Readers Write (May 7): 2011 shutdown, the Legislature, light rail, health care

The article about the 2011 shutdown (Bill for '11 shutdown comes in extra costs, road delays," May 3) was long overdue. The overwhelming cost is not a surprise.

Why? Because projects were started, then stopped; heavy equipment and construction materials were moved multiple times; skilled workers were hired, then laid off; equipment was idled; fabrication orders and shipments were disrupted; project schedules were delayed and needed redrafting, and the traveling public was inconvenienced.

The costs will eventually be reconciled, but taxpayers will pay, and the damage done to Minnesota's competitive reputation will take years to repair. Do our elected officials not understand that Minnesota has to compete with other states for business?

Before this session adjourns, let's hope that cool heads prevail and that progress is made -- creating economic opportunities and Minnesota jobs.

DAVE SEMERAD, ST. PAUL

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As this session and biennium come to a close, I write with great urgency to point out an issue that will have unfortunate consequences if not addressed by the Legislature and governor before the end of session.

One survey estimates that infants and toddlers are sick an average of 23 days a year. But under the cuts passed last year, for working families in the program next year Minnesota will have to reduce the number of available "sick" care days from 25 to 10.

No exceptions are provided for children who are chronically ill or for families with special circumstances. When the 11th day arrives, parents may send the ill child to child care -- an obvious public health risk.

Federal funds are available to the state to completely cover the cost under Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

Bipartisan support exists to revisit and remove this unwise cut: Sen. David Hann and Rep. Jim Abeler, Republicans, are chief authors of the bill to fix this problem this year, along with coauthor Rep. Nora Slawik, a DFLer and a leader in early childhood policy. But for unknown reasons, the bill has not passed.

If we can delay the end of the legislative session to work out solutions for a treasured Minnesota sports team, surely we can find time to fix this dilemma that harms our greatest treasure -- our children.

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The Southwest Transitway just issued a video titled "A Virtual Ride on the Southwest LRT from Eden Prairie to Target Field."

It shows a flyover of Interstate 494, a flyover of Hwy. 212, a flyover of Crosstown Hwy. 62, a 3,000-foot-long bridge over a wetland in Minnetonka, a huge park-and-ride facility in Eden Prairie, a flyover of the Cedar Lake Pkwy. (a structure that will be visible to most residents of Cedar Lake and Lake of the Isles areas), and a tunnel under 7th Street north of the incinerator. All of this, plus the relocation of the freight rail from the Kenilworth corridor, is supposed to be covered in $1.25 billion in capital costs.

No way will those funds cover these expenditures! Nor will the money cover the mitigation that will be required to meet the needs laid out in the draft environmental impact statement, including maintenance of bike and walking trails on the Grand Rounds, traffic congestion in the Lake Street/Excelsior Boulevard corridor, and protection of our parks and neighborhoods.

This study is 18 months late, and the choice of a contractor to start the preliminary engineering that will define the capital costs has not yet occurred. Time to send this project back to the drawing board and stop spending taxpayer money to generate propaganda.

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The May 2 article "Feds award $15M to Minnesota community health centers" was a silver lining amid bleak health news last week. Community health centers allow underserved people access to health maintenance, and these clinics are under huge financial strain.

But despite this boon from the Affordable Care Act, at least 250,000 Minnesotans will remain uninsured at full implementation, with more underinsured. Thus, many of our neighbors will miss out on appropriate screening and will leave conditions like diabetes and hypertension undiagnosed or untreated. The consequence is a less healthy populace that suffers from great disparities in health outcomes.

We impose barriers to accessing clinics, then cry foul if patients overutilize emergency care. We talk about eliminating waste and fraud but give insurance companies carte blanche to spend premiums on claims denial, executive pay and lobbying, instead of on health care. So while I applaud community health center investment, deeper change is needed.

We are the global outlier in health spending and disparities. The majority of Americans favor a Medicare-for-all approach. A state single-payer system would save $1,200 annually for the average Minnesota family, according to a recent analysis.