departments
have been discussed and
promised for decades by every
generation of MTA chairman,
board members, executive
management and elected
offi cials since the 1980s. This
never happened due to work
rules, seniority and contracts
between different labor unions
at NYC Transit, LIRR and
Metro-North.
The same applies to
anticipated savings by
contracting out work to the
private sector. These savings
are elusive due to union
work rules, union contracts
and safety concerns for non MTA
employees performing construction
on active track.
It makes no sense for the MTA
to reassign management of major
NYC Transit, LIRR and MNRR
capital projects to Offi ce of Capital
Construction. All three operating
agencies already have their own
experienced engineers, operations
planning, procurement, force account,
quality assurance and control
employees. They have successfully
managed numerous Superstorm
Sandy along with other Federal
Transit Administration and local
funded capital projects. In many cases,
they were completed on time, within
budget, with few design or change
orders.
MTA union work rules sometimes
prevent contracting out work to the
private sector. Third-party private
contractors require NYC Transit,
LIRR and Metro-North agency Force
Account (their employees) to provide
both supervision and protection,
when they work on or adjacent to
active right of way track. There are
sometimes excessive numbers of MTA
supervisory or employees assigned.
At upcoming contract negotiations,
the MTA must insist that future
union contracts include more fl exible
work assignments. Salary increases
should match the consumer price
index. Employees need to increase
contributions toward medical
insurance and retirement pensions
just as we do.
Future pensions must be calculated
based on the fi nal year’s base salary
and not infl ated by overtime. Allow
employees to remain part time while
collecting a portion of their pension.
This affords experienced employees
time to train replacements and be
available during emergencies. Allow
unions to bid on projects like the
private sector. Offer union employees
bonuses like outside vendors when
completing projects ahead of schedule
or under budget. Share these cost
savings with union employees.
Stop wasting millions on
transportation feasibility studies for
future system expansion projects that
will never happen. Do not initiate any
new system expansion projects until
each operating agency, NYC Transit
bus and subway, MTA bus, LIRR and
Metro-North have reached a state of
good repair for existing fl eet, stations,
signals, interlockings, track, power,
yards and shops.
Without these changes, it will
continue to be the status quo.
Larry Penner is a transportation
historian, writer and advocate who
previously worked 31 years for the
Federal Transit Administration Region
2 New York Offi ce.
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