Letters to the editor: Sept. 25, 2022
Medicaid managed care programs are
essential in treating mental conditions
Re: Sept. 11 commentary, "Lawmakers must help improve rural mental health care."
As the executive director of the Texas Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, I was pleased with the commentary on the importance of Medicaid managed care when it comes to treating mental health conditions.
As social workers, we see and treat a wide variety of mental health illnesses and conditions. It’s important that we not only talk about opportunities for improvement in the mental health space, but we must also recognize existing programs that work to support the mental health provider community.
Social workers participate in Medicaid managed care through the coordinated care aspect of the program. As the piece mentioned, this model is essential when it comes to providing high quality and comprehensive treatment.
Having a system in place that manages communication is helpful to the patient and social workers. We are grateful for Medicaid managed care and we echo its importance.
Will Francis, executive director of the National Association of Social Workers – Texas Chapter, Austin
Maternal mortality rate data is
critical in preventing deaths
The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed nations. Texas is among the states with higher death rates.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just announced that 4 out of 5 maternal deaths are preventable. Despite this, Health Commissioner Dr. John Hellerstedt chose, in an election year, to prevent maternal mortality data from being released on the legally required date of Sept. 1. This deadline of every even year is designed to produce data that can be used to help find prevention strategies. These strategies are often funded by the state legislature, which meets four months later. The data, completed by the hard-working Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee, was available prior to that date.
This data is essential to understanding and preventing future deaths, and the delay has the real effect of causing more maternal deaths. Gov. Abbott should demand this data be opened to the public and legislature immediately.
Diana Weihs, Austin
Money for Abbott's mean-spirited
grandstanding, but not for teachers
Gov. Abbott, in acts of petty vindictiveness, is foisting immigrants on fellow Americans in other states.
He finds funds to bus these people — mostly Venezuelans escaping an authoritarian regime — for other municipalities to deal with.
This is mean-spirited, political showboating at a cost of around $14 million as of mid-August, yet he can't find, or refuses funding to keep teachers in our schools. Educators are some of the most important people in our lives, and we need them. We don't need Greg Abbott.
John Nugent, Georgetown
The officers he knew would not have
hesitated to save the children in Uvalde
I worked as the jailer for a small town in Montana some years ago. We had a chief, four policemen and a sheriff.
I can’t imagine any one of them not going into that classroom to save those children without hesitation, without “the proper training,” without waiting for direction from superiors.
We had a name for those who wouldn’t have gone in. It comes from the back-end of a chicken – and it’s not an egg.
Ron Magnuson, Austin
It's long past time for the state
to legalize the sale of cannabis
When Gov. Abbott and Beto O’Rourke debate on Sept. 30, I'd like to hear Abbott's rationale for keeping cannabis illegal except for a very narrow range of medical purposes, and O'Rourke's reasons for legalizing its sale for recreational and medical purposes.
In fact, I’d like all Democratic candidates running at all levels of government to make the full legalization of cannabis front and center in their campaigns. It’s the right thing to do from a moral and legal perspective, and Texas is leaving millions of dollars in tax money on the table by failing to legalize cannabis.
It’s long past time for Texas to join the majority of states as well as Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands in legalizing cannabis for medical and recreational use. The good citizens of Texas deserve no less.
Lucy F. Petrucelli, Austin
Immigrants aren't political pawns;
they're humans deserving compassion
The actions of Gov. Abbott are despicable and inhumane. Playing politics with immigrants' lives shows an incredible lack of humanity.
They have traveled far, facing hardship to escape problems in their own countries. Arriving in Texas they are loaded on buses and shuttled across the country. This is Gov. Abbott's "Welcome to the United States!"
In case he has forgotten American history, we are all immigrants except for the Native Americans.
Gov. Abbott, you need to have some compassion and empathy. These immigrants are human beings, not pawns in your political games.
Cheryl Keenan, Lexington, Kentucky
Retired teacher surely made a
difference in his students' lives
Re: Sept. 21 commentary, "I'm a retired teacher. I know you can ban books, but you can't ban their ideas."
The Sept. 21 guest column about book banning is a perfect piece of prose. From the dynamic hook, "I was mortified" to the last jarring sentence, "We never talked about it," and everything in between such as, "A ban cannot destroy our creative nature or our need to question or our need to know or our desire to improve what we have."
The writer, a former teacher, did what all good teachers do. He took a nuanced approach toward an issue, and did it in a vibrant, relatable manner.
To this teacher I say, I would have loved to have been in your class. From your article alone, I know your students gained a great deal of insight and understanding, and you made a positive difference in their lives. Thank you.
Valerie Goranson, Round Rock
Why can't Abbott focus instead on the kids
who fall through cracks under state's care
I have a question for Gov. Abbott.
As reported by the Statesman, "[A] federal judge, backed by a U.S. appeals court, has found that a 'combination of unmanageable caseloads and high caseworker turnover creates a ‘cycle of crisis’ that allows children to fall through the cracks," and that "[h]undreds of children under the state’s care have been forced to sleep in hotels and office buildings, sometimes supervised by unlicensed caretakers."
My question: If the governor of Texas can spend millions of dollars putting migrants who seek a better future on buses, why can’t this same governor do a better job of helping and protecting the children of Texas who also hope for a better future?
Joe Pastusek, Pflugerville
A witness to poor driving calls on
Austin drivers to follow the laws
I have been driving through Austin lately and seeing some poor driving.
One recent morning I was driving south on Lamar Boulevard near 35th Street. I stopped in the fast lane as I saw ahead of me a man carrying a pillow and using a white cane for the blind and visually impaired. A car in the "slower lane" was speeding and almost hit him, spinning him around in a circle. That car didn’t even slow down.Another week I witnessed a pedestrian step out into a crosswalk to cross and a car turning right cut in front, causing the woman to put her hands on the hood of the car to stop herself.
Austin has many schools, including those for the blind or the deaf. Please follow Texas driving rules. Be careful!
Irene Muzet, Leander
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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin American-Statesman Letters to the Editor: Sept. 25, 2022
