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Show WELFARE COSTS SOAR IN UTAH Welfare costs due to the Ken-necott Ken-necott strike, according to the State Department of Welfare, are now running about $50,000 a month. The copper strike is costing Utah taxpayers plenty. But the figures released by the Utah Taxpayers Association, based on the department's fiscal fis-cal June 30, 1967, figures prove that costs were already running high ibefore the strike. The "Taxpayer Watchdog" organi- . zation released figures showing show-ing that $32,191,226 was spent for welfare in Utah during the year ending June 30, 1967. This is an increase of $10,898,-237, $10,898,-237, or 51 more than was spent during fiscal 1962, a short five years back. Of the record - breaking growth, $3,738,256 resulted from liberalized medical service programs. pro-grams. Medical aid costs are now the second largest item in the welfare budget, topped only by aid to dependent children. chil-dren. Spending for hospitalization, hospitali-zation, p hysicians' services, drugs, nursing home care, eye and dental services now cost Utah taxpayers $8,427,544, up from $4,689,288 in 1962. This amounts to an 80 increase in a short span of five years. The UTA went on to give a breakdown, category by category, cate-gory, of the $32 million spent last year, noting that higher medical costs were only a part ot the story. Aid to dependent children costs last year were S12.2 million against $7.0 mil-Continued mil-Continued on Back Page Here's More About 9 WELFARE COSTS Continued from Page One lion in 1962. This is a 76 increase. The average number num-ber of persons served increased steadily from 17,224 in 1962 to 22,903 last year. Medical costs for aid to dependent children climber from $715,184 to $1,-748,726, $1,-748,726, or 145. Aid to the Aged: An average 4,826 people received aid in 1967, against 7,198 in fiscal 1962, a drop of 33. Total payments went down 23 from $6,604,576 to $5,088,144. Aid to the blind recipients since 1962 dropped from 192 to 155. Spending also dropped, from $174,915 to $165,222, or G. Aid to the disabled costs in the past five years have shot up 42, from $3,174,719 to $4,523,165. Average persons receiving re-ceiving aid increased from 3,404 to 3,533. Medical payments pay-ments climbed 94 from $1,-067,067 $1,-067,067 to $2,065,200. General assistance spending since 1962 has dropped 22, from $1,129,689 to $881,486. However, medical cost:; have jumped 31, from $29,476 to $38,225. Administrative and miscellaneous miscel-laneous costs have skyrocketed 157 during the past five years, from $2,272,538 to $5,-848,088. $5,-848,088. In 1962 these costs were 11 of total spending. Last year the percentage had climbed to 18. The report concluded by pointing out that while Utah's population since 1962 has increased in-creased 8, from 958,000 to 1,035,000, the average number 1 ; of people on welfare has gone j up 11, from 31,765 to 35,116, and total welfare spending shot I up 51, from $21.3 million to $32.2 million. L Every community can have all the welfare that it is will. ing to support. Welfare can : be good, or bad. But if it puts ' a premium on indolence, the I report says, and encourages il- !' . legitimacy, it is vicious and bad in every way. '"I w |