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Show lm Sunday. April S3SS r (QHotiaucd from Page U2) J. bstdy pay for themselves. ' But Houlihan said bis home has stepped taking Medicaid patients white m tries to find new space for people being displaced by the oew uau. He said he couldn't out moving some no other hit "'Despite growing amplaints sdut abrupt disruptioas of fragiie lives, the wdustry argues that subacute is a powerful engine for Medicare stashing hospitalization costs andootan effort to abandon the traditional nursing home patient. "Nursing homes are quickly clipping themsel ves to offer postoperative health care that costs almost haJf as much as what's offered in a hospital, said Linda spokeswoman for Hiie American Health Care Association, the nursing home lobby She echoed an argument the industry has been making on Capitol 'HjJJ, where the new Congress is looking at ways to contain spiralis Medicaid and Medicare costs . . : also said advo- DeRuvo-Keega- n cates for the elderly should look teyond nursing homes to the growing number of alternatives to traditional cursing home care, which are popping up to catch the great wve of graying baby boomers ' 'The advocates aren't looking "at the broader context," she said ' She cited the huge growth of 'home health care programs and so- -' celled ''assisted living'" units, which are being marketed as cozy, alternatives for elapartment-styl- e who need minimal derly people . ernment oversea M ail costs, the subacute sector wants to be considered a separate category of Medicare and get a higher reimbursement to boot. The U.S. Department of Heal and Human Services, she Veterans Administration and more thaa a dozen states are studying subacute care to see if it is, indeed, a legitimate concept. The health department study is expected in June and may lead to a recommendation on whether subacute should be classed as a bonaf-id- e Medicare category . "What the industry wants is to be recognized as a different approach to health care," said Laura Hyatt, executive director of the American Sub Acute Association, which has nearly 1 ,000 members after just two years in existence. But is subacute really different? Douglas Mundt, administrator of Pearl view Skilled Nursing Center in Brunswick, Ohio, said he's already offering therapeutic medical care and other services the big nursing home chains claim is subacute. "They are trying to put in a different billing level for the same services' he said. Thomas Hoyer, chronic care director for the Health Care Financthe agency ing Administration that runs Medicare said Medicare has always provided extra benefits, on a basis, to cursing homes that go the extra mile to provide hospital-styl- e care . care. ' " And critics say assisted living which are booming as 'homes y fast as subacute care are unregulated nursing homes with no rules to ensure that staffers are trained to distribute medicine or watchdog a wandering essen-'riall- Alzhei-mer'syicti- " The state of Maryland is investigating the case of Use Weil, 84, to 'determine whether her death from cranial hemorrhaging in September resulted from a gradual over- "dose of blood thinners dispensed "assisted living" 'by'her 'home. ; 'The assisted living units are "very scary," shuddered Peidre Rye, ombudsman for the District 'of Columbia and an AARP lawyer. r" But while many in the assisted industry want to avoid gov ": ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. For the millionth time, it's -- Maybe. Perhaps. We think. A debate Jhat spans the centuries still fiares between people who would like to see a "r" restored, as in Aiburquerque, and those who like the way things read cow. After all, it is the state's largest city, and they ought to get the spelling straight by this time. The two-people were cored in the very beginning . In 1706, acting Governor Francisco Cuervo y Valdez told the Spanish government he had decided to found an administrative center and he named it after the man who appointed him governor, Francisco Fernandez de la Cueva Enriquez, the Duke of Albuquerque. The place he was duke of, in Spain, is a small farming town close to the Portuguese border. Its name has remained unchanged over the centuries But for some reason the name Alhurquerque does not travel well Other places named for the Spanish town, including a small community in Brazil and a group of islands in South America, near Colombia, have lost the first The issue came up most recently when officials decided to use the old spelling "Aiburquerque" on a pair of trolleys the city bought last year. They thought it in keeping with the historical spirit of the trolleys, which run between downtown and the city's historical district as they did early this century. Politicians and others saw a greater use in the debate. Mayor Martin Chavez says the spelling debate is a great way to stir up pride for the city's rich, multicultural history. "It's doing exactly what I was hoping," Chavez says. "The idea was to get people talking. And even if nothing happens, something will happen because we're talking about our history and elevating awareness of our past." Hispanic author Rudolfo Anaya supports restoring the dropped long-droppe- d 4' " case-byas- e . Hospital reimbursements would have to be cut to reap any savings from raising reimbursements for nursing homes, he said. And he questioned whether subacute was indeed a distinct new category worthy of more money . . "The American Health Care "r" Association last year issued a booklet that said if you're going to be subacute care you have to ha ve a separate door and a separate sign," he said. "Well, a door and a sign don't provide health care at all. They '' provide an image of health care But it'sa lucrative image. . Sheryl Skolnick, health care analyst at Robertson Stephens & Co., said subacute has exploded into a $2 billion industry, with a potential demand as $10 billion in pent-umore hospitals are pressured to release patients quicker. p She said there are probably 0 subacute beds now but pegs demand at 100,000. "The number is growing very rapidly," she said. "The nursing homes are the dominant player." 17,-00- customers and business associates. Our business has become a great success. of luxurious I r "71 " f ' ' V' -- ' ' ' ? "! ' ai If 1 1 IRJ ' te-- V ( ,yinr- "r." lie made his preference obvious utien he titled his 1V92 novel "Aiburquerque." He also plans to name on the side of the new trolley. The spelling has sparked a debate as to whether the city should change its name permanently. most Americans became aware of the furor in the 1987 movie ' in which a bar debate begins alter a bartender asks customers to spell the city's perplexing name. Rox-anne- include a piap of Albuquerque, complete with the restored "r," in his new mystery novel, scheduled for release this spring ." Cartographers, who should . get phone calls ail the time." Anaya says. "They're mostly positive. People say, 'How do we start thi s? Can w e start a club? Anaya says he doesn't have an agenda to see the change through. But his hopes were recently buoyed when state Sen. Tom Bends ides of Albuquerque moved a nonbinding memorial through the Senate in Santa Fe asking the Albuquerque City Council to restore the " know, have had troubles loo. A quick tour through the Albuquerque Museum in Old Town shows several different spellings since the area was inhabited by Spanish settlers in die early 17th century, among them "Alburquer-qui- " and "Alburquerq. " The area didn't grow much in the !6Ws. and in 1680. the Pueblo Indians led a successful revolt that tossed out the Spanish missionaries and colonists in the region. The Spanish reconquered what is now New Mexico in 1691. setting the stage for the establishing of Aibur- "r." The state House of Representatives is considering the same me- morial. Benavides' colleague, stale Sen. Emmit Jennings of Roswell, voted In his novel "Aiburquerque." Anaya suggests Albuquerque. N.Mnicknamed The Duke " City for the old duke lost its "r because a train station master had trouble pronouncing the extra con- . over the years the name changed because people had trouble saying it. 'I he biggest debate centers on exactly who Anglos or Hispan-ic- s - had more trouble with the pronunciation and thus is responsible lor changing the name. Novelist Anaya says the debate might bring people closer when it isconies to solving modern-dasues decreasrapid expansion, ing water supplies and increasing y air pollution. Chavez agrees When one gxrls beyond the obvious levin. "vou can see it touches on vjme verv ' dearly held opinions and beliefs. " Meanwhile, the city 's letterhead remains without the extra "r'-arithe mail still gets to its destination, even with an extra "r" or a "u" or I w o in the w rong place d . querque. against the bill because "so many of my Anglo friends have enough problems spelling Albuquerque die way it is." A lot of people, including tourhave trouble ists and letter-writer- s, with the city's name. But maybe sonant. Historians basically agree that Chavez, who hasn't taken a position says. '"1 was talking to a student about the name change the other day. He said. 'Nobody can spell it the way it is now . so what's the problem with changing it.'" I thought (hat was a very good point." v Easter Extravaganza if a AT 1 I I I A I A j I I 1 I I I I S 1 ' ' 4 Cyndy Wteland steps off Wie trolley outside the Albuquerque Natural History Museum on Feb. 8. City officials decided to restore an "r" m the city's dropped ' " 1 S UNIVERSITY the totes and festivities during the Easter ExtrovoqonLSi ot University MaS, Inter to win 0 shopping spree or 0 battery-powere- d Borq Goucho Mini jeep by guesi- "9 the number of ounces it took to build the tester house. Don't miss Enoy t ! MALL oH j , t"IKI rriDii I 1 1 1 -- oscr unn)r starn9 Aprs) 8th. I 1 ACd'ess I I i A II 1 ! f I 489-573- 2 Environments since 1971 W: f R With our many fine 4 fcj By OCi POLLS Associated Pi ess Writer ! Builder - Pag prwo. Utah. Editor's note: They've got a problem in Yew Met-ic- o that is sorely try ing the reading, 'riling ml 'rithmet-i- c of a good many people who live in the state '$ Urgent city. The question in whether they'll subtract on "R" from AlbuRqueRque, or add one toAibuqueRque. We have just celebrated our 24th year m business. tie I JERAJJJ. two-- R . But those programs mostly cater 'to people who can afford to pay for their dotage, not Medicaid recipi-'lent- s. THE DAILY Oil 5 G know a Nurse Who Made A Difference? r trc il jujiil Community AmerUtn fork iotpiul. 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