Letters to the Editor: Don't let Ottawa Impact ruin our prosperity
Don't let Ottawa Impact ruin our prosperity
In 1988, I left a 20-year General Motors career to immerse myself in Holland industry. Why? I was enamored with the “can do” attitudes and what I thought was the West Michigan competitive advantage, the famed work ethic. What I found a decade or so later was that the work ethic was strong, but it wasn’t the “secret sauce” unavailable elsewhere. Twenty years of involvement in regional economic development along the Lakeshore has convinced me that the trust we have for each other, both in business and in government, is that irreplaceable competitive advantage. If you’ve not lived and worked elsewhere, you might not know how rare and powerful that cross-business trust and its resultant ethical and philanthropic behaviors are.
Ottawa Impact does not trust us. Their violation of transparency commitments, their refusal to speak with local media to explain their positions, their barring of unaligned commissioners and their voices from committees, and their unrelenting (at all costs) attacks on qualified health professionals have time and again demonstrated that their trust is limited only to those who salute the Ottawa Impact pledge. These consistent behaviors are seriously eroding community trust throughout your county. Ottawa Impact is in the process of removing your competitive advantage. They are removing the keys to your continued prosperity. Don’t let this erosion continue.
Dan Bourbon
Park Township
Do more to fight the obesity epidemic
Our nation's policymakers continue to dismiss an ongoing health epidemic: people living with obesity. Unhealthy weight leads to chronic illnesses that put a strain on our healthcare systems.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Access to medications (AOMs/ anti-obesity medications) can be made available through Medicare Part D with a simple stroke of the pen.
The list of potential comorbidities related to higher weight/BMI ranges from kidney damage to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and stroke. A study released by the National Institute on Aging in 2022 shows that obesity rates among adults over 65 have almost doubled since the 1990s, and it is the second leading cause of preventable death in our country. Either personally or your friends and family members may struggle with one or more of these diseases related to the disease of obesity.
In the private sector, medication is most likely accessible to those in need. But to those over 65 with Medicare, medication is denied and the financial burden of treatment is out of reach. Why should they be denied access to a medication that has the potential to save their lives? We need to look past the stigma of unhealthy weight and recognize it as the treatable disease it is. Allow healthcare coverage of AOMs by contacting your lawmakers and making your opinion known.
Elizabeth Pell RT(R)
Retired healthcare, Grand Haven
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Letters to the Editor: Don't let Ottawa Impact ruin our prosperity
