On Monday, March 22, Gretchen Davison, Miss Louisa County, came to the capital to promote her platform "E.A.T. Your Heart Out".  Miss Davison will be representing Louisa County at the Miss Iowa contest this year.  I had the pleasure of sponsoring House Resolution 136 for Miss Davison, in recognizing March as National Nutrition Month. This was Gretchen’s first visit to the Capitol and she said that she enjoyed it very much. She was standing beside me when I read the resolution to the House and she received a generous standing welcome from the body.  I found out later that several people were wondering who the attractive young lady was who seemed to be at my side that day.  I like to keep certain people guessing on such matters.

Tuesday was 4-H Day at the capital and 4-H members from both Louisa County and Des Moines County came up.  I enjoyed showing them the House chamber and being able to spend some time with them.  I always enjoy spending time with people from back home.

I was in charge of five bills to get through the committee process this week.  One, SF 2278, I did not get through the process until the last moment of the last day in the Public Safety Committee, and that was because I did not agree with the language of the bill.  SF 2278 is a bill that gives the Parole Board the ability to grant a parole to people with medical conditions who are serving life sentences.  Presently there are 28 people serving a life sentence that qualify by the medical definition for parole.  The intent is that inmates serving life sentences who are also terminally ill could be cared for in a less expensive manner.  The savings were not identified clearly, and the victims are the ones that I am most concerned about, so I hesitated to move the bill.  The Public Safety Committee Chair and the Corrections Budget Chair both said it was my call.  After much discussion with some Senators from both sides of the aisle and the House Public Safety Committee, I agreed to move the bill out of committee to keep the concept alive.  But the bill’s future is in my hands and to have any type of life will require the following issues to be addressed: 1. A more narrow definition of which inmates would qualify; 2. the type of facility they would be transferred to; 3. the amount of savings to the state; 4. victims to have the right of knowing and having the same right of speaking in front of the Parole Board.  Once again, it is the victims and their families that I am most concerned about.

Senate File 2183 was a bill that I moved through the Commerce Committee.  This bill provides incentives for individuals to obtain long term care insurance by assuring some or all of their assets will be protected.  To be eligible for the Iowa long-term care program, an individual must have a qualified long-term care policy.  The rising cost affects us as taxpayers, also.  One example is when more people are qualifying for Title 19 (Medicaid) and the cost of nursing home care increases, that means that the state's costs increase and so does the cost to people paying for their nursing home care.  SF 2183 will not solve all of the problems, but it has the potential of reducing the number and the cost of people on state aid.

The rising costs of health care, health insurance, and nursing homes continue to challenge us as a state and a nation.  Solving the problem of double-digit increases in health insurance is a complex issue and will require several different changes in our decision-making.  There isn’t a simple fix to the increasing cost of health care, but we must continue to make the changes that will help in the long term.

Controlling health care cost is going to take a concerted effort among us the consumers, the industry, and the state.  From eating healthier, exercising, and being more responsible for our own health, to looking at ways to reduce the number of people on state aid for as long as possible, all are ways to help slow the rising cost of health care.

Until next time,

Tom Sands