Letters: Remembering a great sportsman — and an even greater human being
Not all sports stars live up to “hero” status in their private life, but the late NBA legend Bob Lanier truly represented himself and his sport with the highest degree of integrity. I had the privilege of knowing him as a college classmate and following his career since those Bonaventure days my admiration of his many contributions to helping others continued to grow.
Not mentioned in the many tributes and obituaries was his lasting contribution to children. He authored, along with Heather Goodyear, four books in the “Hey Li’l D!" series designed for young children ages 6-10. Focusing on basketball and drawing from some of his own childhood experiences, these entertaining and humorous novels offer many life lessons for young children on how to get along with others, overcome setbacks and be successful. These are timely messages for young children in today’s America. He leaves an impressive record as an NBA Hall of Famer, but an even greater legacy as a human being.
Tom Spencer
South Bend
Remove barriers
In his recent column, Dr. Richard Feldman asserts that the Indiana legislature’s failure to grant patients direct access to nurse practitioners is a positive outcome for the state. We deserve better. Indiana ranks 36th among states in access to primary care and 35th on health outcomes, while 2.1 million Hoosiers lack access to basic primary care.
Indiana faces a real primary care crisis, and 50 years of research demonstrates that Advanced Practice Registered Nurses deliver high-quality, accessible health care that patients need. The physician lobby continues to oppose the modernization of health care in our state to protect the economic benefit they receive from state-mandated physician contracts NPs and other APRNs must hold to legally practice. In return, physicians receive a fee from APRNs to review 5% of their patient charts, retroactively. These contracts provide no patient safety benefit and cost the state’s APRNs and health systems millions every year. Contracts with physicians for chart review typically costs $10,000 to 15,000 per APRN. There are more than 3,000 APRNs in Indiana.
It’s time for Indiana to join with 26 states, Washington, D.C., the Veterans Administration and two U.S. territories in removing barriers to patient choice and access to high-quality care. Patients across the Hoosier state deserve better.
Hollyann Lambdin
Goshen
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Bob Lanier's impressive legacy as a Hall of Famer, human being.
