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Bush Elicits Support for Health-Care Initiative in Battleground Ohio
By Dan O'BrienYOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- It's no coincidence that President George W. Bush's visit to the Mahoning Valley comes only weeks after the presumptive Democratic Party nominee, U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, stumped through the same region.The visit emphasizes just how important Ohio is in 2004 for both candidates, and any Republican swing from this heavily Democratic district would be considered a coup for the embattled president. The latest polls have Bush and Kerry in a statistical dead heat for the White House, and the president's popularity ratings have plunged recently as more Americans begin to question U.S. policy in Iraq and cope with soaring gasoline prices at home.But it's not the total popular vote, as Al Gore well knows, but who wins what states to reach the 271 magic number in the Electoral College. Ohio is one of 16 battleground states where both campaigns and political interest groups of liberal and conservative persuasions are spending millions to affect the outcome. Yet the two candidates' appearances in the Mahoning Valley couldn't have been more different. Kerry's feel-good rally April 27 about jobs was an open air event that attracted more than 2,000 supporters. Bush's visit centered on a closed-door forum on community health centers that included about 200 guests and drew about 100 protestors along Wick Avenue, near Youngstown State University.Local reporters also had limited access to the event, as newspaper reporters were relegated to watching the discussion on close-circuit television behind a makeshift wall in the theater. Reporters had no opportunity to ask the president questions, and neither did the hand-picked audience.The forum, described by a banner hanging on the stage as "Strengthening Health Care," was held at YSU's Spotlight Theater, located in Bliss Hall. Bush was center stage, flanked by three representatives of the regional and national community health center system and two patients who were treated at the Youngstown Communty Health Center.Throughout the 45-minute talk, Bush appeared relaxed and at times jovial -- leaving room for some self-deprecating humor about his bicycle accident over the weekend that left scrapes and bruises on his face. "Do they treat bicycle injuries?" Bush asked the panel, referring to community health centers. The audience erupted into laughter.Bush used the event to shed light on a program that he wants to expand so that a larger portion of the 44 million people in the United States who are without health insurance have better access to quality care. (READ STORY)Paul Sracic, political science professor at YSU and a Republican who ran for Mahoning county commissioner four years ago, attended the forum and gave the president high marks. "He appeared very at ease. It was kind of impressive that he spoke off the cuff, showed good humor and it's an important issue," especially to the aging population of the Mahoning Valley, he said. "He clearly didn't hurt himself today. This is probably a program that people didn't know anything about, and that's an important issue also."Bush told the audience of his plans to increase funding for community health care centers throughout the country to $1.8 billion in 2005, a 57% increase from 2001. The effort would lead to the creation or expansion of 330 more centers.Community health centers provide medical treatment to low-income individuals regardless of their ability to pay. In northeast Ohio, some 40,000 patient visits were recorded last year, said Dr. Ronald Dwinnells, chief executive officer of Ohio North East Health System Inc., which operates community health centers in Youngstown, Warren and Alliance. The number of patient visits is expected to increase to 60,000 this year, he said.Dwinnells was one of the panelists and sat next to the president during the discussion. Thomas Humphries, president and chief executive officer of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, said the president was very focused on the issues and presented solutions that offered more than a "Band-Aid" for the nation's health-care problems. "I was somewhat surprised at the depth he showed," he said.Reid Dulberger, executive vice president of the regional chamber who oversees economic development, said the president's focus on community health centers spoke directly to the concerns of the business community. Area businesses are suffering from the high cost of providing health care to their employees, he explained, and any program that reduces overall health care costs is good for business.Some attending yesterday's event voiced strong support for the community health centers but refrained from endorsing the president's overall policies. "I definitely think the health care centers are on the right track," said Richard Roller, executive director of the Mahoning Youngstown Community Area Partnership. "It's a no-brainer that this is an issue our area would benefit from if there was more funding. They definitely need more support."William Binning, chairman of the political science department at YSU, said he felt Bush's appearance was an indirect response to Kerry's visit last month. "He's talking about health care, but he did not talk about the cost," he said. As Kerry toured Ohio, Binning noted, he deliberately focused on high insurance premiums and its impact on employers and workers alike. "That issue was not addressed. This show today was about action and he did a nice job," he said.Others in the audience thought Bush's plan was on target, and expansion of community health centers is one way of addressing the nation's serious health care crisis.Lori Fitzgerald, a dentist at Youngstown Community Health Care Center, related she sees 20 to 30 patients a day. "We're booked out a month. We can't get them in quick enough."Fitzgerald said there is a growing need for additional funding for these community health centers, while the Medicaid program needs to be more inclusive so more low-income families can qualify for health insurance. "There's huge demand and we need the grant funding," she added. The budget for the Youngstown clinic is about $5 million a year, she reported."I think President Bush is doing a wonderful job. He gets my vote," Fitzgerald said.Ohio North East's Dwinnell said the federal government supplies 25% of funding for community health care centers, and the original intent was not to act as a safety net for the uninsured population. In the time since these centers started under the Great Society programs of President Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s, the number of uninsured has increased dramatically. "It's one way of addressing the health care needs of the uninsured," as those ranks grow in numbers, he said."It's really an honor to have the president here," Dwinnells added.Contact Dan O'Brien at [email protected]"