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Show 2 Vernal Expre Wednesday, Nov. 11, 1992 by Jack R. Wallis Savings by sharing An independent study has reported that nonprofit Intcrmouniain Health Care saved $36.7 million during 1990 by sharing services between hospitals. The savings were reported to the IHC Board of Trustees by the accounting firm of Ernst and Young after evaluating nine services that are shared between hospitals. The estimates were obtained by comparing what IHC's hospitals would have paid for the services if they had to purchase them individually instead of as a system. "This report confirms one of the great advantages of operating as a hospital system," says Steven Kohlert, IHC senior vice president. "The benefit to our communities com-munities is that these savings are passed along to patients pa-tients in the form of lower hospital charges." Savings for individual hospitals operated by IHC in Salt Lake Valley were $6.9 million for LDS Hospital, $3 million each for Cottonwood Hospital and Primary Children's Medical Center, $955,000 for Alta View Hospital and $874,000 for Wasatch Canyon Hospital. Consolidation of services in nine areas resulted in the following savings for the IHC system: Group purchasing, $9.3 million. Liability, malpractice and worker's compensation insurance, $7.7 million. ' Data processing, $6.2 million. Joint financing, $5.2 million. Financial management, $1.1 million. Group revenue collection, $3.5 million. Clinical engineering and equipment repair, $2.8 million. Joint equipment supply and rental, $835,000. Central laundry services, $ 1 16,000. If IHC can save this much by sharing services, one wonders what the possibilities are for other organizations organiza-tions to save costs by sharing services. Even though medical services have increased faster than almost any other expense to consumers, it is some consolation to know that one organization is trying to keep costs at a minimum. Volume buying, centralized services that eliminate duplication and costs, and self-insurance programs are areas that need to be explored by more public and private pri-vate entities in an effort to provide cost-effective services ser-vices to the public. PUBLIC FORUM LETTERS TO THE EDITOR What is your opinion? The Express welcomes letters from its readers concerning con-cerning any subject pertinent to the Uintah Basin. There are no restrictions as to contents, if not libelous or vindictive and of reasonable length. Letters must be submitted exclusively to the Express and bear the writer's full name, signature, phone number and address. The name or name of those submitting letters must appear on all published letters. All letters are subject to condensation. Letters express the opinion of the writer and are not necessarily nec-essarily the opinion of the Express Editor. Boon or bungle? Dear Editor: Don't be easily fooled on this new Ouray to Cisco highway. It will most likely always be a white elephant. ele-phant. It will never bring in the revenues rev-enues to pay out in less than fifteen to fifty years, if ever. For many miles on and near that mountain top the wind blows that drifting snow almost constantly. We . will have to have more snow plows and have more men. There will be a terrible expense keeping the road open in winter, which I never hear mentioned by the folks who support the road. The folks who support the road tell us what a benefit it will be to the oil companies. The price of oil is the only thing that will bring the oil drilling rigs back, and when the price of oil is right the drilling rigs will be back road or no road. That is a wonderful country as is, and it hurts me deeply to see its ending, which will be with the proposed pro-posed Seep Ridge Road. I would certainly hang my head in shame if I were a party to such destruction. It is pure vandalism. We badly need that money on our existing roads, and we certainly do not need a Seep Ridge Highway. The list against this highway can go on and on. Benefits are very few and very unsure un-sure which makes it a very risky gamble, and gambling with the other oth-er fellow's money. Let us use our money where it is needed. Please don't sink all of our money in a dry well and destroy such a beautiful and wonderful out-of-doors wilderness wilder-ness country as our Book Cliffs Mountains. I may have carved my name on a quaking aspen, but I did not rip the whole mountain wide open with a gash that will never heal. ALLAN BREWER Vernal Vernal Express (ISSN 0892-1091) Published every Wednesday (or $17.50 per year in shopping area and $28 per year out of shopping area within state and $31 per year out of state within USA by the Vernal Express Publishing Company, 54 North Vernal Avenue, . Vernal, Utah 84078. Second class postage paid at Vernal, Utah 84078. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to VERNAL EXPRESS, P.O. Box 1000, Vernal Utah 84078. Jack R. Wallis Publisher Steven R. Wallis Editor Melanle Morrison Staff Writer Kathleen Irving Staff Writer EricF. Pye Sports Writer Janet D. Wallis .Advertising Marcia Henry .Advertising Judy McCarley Circulation & Classified Ads Maria Olson Legal Notices Phone 789-3511 FAX 789-8690 Member of Utah Press Association and National Newspaper Association Area corrMpondentt Tridell Loma McKee, 247-2350 Lapoint Marten McClure, 247-2552 Whiterooks Virginia Ferguson, 353-4584 Manila Clara Robinson, 784-3438 Deadlines News Monday 5 p.m. Display Advertising Tuesday 11 a.m. Classified Advertising Tuesday 11 a.m. Donations Dear Editor: I am a former Deseret Industries employee, and when I was an employee em-ployee I could not believe what people peo-ple donated. Sacks of grass clippings, clip-pings, trash, dirty diapers, cat and dog droppings. And then on top of everything else, we have a sign that read, "donation "do-nation hours 9 a.m. to 5 p.m." And we had another sign that read, "Any donations dropped off after hours 'encourages theft and does not help the needy." When the weekends rolled around, people would unload donations after hours and then everybody and anybody any-body would have a free for all and take what they wanted. If everyone would do as the signs say, D.I. would be better at serving the public. pub-lic. People don't realize that when people take what they want from in front of the building or off the parking park-ing lot, they are stealing from D.I. and from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We all remember "Thou shalt not steal." So what has happened to us? Many people reported that they had seen lots of people back their cars up and open their trunks and just, start throwing stuff in their trunk and drive off, and many people would not report it to the police when they saw this happening. They would say they didn't want to get involved, but that is what we need, people to get involved. We even had a report of a pickup truck back up and drop its tail gate. Two men got out and with some help loaded a piano and drove off. Vernal, we need your help to report re-port such things to the police at once. Please help us put a stop to this problem. ROD WITHEE Naples One man's opinion Dear Editor: We may soon have a choice of a one-time temporary fix for local existing ex-isting projects at the expense of future fu-ture generations, or a permanent investment in-vestment which could generate continuous con-tinuous income for all local projects, pro-jects, both present and future. A new road south of Vernal is an investment not a "temporary fix," of some local projects. To divert funding fund-ing from this proposed road could be compared to killing the goose which lays the golden eggs. Your elected commissioners are fighting a very difficult battle to make this much needed road a reality. reali-ty. Please support them for the good of both present and future generations. genera-tions. CHETFLEENOR Vernal Highway Patrol Dear Editor: Tuesday of last week at 2:30 a.m., I received a phone call from Rock Springs telling me some friends had slid off the side of the road in a blizzard. bliz-zard. They tried to get them out with no luck. She asked me to get help up there to them. They had been there since 11 p.m. It was a man 75 years old, his wife and two handicapped children. So I called the dispatcher for the Highway Patrol. She assured me they would get help to them. If not, she would get back with me. I didn't hear anything any-thing so I thought everything was okay. These people reached Vernal about 10 a.m. They had never seen a Highway Patrol. There were several trucks passing them, and no one stopped. Finally about 7:30 a.m., a fellow from Vernal came and helped pull them out and get on the road. As it turned out, they were okay. They had a sleeping bag and some quilts, but no thanks to the Highway Patrol. I have always thought it was at times like this when our Highway Patrol and Search and Rescue came in. I am very disappointed in them, and so is everyone I've told about this ordeal. I hope I never have to call them again on anything, as I've lost my trust in them. VENUS LAMBERT Vernal NEW PAIR. OP k JnS PUMP UP SHOES)f THEY'RE Wyfw?) AK REALLY KEATLl jlL - E LE MEHTARY Education Dear Editor: I understand that the article entitled, enti-tled, Enough Is Enough, was submitted sub-mitted to the Vernal Express' Public Forum by a Pat Arakaki, Easter Uniserv's Executive Director, but was disregarded for print. However, her article was printed in the Ute Bulletin, Oct 28, 1992, and the Roosevelt Standard, Oct. 28, 1992. 1 would like to thank these two papers pa-pers for being open-minded and receptive re-ceptive to the opinions of others. I find it very unfortunate that a paper pa-per would chose to discourage free speech by editing and selecting what can and cannot be printed. I am in strong agreement with Ms. Arakaki and would like to respond to her article. I feel my concern is a legitimate one that needs to be heard. I am employed as a Johnson O'Malley tutor at West Middle School. I have worked not only at West, but at Lapoint and Todd Elementaries. Throughout the years that I have worked at West and Todd, I had noticed that whenever we had something good going at West and Todd the district would take it away. During those particular years, West had an administrative staff that teachers, parents, students and I felt were good for our school, yet they were snatched from us and placed in Vernal where they are administrators administra-tors to this day. We've also had good teachers taken from us when the academic and artistic performance perfor-mance of our schools were recognized. recog-nized. It's as if those on the east side want us to fail. Are our schools testing grounds for new, inexperienced inexperi-enced teachers? If they make it happen hap-pen at West or Todd and start a successful suc-cessful program it appears that they have passed an entrance exam into the Vernal schools. We are a part of the Uintah County and deserve to get the same type of education provided pro-vided to our counterparts. We are a good distance from Vernal. Could out of sight, out of mind be in practice? prac-tice? Our schools consist of over one-half one-half Native American students. Could this possibly be another reason rea-son for being the last school considered consid-ered when monies are available and the first when budget cuts are made? Presently we have a dedicat- Current Ussvies fFomm Calls are now free 24-hours a day Question 1 : Did you like the shortened 7-day hunt on the two local deer hunting units? 1. Yes, and I believe it will benefit the deer herds. 2. No, but I believe the shortened hunt will improve the deer herds. 3. No, and it will not help the deer herds. If you would like to voice your opinion about this question, you can do so by calling the Vernal Express Current Issues line: 789-2345 ext. 1. Each local call is free. You can also send in your opinion by checking your response to the question and sending it to the Vernal Express, Box 1000 Vernal, Utah 84078. Results of the telephone call-ins and mailed in responses will be published in next week's Vernal Express. Current Issues is co-sponsored by ATP Inc. Vernal, Utah, 789-5705. Results of last week's question: Question: Should the celebration of Halloween be done away with? 1 . Yes, 47; 2. No, 53; The opinions and issues in the Current Issues Column do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Vernal Express nor its staff. ed administrator and staff at both schools that are doing a good job with what little resources we have. I must also mention that not all school board members feel as Mr. Anfinson does and that we do have support from other school board members, which we greatly appreciate. appreci-ate. Now that I've said all that I'd like to comment on Uintah County School Board member, Gene Anfinson's, untrue statements about our schools being over padded and over-staffed, how could Mr. Anfinson say such a thing when he's visited our school twice and has seen our sub-standard library? Our library is very antiquated and is of very little use to our students. A library is one of the main organs in any school. How can our students receive an adequate education when it lacks the proper facilities to give one? We as parents need to support our schools and teachers who work hard to give our children a proper education. educa-tion. We need to get involved in the education process and vote for people peo-ple who we feel will represent our best interest. What is so upsetting is not the fact that we do not have these things he claims we have. We have gotten by all these years without, but if Mr. Anfinson wants to make this an issue is-sue we'll give him one. We cannot and will not continue to be silent or overlooked. Whether you like it or not, there are many of us that do not support Gene Anfinson. I feel Mr. Anfinson owes us an apology. If he was so bold to go public with such false statements he should also be able to give us a public apology. We don't need the negative publicity. pub-licity. All it does is pit Vernal teachers teach-ers against our teachers, and it shouldn't be us against them when it come to educating the young people, peo-ple, especially if they live in the same county. Those of us that live on the "west side" will be waiting to hear from Mr. Anfinson. If you feel a need to respond to Mr. Anfinson's statements, please do. Write to the Uintah School District, 635 West 200 South, Vernal, Utah 84078. Your voice can make a difference. RAMALDA C. GUZMAN Editor's note: The Vernal Express encourages letters from anyone who has an opinion about something, if the letters follow a few requirements: one typed-written page, refrain from defamation of character, the signature of the author at the bottom, address or phone number of the author, and it must be submitted exclusively to the Express. As was pointed out in Guzman's letter, the Arakaki letter was not printed because it was not exclusive to the Express. Western Park phase three... Continued from page 1 a lease and other documents required re-quired in connection with Uintah County to lease the Western Park Facility to the Municipal Building Authority of Uintah County. The public hearing will take place at 2 p.m. in the Uintah County Commissioner Chamber. The county will lease the facility to the Municipal Building Authority, the county commissioners, commission-ers, because the board can receive a grant from the CIB without losing payment in lieu of taxes. THE VOICE OF BUSINESS HANGING IN THE BALANCE by Dr. Richard L. Lesher, President US. Chamber of Commerce WASHINGTON The North American Free Trade Agreement negotiated negoti-ated by the Bush administration adminis-tration a brings new dimension di-mension to the November elections, for the decision to ratify the pact will be made by the Congress that convenes con-venes next January a Congress likely to include more than a 125 new faces. This affords the American people an opportunity to exercise direct influence upon a critical decision with potentially dramatic implications for our economic future. If the treaty is ratified, tariffs and other impediments to commerce among the United States, Canada and Mexico will be eliminated over a 15-year period. The result will be a unified trading bloc stretching from the Yukon to the Yucatan, embracing more than 360 million people producing more than $6 trillion in goods and services. The potential benefits of such an arrangement are awesome. Already, the Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and Canada is fostering a surge of cross-border cross-border investment and job creation, de-spiieageneral de-spiieageneral worldwideeconomic slowdown. slow-down. Bringing Mexico into the picture as a full and equal partner will provide a powerful stimulus for investment and growth in all three nations. If there is any one single political act that can rouse our economy from its lethargy, leth-argy, and usher in a new cycle of growth, it is the NAFTA. It is most fortunate that both President Bush and his opponent. Governor Clinton, understand the posi tive benefits of increased trade, and are committed to expanding our commerce with Canada and Mexico. The only fly in the ointment is opposition oppo-sition to the NAFTA from labor unions which provide much of Governor Clinton's political support, and will do all they can to turn him against the NAFTA. The unions would like nothing better than to make the NAFTA a bone of contention between Bush and Clinton, and to ma-nipulateClinton ma-nipulateClinton into opposition against it I doubt if they will succeed, not because Governor Clinton is indifferent to their views, but because the arguments for the NAFTA are so compelling. Our labor unions fear competition from low wage labor in Mexico, but the union view is out of step with modem economic reality. The future of menial, low wage jobs everywhere is bleak. They are going by the wayside with or without the North American Free Trade Agreement. Agree-ment. Thecridcal factoristhattheNAFTA will not undermine our most productive, high-wage jobs, and will in fact create more of them. The biggest winner from the NAFTA will be Mexico, because it needs economic eco-nomic development the most, and has the most to gain. But economic growth is not a zero sum game, and Mexico's gain is not our loss. To the contrary, a more prosperous prosper-ous Mexico, which is already the fastest growing market for U.S. exports, augurs well for our economic future. Perhaps more important, a more stable Mexico augurs well for our political future. |