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Congress must create
special class of patients
Patients are being denied legitimate refills of prescriptions due to the nature of their disease and its treatment. One such disease is Type-1 narcolepsy, a progressive disease affecting 135,000-200,000 adults.
The established protocol for treating it is non-opioid stimulants on the Controlled Substance list, yet pharmacists routinely question the “legitimacy” of physicians’ prescriptions or the patient’s need of such, placing the patient at severe risk. Untreated or ill-treated narcolepsy can be fatal.
Pharmacists should be duty-bound to provide medications per doctors’ orders, whether a prescribed medication is a “controlled substance” or not. If existing laws or policies are involved, those laws or policies need to be amended or clarified.
Please contact your state and federal representatives to request the creation of a special class of patients so that urgently required non-opioid controlled substance medications will no longer be denied or patients stone-walled at pharmacies.
Rev. Ed Rosenback
Vallejo
State budget neglects
our foster youth
When parents neglect children, the state intervenes: Who intervenes when the state itself neglects kids? In a budget with a $100 billion surplus, California’s foster youth were left out.
For children and families in need of child welfare supports one maxim holds true: The outcome for each child and family depends on the wisdom, humanity and effectiveness of the system of care that they encounter. The governor’s 11th-hour decision to remove modest increases from key areas impacting foster youth undermines the effectiveness of our struggling systems of care.
For years, increasingly attenuated state budgets have steadily undermined our resources, our workforce and our capacity to keep children safe. Another year of denied investment in our most vulnerable youth is negligent. The governor saved 1/10th of 1% of the state’s surplus. For the foster youth most impacted, the cost is incalculable. We must do better for our children and youth.
David Channer
CEO, A Better Way
Berkeley
Trump’s sycophants can
be counted on to lie
Robin Abcarian’s opinion piece (“Let sycophants tell us under oath what really happened,” Page A7, July 6) proposes a fallacy in its title.
Indeed, many Trump sycophants exist. The problem? How is it that you expect a Donald Trump sycophant to relate anything close to the truth? We shouldn’t think “under oath” means anything to inveterate liars. Nearly all of these criminals requested a presidential pardon. Someone who is innocent – and not charged – doesn’t plea for that which they already have. Wouldn’t be that they expected to commit a felony, would it?
Months, years after November 2020, January 2021, one-third of Americans believe, and repeat the lie that Trump foists upon them. While continuously stroking the ego of his fourth-grade intellect, they are all responsible for the lack of attention to issues now facing this country, and ultimately for the turn away from long-term human survival.
R. Cote
Castro Valley
Column reinforces
ageist stereotypes
Michelle Goldberg’s recent column about Joe Biden’s age (“Joe Biden is just too old for voters to reelect him,” Page A7, July 13) is a shocking example of ageism.
Research (“Harmful effects of ageism on older persons’ health found in 45 countries,” YaleNews) indicates that judging people simply by the number of years they’ve lived is harmful, hurtful and unfair. Goldberg could have described how Biden’s job performance isn’t satisfactory.
We all have a role to play in insuring we treat older people with the respect and dignity they deserve. And journalists like Goldberg could play part in turning around negative stereotypes about people over 65.
Julie Freestone
Richmond
Let’s put lives ahead
of right to bear arms
It is time for Congress to pass tougher gun laws and ban all assault rifles.
The mass shooting on July 4 was horrific but unfortunately, these shootings have become all too common in this country. We have had over 300 mass shootings this year alone in this country. The suspect, Robert E. Crimo, was able to buy an assault rifle legally even though he threatened to commit suicide and harm his family in 2019. The red flag laws did not work in this case, and now seven people are dead and a toddler is an orphan.
Enough already – no one should be allowed to own assault rifles and no one under 25 should be allowed to own guns. We need to start putting the lives of our fellow neighbors over the right to bear arms.
Aidan Herp
El Cerrito
Source: www.mercurynews.com