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Show Free Press - Wednesday, Feb. 24, 1988 - Page 2 You can't kick reporters out of meetings Those folks in Beaver must like to do things the hard way. Why else would they throw a reporter out of a meeting because they didn't like the way he reported the news? This recent incident is a good example of what happens when small minds try to come to grips with a great principle. Very few elected officials are completely happy with the way the news reports their activities, for a variety of reasons. Sometimes the reasons are good ones. News reports have a tendency to simplify very complex questions, and that can be frustrating for someone behind the scenes. But they also get angry when they are reported accurately because they would prefer something they said in candor not be made public. In Beaver, the officials claimed their activities were being distorted through the press. If he says no, he creates an animosity that could last a lifetime. If the officials get mad enough they can misuse their right to hold closed meetings, keep the reporter in the dark about important issues, and circumvent the intent of the state's open meeting law. But they can't kick him out of the meeting just because they don't like the way he does his job. They can't even kick him out of the meeting if he prints deliberate lies about what they do, or if he calls them horrible names in print. Utah's Open Meeting act ensures that, and Beaver city officials are certainly learning that lesson as well. There are countries where only government-approve- d news is printed. This isn't one of them. Everyone, especially the residents of Beaver, should be happy of that. In order to clear up the distortion they voted to do something they can't do even if everyone votes for it to expel the reporter from the meeting until he could tell his story the way the council wanted it done. The reporter's version of this story is that the council did or said something the members didn't want to be reported to the general public. The editor wrote the story as it happened anyway, and incurred the anger of a city council who preferred to avoid public scrutiny. The same thing has happened to most reporters at one meeting or another. It starts when a sensitive topic is discussed. Then a member of the council or commission or board turns to the reporter and asks, in a tone that sounds slightly conspiratorial, "We can keep this out of the paper for now, can't we? " If the reporter says yes, he's entered into an intrigue that is likely to get more and more involved with time. - It's time to start getting ready for Spring The doors to the office are open to let the sunshine in today. "Leave the door open," we yell whenever anybody comes in. And to think just last week we were shouting at our children: "Do you think you live in a barn'.' For heavens sake, close the door." No wonder our children are confused. Just when they finally learn to close the door to shut out the blizzards and cold, we start hollering at them to "leave the door open - let the sunshine in." Feel like playing jacks? Jump the rope? Are you itching to get out on the golf course? Isn't spring wonderful? Of course if the weather is true to form, we'll be making a fire in the fireplace next week. Folks are busy perusing the seed catalogues, and the ladies of the houses are planning their spring wardrobe. Out with the wool and in with the cotton! Spring is only a day away. One of the scary things about spring is the annual house cleaning mess. Some ladies think of house cleaning as a crusade. clean They wash windows, beat rugs, polish wallpaper, you better believe it By BETTY FOWLER woodwork, paint, paper, scour and scrape and then they won't let anyone in the rooms they've just cleaned. They put a sign on the door saying, "Please Remove Your Shoes Before Entering" and "Please Go To The Back Door." They clean cupboards and wash their best china. They rearrange the rooms so you can't find your way around the of control around here. And how much did you spend on the new rug? Did you have to buy new sheets, curtains and towels? How much is that gonna set me back?" house. I have a friend who moved the this time of year. Basketball is over; when her bedroom furniture husband wasn't home and guess who got the stubbed toe? Nope. She did. She forgot that she'd done the dirty deed. Then she was furious with her husband for not warning her. She yelled at him because it wasn't him who got the stubbed toe. But she's still not through with the spring cleaning bug. She has to clean the attic and the basement. She has to makes many decisions about to keep and what to give away. Little wife and mother gets very ornery. Then Dad chips in, "Well - what did you do with my 1925 Hupmobile radiator cap? You know - that pure brass wings with a thermometer in the center? "Oh no! Oh no. You didn't give that to the D.I.? And what did you do with my gray flannel overcoat? It was motheaten so you tossed it? Oh no. You don't love me anymore do you? How could you throw those things away. Things are getting out Husbands are downright testy at baseball hasn't started. The car needs washing and the snow tires need to come off. Wives chores, even house cleaning, can't hold a candle to hubby's chores in measures of importance. All the little woman has to do is stretch out the hammock, fix a pitcher of lemonade, fix some fried chicken and strawberry shortcake and everything is okay again. But, in the meantime - watch out. She's out on the lawn squirting off the bed springs with the garden hose, and she's in the mood to turn that hose on whoever comes near. Yeah, even with daffodils, tulips and lilacs, spring becomes a battlefield. Just get out the roller skates, the golf clubs, and the garden hoe and things will be okay again. Unless your team loses the first night of the tournament, and before Dale Murphy hits the first home run the season. a, Dinosaur exam was fetal attraction It was a case of fetal attraction at Fork American the Hospital Tuesday afternoon as dinosaur eggsperts and a lot of news people gathered to see what was inside a egg that could hold what's left of a baby Allosaurus. A source at the hospital who begged to remain anonymous quipped that it was appropriate that the dinosaur egg be examined at the home of the Caveman during this, the year of the dinosaur. Before the test results came in, some of the news folks were asking the paleontologists to count their dinosaurs before they hatched, with what-if-thi- s and what-if-thqueries that would give answers they couldn't use by the time the results the editor's column By MARC HADDOCK million-year-ol- d egg, maybe is a lot came in. better than nothing at all. But when you are a newspaper There was a "new father's waiting we lingered for each scan to come in, hoping for something substantial. "Is it a boy or a girl," someone asked when the radiologist came in with one of the scans. And then there it was, maybe, a small outline of what may be an embryo or what may be something else. When you are a scientist looking at thp fossilized remains of a 150- - person, you want facts, and you want them now. I'm a newspaper person now. But I started out wanting to be a paleontologist, and to spend my life looking for things like that egg that offered its prehistoric mysteries to the technology of modern medicine Fork at American Hospital yesterday. When other kids wanted to be a policeman or a fireman or a spaceman, I wanted to be a room" atmosphere as paleontologist. For one thing, it flattered me that most of them didn't know that a paleontologist was. For another, I found that fascination in dinosaurs that children are still finding today -a fascination with the fantastic. I was mesmerized by these monsters of immense proportions that walked the earth so long before my kind came along, and which endured so many millions of years. I played with plastic models of dinosaurs. I read books about them and about the people who made it their business to track down the fossilized evidence of the earth past creatures. After my friends had given up on becoming spacemen, I still thought about becoming a paleontologist -for a while. Other interests came, but I was still fascinated by the skeletons of dinosaurs I would see assembled and displayed at BYU and other museums. How, I wondered, could anyone have the patience to piece together a puzzle that large? And how did they know where each piece of the puzzle fit? When I moved to Emery County, I discovered the Cleveland-LloyQuarry, where the egg is question was uncovered. d There's a small museum at the site, for anyone interested enough to travel into the desert to see it. There is one of richest caches of allosaurus and camptosaurus bones in the world. What the Cleveland-Lloy- d Quarry lacks in diversity, it makes up for in quantity. From time to time I would make my way to the quarry site for some solitude. I would kick around, but never find any fossils. It didn't take long for me to realize I would have been a lousy paleontologist. I don't have the patience, nor the qualities of observation, that are the necessary ingredients for a good dinosaur hunter. The clues are too subtle, like the shadow in the CT scan of the dinosaur egg that may or may not be the remnants of an embryo of a creature no human eye has ever seen alive. It's nice to know that dinosaurs continue to command our attention. The number of television cameras and reporters at the American Fork show attest Hospital's to that. And the was it exciting radiologists could find something after all the effort, even if no one is yet sure what it is. At least no one had to go home with egg on their face, so to speak. There's no sure bet with insurance I have promised myself on several occasions that I will write a column on insurance. Twice a year I receive my bill for insurance on my car. This always come in January and July. After we pay it our family goes on diet of beans and what is left of our year's supply. Some time ago, my wife and I become extravagent and drove over to Orem to dinner. When we came out of the cafe, someone had sideswiped our vehicle and drove away without reporting it. I took the car to our insurance agent and I explained what had happened. Like most salesmen he was very pleasant and cooperative. He sat me down in a nice padded chair while he studied his bible. At least, it looked like a bible. He made some notes and closed his bible. He then called for an assistant and together they went out and examined the vehicle. After a whispered conversation, broivsinq By TOM B GRIFFITHS thousand dollars. The manager was amazed and put it down to beginner's luck. But he figured he would give him one more chance. He gave him the name of a wealthy realtor who had never purchased an insurance policy. So he set out with his papers and little bottle. He was gone all day and as evening approached he returned to the office. He had a gallon jug in each hand. He laid the little bottle on the desk and a policy for a half million dollars: He 'then explained the jugs. "After I got this policy, I had some time on my hands so I went out to Geneva Steel and sold them a group policy." I could never get Leo to vouch for the truth of this story. If the story sounds a little risque, please blame it onto Leo. Of course the insurance companies have their problems too. For example, a lady presented a claim for $1200 for loss of some jewelry. The company paid the claim, then they received a letter from the woman that said, "I found my jewels and I didn't think it fair to keep the money and the jewels so I think you will be pleased to know that I sent the $1200 to the Red Cross." Then there was the woman whose husband recently passed away. She said she was going to take out some insurance on herself because her husband had such good luck with his. they returned and notified me that my claim was legal and would make a check for the estimated damage. With the check in my hand, I left the office rejoicing that I had such a cooperative insurance company. However, after checking several bids to repair the damage, I found I was short $80 for the repair job. Many interesting stories are told about insurance companies and their agents. One of my favorites was told to me by my departed, beloved friend Leo Nelson. This young man had graduated from the BYU and was looking for a job. He was not the usual type of young he could man, he was a sell ice boxes to the Eskimos. He applied for a job at one of the leading insurance companies. The manager was impressed with him and decided to give him a try. He gave him the name of a local banker who had the reputation of being a tightwad and none of his aents could sell him a premium. He gave the young man the necessary papers and also a little bottle for a sample for the physical if he were successful. The young man was back within an hour. He laid the little bottle on the manager's desk and also a premium for several mmmmmm. . . Reading a metropolitan newspaper is like eating, a restaurant meal - you pick and choose from what's offered. But reading the hometown weekly is like d meal - a bellow doesn't eating a good home-cooke- want to miss a thing. f Seniors misunderstand Medicare Senior citizens who depend on Medicare to absorb their medical costs often misunderstand exactly what services and charges are covered, and may end up paying much more of their medical costs than they expect or can afford. American Fork Hospital recently " a sponsored financial seminar to help educate seniors citizens about Medicare and other topics of concern. Throughout the year, AFH offers and supfree Medicare-Medicai- d plemental insurance counseling on an individual, personal basis by appointment at the hospital. "Many people have misconceptions about Medicare," explains Reimbursement Lange, Terry Director at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, who spoke at the conference. "For example, many seniors think that Medicare will cover whatever their doctor charges for his services, and that the $540 hospitalization deductible is a yearly amount. Both of these assumptions may be in"peace-of-mind- correct." According to Lange, there are two to Medicare. Part A, which parts every senior citizen on Medicare automatically receives, covers inpatient hospital care and skilled nursing facility care. With this coverage, there is a $540 deductible which the patient must pay per benefit period, which is not yearly, but any time the patient has been out of a hospital or skilled nursing facility for 60 consecutive days. In addition, Lange explains that after the patient has been in the hospital or a skilled nursing facility for a set number of days, he must and pay a substantial eventually the entire daily cost. Part B of Medicare coverage; which is optional and at an ad-p- r ditional cost to the recipient, covers doctor's services, hospital care and durable medical equipment. Medicare covers 80 percent of its approved charges for these services, after a $75 annual deductible. Lange is quick to emphasize that "medicare approved" charges maybe far less that the amount a doctor actually bills. Physicians either "accept assignment," which means that they accept Medicare-approved rates, or they do not. If a doctor does not accept Medicare-approvethe rates, patient must pay for the difference in actual cost. If he does accept these rates. Medicare pays 80 percent and the patient pays 20 percent. As an example, Lange illustrates that a patient may be charged $10,000 for a back operation (no neurosurgeon in the state of Utah Medicare, accepts assignment). however, may only approve $2,300 for this procedure, and will cover only 80 percent of this amount ($1840). The patient is left to pay the balance of the Lange encourages Medicare patients to ask a physician if he rates accepts Medicare-approveBEFORE receiving treatment, to confusion avoid and misunderstanding when the bill comes. Lange cautions, however, that for force all governmental physicians to accept assignment would not be wise. "Although this may sound good to Medicare patients, it would lower the quality of health care in the long run," he says. d 00. d to some According Lange, "Medicare approved" rates may be less than what a physician should reasonably be expected to charge for quality medical care. All hospitals, by law, accept Medicare-approverates for their At American Fork services. the emergency room Hospital, doctors and radiologists also accept assignment. To help cover medical expenses, a good supplemental insurance policy can be invaluable to Medicare subscribers. Lange cautions, however, that the language an insurance specific policy uses is critical. A plan that covers "100 percent Medicare Approved charges," or "100 percent usual and customary charges" will not cover the actual medical bill in many cases. Only a policy that covers "actual charges" will cover the entire bill from a doctor who does not accept assignment. AFH is happy to answer any Medicare-Medicaiquestions about insurance and ... supplemental policies. For an appointment, call the hospital at d d 756-600- Time to replenish your food storage! P7 tadtatX '1.4 X openX 4k vijjfiL! 'jA Ta X x Per spinto sic no shell lite av.tab1e V4 on almost all c. XpliK Rolled Oats I uiu items 50 lbs. 18.99 |