FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JANUARY 11, 2018 • THE QUEENS COURIER 23
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A LOOK BACK
This May 1934 photo shows Cooper Avenue (then called Central Avenue) looking west at the corner of 79th Street on the
Glendale/Middle Village. The image was taken shortly before the city began constructing the Cooper Avenue underpass,
replacing an at-grade railroad crossing a few hundred feet down the road. Send us your historic photos of Queens by email to
editorial@qns.com (subject: A Look Back) or mail printed pictures to A Look Back, Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd.,
Bayside, NY 11361. All mailed pictures will be carefully returned to you.
letters & comments
‘NEWSPEAK,’ THE
TRUMP WAY
Another back to the future direction
by the ever backward directing
Trump. Th is time it takes its
cue from George Orwell’s 1949
anti-utopian novel, “1984.”
In Orwellian lingo, George
Orwell referred to it as “Newspeak.”
It was the “Big Brother” Oceana
language designed to diminish the
range of thought by diminishing
words. Th e goal is, by forbidding
certain words one can limit negative
expression relative to specific
subjects.
Taking this cue, the linguistically
challenged Trump and his administration
has kicked off the process
by limiting the words allowed
to be used by the nation’s top public
health agency. In the ongoing
dumbing of America process they
have thus far forbidden seven words
to be used. Th ey are alphabetically:
“diversity, entitlement, evidence
based, fetus, science-based,
transgender and vulnerable.”
We know that the least educated
Americans relate to Trump and
are his base, so this further stupidifi
cation of their country should not
only welcome but reinforce their
support as well.
Nicholas Zizelis, Bayside
ISLES ARENA WILL
ADD TO PARKWAY
TRAFFIC
I read with dismay that New York
is planning to build an 18,000-
seat hockey and concert arena at
Belmont Park for the New York
Islanders.
While this may benefi t some people,
it will create horrendous traffi c
on the already overburdened Cross
Island Parkway. Beginning daily
at 2:30 p.m., there is bumper-tobumper
traffi c from the Whitestone
and Th rogs Neck Bridges, plus terrible
backups at the entrance to the
Long Island Expressway.
Now we will have to deal with
thousands of people going to and
from this arena. While there will be
some improvements to the LIRR,
what is the city planning to do to
alleviate increased traffi c on the
Cross Island Parkway?
New York’s motto seems to be
“build, build, build” without much
thought for the problems it causes.
Linda Imhauser, Whitestone
CITY & STATE DID
GREAT DURING
BLIZZARD
Th e Blizzard of 2018 brought
to Queens heavy snow, cold and
winds, but we came out of it well
thanks to Governor Cuomo, who
declared a state of emergency,
and Mayor de Blasio, who has
kept us informed what is being
done in the blizzard.
I would also like to acknowledge
our police, fi refi ghters, EMS
and our fi rst responders who
helped during this emergency
and neighbor who helped neighbor,
and the Sanitation workers
who were hard at work plowing
our streets and trying to keep
us safe.
Th ese hard working men and
women who are working very
hard and working long hours to
remove all this snow and truly
deserve to be praise for all that
they do.
Frederick R. Bedell Jr.,
Glen Oaks Village
Prevention: The key to
aff ordable and sustainable
health care
BY THOMAS CONCERT, DNPC, MS, FNPBC
I am a board-certifi ed family nurse practitioner practicing
nursing for 13 years. In all those years, I have seen one
particular situation occur again and again. Most people
only utilize the health care system once they have developed
an illness. Th is has led to skyrocketing health care
costs in the United States.
Th e U.S. spends more money per capita on health care
than any other country. According to the 2015 National
Health Disparities Report, almost 45 percent of Americans
have at least one health condition that is considered chronic,
and chronic health conditions were responsible for 75
percent of health care spending, roughly $2.4 trillion.
Th e old adage “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound
of cure” contains quite a bit of truth. Many chronic conditions
such as high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes can
be prevented by increasing access to primary care before
people get sick and actually require services.
Once the damage is done, these diseases are very costly
to treat and can result in a host of other complications.
Th is only compounds the costs of care.
I am asking congressional policymakers reading this to
include a provision for all insurance providers to cover
primary care visits at a rate of 100 percent in any repeal or
redesign of the Aff ordable Care Act.
According to the Kaiser Foundation 2016 Employer
Health Benefi ts Survey, 67 percent of covered workers
have to pay a copayment for a primary care visit, with the
average health insurance-covered worker spending $1,221
in out-of-pocket expenses in 2016.
For most Americans, choosing between payment for
food, medication and primary health care visits is a real
burden, one that should not have to be entertained.
Promoting positive changes to the Aff ordable Care Act can
assist with elimination of copayments for primary care visits,
thereby preventing patients from developing a more
serious illness.
Insurance companies, the primary opposing stakeholder,
might oppose this proposal because having to cover 100
percent of a primary care visit would cost more money.
Th is is not necessarily true.
Let’s evaluate people with high blood pressure as an
example. According to the Agency for Healthcare Research
and Quality, the U.S. spent about $50.3 billion treating
patients with high blood pressure in 2014. $15.8 billion of
that amount was spent on inpatient hospitalization and
$3.1 billion dollars on emergency room visits.
By preventing these visits from occurring, health insurance
companies could incur a potential savings of $18.9
billion that could be used to cover the cost of primary care
visits. Th e potential savings from one health condition
almost covers the total cost of all primary care visits for
patients with high blood pressure that same year, which
was $26.9 billion.
With the potential repeal of the Aff ordable Care Act on
the horizon and many people at risk of losing insurance
coverage, the need for preventive care is more important
than ever. Th e population is aging.
According to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid
Services, in 2015 we spent $9,990 per capita on health
care. Th at number is projected to grow to $16,032 by 2025.
Th ese rising costs are unsustainable. If we do not do something
to get the cost of care under control, our country’s
fi nancial health will become as much a concern as our
physical health.
Th ere are steps the public can take today. Contact your
congressional representatives. Ask them to support 100
percent primary care visit coverage to facilitate better
access to health care services. Th is small investment of
time today is an investment in your own health and the
future of the health care system in the United States.
Email your letters to editorial@qns.com (Subject: Letter to the Editor) or
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not be considered for publication. Th e views expressed in all letters and comments
are not necessarily those of this publication or its staff .