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June 29, 2017 Golden Valley News
Page 3
Truck crashes on 1-94
Firefighters attend to the scene of a semi-truck crash between Beach and Home On The Range on
No additional information about the crash was available as of press time. (Photo by Jenae Orluck)
Interstate
94 on
June 25.
| •
im
!
To the editor:
As a practicing pediatrician in
North Dakota for the past 37 years, I
have provided care for thousands of
children in the Bismarck area and
across the state. I've seen firsthand
how important it is for families to
have health insurance coverage so
that they can get their children the
care they need.
Medicaid is the single largest
health insurer for children in our
country. Here in North Dakota,
Medicaid provides health insurance
for 36,000 children, 20 percent of
whom have special health care
needs.
Just like children depend on
Medicaid, pediatricians like me and
other healthcare providers also rely
on the program. It helps us ensure
we can treat and care for every child,
regardless of their parents' income.
hi
The Medicaid cuts under consid-
eration in our nation's capital would
fundamentally change the Medicaid
program that so many depend on to
keep their families healthy. Thou-
sands of North Dakota kids, seniors
and people with disabilities will
struggle to afford the care they need.
Proposed block grants to states
means trading our families' health
away in favor of tax cuts for the rich.
As a pediatrician, I know we
need to make improvements to our
health care system, but slashing
Medicaid coverage for those who
need it most is not the way to do it.
If you believe that all children and
families should have access to med-
ical care, please contact Sens. Ho-
even and Heitkamp and urge them
protect the vital Medicaid program.
Dr. Stephen McDonough
Bismarck
Feds, N.D. taking different tacks in drug war
While North Dakota policymakers
have been advocating less incarcera-
tion for drug crimes, Attorney Gen-
eral Jeff Sessions, in an
opinion-editorial piece in the Wash-
ington Post, said last week that it is
time to get tougher.
While some may disregard the
message because of the messenger,
Sessions is firing a shot across the
bow of states that deserves consider-
ation, especially in North Dakota
where the idea of rehabilitation in-
stead of incarceration has taken the
center stage for the past two years.
Sessions points out that drug-re-
N. D. Matters
By Lloyd Omdahl
require years of intensive casework
which in itself will be costly in the
short run.
The idea that we have incarcerated
a bunch of folks who are eager to be
transformed begs to be challenged. I
do not have statistics but I'll bet that
those who are in prison for drug-re-
lated crimes are there for trafficking
more than for simple possession.
The nature of the prison popula-
lated murders have increased; less tion has changed considerab!Y since I
than three percent of federal offend- served as a secretary for the State Pa-
ers were imprisoned: for sim~ie drug role Board back in theBill Guy ad:
possession; plea bargaining has tem- ministration. However, I learned a
pered commitments, and overdose couple of enduring lessons.
deaths have increased substantially. It The Parole Board met for three 3-
is a safe bet that his observations are day sessions each year, hearing al-
applicable to the North Dakota most every prisoner who would be
scene, eligible for release. Before each pris-
Budget restraints in the last ses- oner appeared before the board, the
sion prevented North Dakota from warden would provide us with a crim-
significant implementation of the inal history.
dream of saving millions of dollars by From the "rap" sheet, it was obvi-
moving convicts out of incarceration ous that almost every prisoner had
and into rehabilitation programs, worked long and hard to get into
Unfortunately, our enthusiasm for prison, spending years in city and
rehabilitation is based not on the county jails before graduating to the
premise that these people need to be state penitentiary.
restored to society but that millions of These "rap" sheets included only
taxpayer dollars could be saved. Well, those crimes known to the criminal
it isn't going to be cheap, justice system. Chances were very
Rehabilitation is not a quick fix good that numerous crimes had gone
that will result in immediate savings, undetected and the "rap" sheet listed
Changing the orientation of people only those known by law enforce-
who have been in the drug trade will ment. In other words, the "rap" sheet
was the tip of the iceberg. The same is
very likely true about the prison pop-
ulation today.
Before we begin releasing prison-
ers with drug violations, it will be im-
portant to know and understand the
reasons they worked their way into
prison in the first place. Those rea-
sons will need to be dealt with before
any meaningful rehabilitation is
going to happen.
Unless parolees demonstrate a
clear willingness to adopt a new
lifestyle and new friends, they will go
back to the most profitable profession
they know. Recidivism will be higher
than for other crimes.
,Angned with the facts, Attorney
General Sessions says "enough is
enough" and will be enforcing a hard
line. On the other hand, North Dakota
is still touting early release and reha-
bilitation.
It will take at least 10 years of sta-
tistics to discover which approach
was most effective.
Van or Bus Service
Billings County
Golden Valley County
Distance of 160 Miles
CALL: 701-872-3836
Our board meets at 9:30 a.m.,
first Tuesday of each month at
701 S. Central Ave., Beach.
The public is invited!
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