Letter to Utah Governor Herbert urging a on Veto Nuclear waste amendments

Our Utah State Democratic Healthcare Caucus wrote a letter to Governor Gary Herbert.   I Ryan Scott Jensen Chair the Healthcare Caucus. Our letter is as follows:

Dear Governor Herbert

We represent the Utah Democratic Health Care Caucus. While our caucus was formed under the umbrella of the Utah Democratic Party our membership includes conservative and unaffiliated voters who have a concern about health matters that effect Utahns and the nation. We have approximately 575 members who follow our Facebook page and caucus meetings.

We urgently request that you veto H.B. 220 Radioactive Waste Amendments. 

In 2005 Utah banned the importation of class B and class C wastes and in 2010, out of concern for safety, you suspended shipments to the state. 

What has changed the equation? In 2005 we had 2.5 million residents. By 2020 we will likely have 3.5 million. Is it the $150,000 in political contributions in 2018 that Energy Solutions made to Utah officeholders?

The International Nuclear Workers (INWORKS) studied deaths due to leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma in French, British and American nuclear workers who were exposed to ionizing radiation at work. There was significant evidence of a positive association between ionizing radiation exposure and death from leukemia among more than 300,000 nuclear workers.

Leukemia is generally treated with a bone marrow transplant. The average cost of an allogeneic bone marrow transplant in the United States is around $800,000, while an autologous transplant will cost around $350,000. These patients, if they survive, are still left with challenging side effects from the treatment. 

In a Deseret News article in October 2018, Don Verbica, with the radiation control division, said he didn't believe previous assessments done at the Clive facility addressed the risks posed by depleted uranium metal. He was quoted, “They have to demonstrate that (disposal of the material) will not result in an undue hazard to public health, safety and the environment.” Verbica added that depleted uranium metal is chemically unstable, relatively mobile and pyrophoric, or able to ignite spontaneously. The staff's presentation showed a corroded depleted uranium munition after three years to underscore what they assert is the specific unsafe nature of the radioactive material.

In addition, geologist Stephen T. Nelson and climatologist Summer B. Rupper, both of Brigham Young University, and Kansas State University geologist Charles G. Oviatt, say it is "absurd" for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to deem depleted uranium safe for surface disposal. All three scientists are experts in the geological history of Lake Bonneville, that has periodically covered parts of three states in the past 30,000 years.

“The uranium enrichment waste gets increasingly hazardous for a million years, and that's too long to reasonably ensure the safety of any shallow landfills, especially one like the Tooele County site that is underwater a few hundred of every several thousand years. Those wet cycles could spread long-lived radioactive material throughout the Great Salt Lake basin, the scientists say.” (The Salt Lake Tribune Nov. 7, 2009)

Please do the right thing for current and future residents of our state and veto this bill.

Utah Democratic Health Care Caucus Board

Chairman Ryan Jensen, small business owner

Secretary Karina Andelin Brown, BS, MS (former legislative candidate)

Whitney Duhaime, small business owner

June H. Taylor, PhD, retired

Christine Helfrich, BS, CCRP, retired

Joni Bycroft, BS, MS, retired

Joe Bycroft, IBEW president, retired

Utah Medicaid Expansion work requirements

Allen Christensen a representative from North Ogden Utah is officially the "grinch who is trying to steal healthcare aware from Utahns".   He is suggesting bringing back Work Requirements that don't work and Arkansas is recent proof of that. Christensen is also trying to add annual and lifetime caps, and although the language and exacts haven't been shown to the Utah public yet it is safe to assume it will be similar to Robert Spendlove's "Sandy Utah Representatives" hack bill of Medicaid expansion.

Allen Christensen Medicaid Expansion Grinch

A couple Key issues:

-Work requirements serve as only a barrier to accessing healthcare. You also have to wait on the federal governments approval via CMS which could take a long time to approve, which could cause major delays in coverage and implementing medicaid services. -PATIENTS LOSE!

- Annual caps is a fancy term for block grants for people on medicaid. -Don't have anything catastrophic happen or you'll be capped.

-Lifetime limits. Robert Spendloves bill in the Utah Legislative session during 2018 capped these benefits after 60 months. LIFETIME, meaning once you use 60 months of medicaid during your lifetime you are done with the program for life.

- Allen Christensen's bill will make you sign up for medicaid through the SSN and unemployment office. If you have ever applied for SSN benefits or unemployment in Utah then you would know that 99% get denied automatically on their first request here. Not to mention this type of behavior creates waiting lists and valuable missed coverage time for individuals needing healthcare.

-Removing retro active eligibility- meaning during the wait period you can't back track coverage or get it paid for.


Again this is going off early talks of what Allen Christensen wants through a news media outlet.  He won't show the full language of the bill due to public backlash. Keep in mind last years behavior with Robert Spendloves bill out Sandy Utah during the Utah Legislative session to get an idea, they will be hacking up prop 3 which passed recently with over 50% in Utah.

They will take the axe to the proposition 3 like they are going to do to proposition 4 in the near future and already have with proposition 2 and medical marijuana.

We have to hold these legislators accountable! Allen Christensen is the grinch stealing medicaid and healthcare access. Robert Spendlove has passed the torch to his buddy who isn't seeking re election after this and it's hard to believe that this isn't the reason. His legacy will be creating barriers, restricting medicaid expansion and healthcare should he continue pushing this bill.

Give Allen Christensen and email and tell him not add work requirements, block grants and caps to prop there or medicaid expansion achristensen@le.utah.gov

Ryan Scott Jensen
Chair of the Democratic Health Care Caucus
Healthcare Advocate
Coach
Concerned Citizen

LDS change policy handbook... IS that really a revelation from god though?

There Recently has been multiple reports and many different feelings on the LDS church's new stance on how they view LGTB families and community.

Many members and non members are outraged, it seems this is a very divided subject and topic.

What I am sick of hearing is how the LDS church is justifying their actions with another justification.   I find it disturbing that the LDS church would have to come out with another "insight" or expand on their justification on why they feel this way.

To me it's simple, you spoke and told us how you felt, you changed your company handbook or policy booklet to adapt to the times and are discriminating people. That to me isn't revelation by god, that's man changing his perspective on a view or stance and telling people to follow blindly.

It's fine if you don't want gays, or blacks "in the 80's" or sinners in your church, you finally have spoken and said the truth on how you feel. You don't want LGTB's in your religion. IT's obvious from the money you spent politically fighting gay marriage laws in california, utah and other states which didn't work out for the Church and now the LDS church has had a REVELATION, ironically after they lose the same sex battle on a political and supreme court level they have to reiterate their hate for LGTB's.

Why should children not be allowed to have god in their life?  Even if their place of home isn't ideal for the LDS churches standard? If any person wants god in their life why deny that option?

Before you spout off saying they can attend,participate and be active still..... Who in their right mind would feel comfortable coming to church knowing that everyone is against their family and parents life's? Especially when all someone wants to do in church is worship god and not be judged for lifestyle's and sins. They just want god in their life and to be accepted regardless of their circumstances at home, but the LDS church doesn't believe in that.

The fact that you have already caused family issues and family strains in the past between parents and children, which put children in difficult situations to chose between family or faith is ludicrous and beyond words.

I understand it's against the LDS principles and word of wisdom, I grew up in the religion. But if you're not willing to accept peoples backgrounds, situations and be Christ like with open arms hoping they will change and accept your word of wisdom then people are going to see right through your fake religion and be repulsed by it for the lack of compassion, understanding, love and acceptance that you refuse to show non members. Which will kill your religion, not to mention real Christians give support, love, acceptance and show this to members and non members alike.

Mormons in my opinion are forgetting the "golden rule" of life, all this new policy stuff does is produce more questions about the religion, more hate for the church, and more confusion for families and youth on both sides of the plate.

I am not saying the LDS church needs to change their views, drop their standards and just allow gays to infiltrate their religion nor that Christ needs to lower his standards. I am saying that you should  be able to be gay, straight, black, yellow or even crazy and should still be able to attend church without the scrutiny of members and apostles that are living in the 1900's era with their asinine logic.
 
People just want to find god regardless if they are a child in a LGTB family or if they are a child with inactive parents, it's all the same they want GOD SO ALLOW HIM INTO THEIR LIFE! They should be able to attend the church they chose without scrutiny, they should be able to participate in blessings, baptism's and other events to get the same spiritual feeling as others if they so desire to chose so.  Not allowing people to feel those feelings in a place of church which sole purpose of that establishment to me is discrimination and very hateful. The LDS church is ignoring the golden rule.


Changing a handbook for people to follow isn't a revelation, it's  man changing the game because he doesn't like it! I highly doubt god would only speak to one man about the gay issues we have today.  Simply changing a book that was written hundreds of years ago is not revelation, it's an update to and updated Church policy. Put in place by man for man to follow!

Mark shurtleff and John swallow vacation.

http://www.cityweekly.net/utah/article-77-17547-par-for-the-course.html