WeDneSDay, auguSt 5, 2009

Metropolitan Chicago

Daily HeralD Section 1

Page 11
A

Health care debate continues at rally

By Joseph Ryan and Alissa Groeninger
jryan@dailyherald.com

Six counties in 60 seconds

Panel to issue report: The commission examining the influence of politics on admissions at the University of Illinois plans to release its report Thursday afternoon. Ted Chung serves as counsel for the Illinois Admissions Review Commission. He says the commission will meet for the last time at 3:30 Thursday afternoon in Chicago and issue its report. Gov. Pat Quinn created the commission this summer after news reports revealed the university kept a list of politically connected applicants to its Urbana-Champaign campus and admitted some members over others who were better qualified. Commission members voted last week to include in their report a recommendation that Quinn ask all of the universitys trustees to resign. Two already have. Two beluga whales pregnant: Two beluga whales at Chicagos Shedd Aquarium are pregnant. Shedd senior vice president Ken Ramirez said Tuesday that both female whales are healthy and staff at the aquarium remain cautiously optimistic about the pregnancies. Ramirez says the pregnancies have been progressing normally. The whales that are expecting are 23-yearold Puiji and 20-year-old Naya. Shedds beluga whale Naluark fathered both calves. Shedd officials say the belugas should be pregnant for between 14 and 16 months. Shedd has seven beluga whales. Farmers beware: A government report says cattle cause 20 deaths a year on average on U.S. farms. Most involve working with cattle in enclosed areas or moving and herding the animals. Older farmers are most at risk. The report comes from the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and is based on data from 2003 to 2008. The CDC focused on cattle-related deaths in four
states Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. But cattle pose a danger in Illinois too. According to the Illinois Farm Bureau, Illinois has nearly 20,000 beef cattle farms and more than 1,200 dairy farms. The CDC says farmers should improve livestock-handling facilities to prevent close contact, and take precautions when working with cattle, especially cattle that have been aggressive in the past.

Cindy Anderson of Buffalo Grove says her health insurance rates have tripled in the last three years. Her mother in Phoenix, who suffered a stroke 13 years ago and has diabetes, is too young for Medicare and has been unable to get health coverage since her employer shut down. Shes worked all her life, said Anderson. She ought to have health care. At the other end of the spectrum, Nancy Baron of Elk Grove Village is a teacher with good health insurance. But she is angry for those with bad coverage or no coverage. Health care is a right, not a privilege, she said. Anderson and Baron were among more than two dozen Northwest suburbanites who took a school bus Tuesday from Palatines Countryside Church to add their voices to hundreds rallying in Chicago for President Barack Obamas government-run health insurance proposal. The real silver bullet in this battle is you, U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, an Evanston Democrat, told the scores in Chicagos Federal Plaza. The rally, attended by several other prominent Democrats and reform advocates, is one of the more outward signs of the aggressive lobbying that is now consuming a summer break for lawmakers as Obamas health care plan

Suburban residents gather at Country Side Church in Palatine to board a bus Tuesday to Chicago for a rally supporting President Obamas health care plan.

M a r k B l a c k / m bl ac k @ dai l y h e r al d. c om

teeters. The efforts are aimed at trying to regain an edge in the public debate while focusing pressure on fence-sitting lawmakers, particularly Democrats. Opponents are making an equally strong effort to defeat one of the most formidable attempts in decades to offer public health care coverage to everyone. Schakowsky conceded after her speech Tuesday that expansion backers may be losing public support. She sees this monthlong break as a chance to win back independents. I am concerned that theyve spent lots and lots of effort and money to try to fool the people once again, she said of opponents, including insurance companies. Let this mark the first day of our summer offensive to win real health-care reform in the fall.

The pressure is acutely felt in the suburbs, where Democratic lawmakers have been reluctant to embrace the plan and Republicans are aggressively opposing it. Absent from Tuesdays rally was U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean of Barrington and U.S. Rep. Bill Foster of Batavia, both Democrats on the fence. Beans Schaumburg office has been protested by activists on both sides of the issue. Most recently, she said she was unconvinced the current plan will provide a net benefit to the middle class while reigning in costs. Foster supports the plan in theory, a spokeswoman has said, but neither lawmaker will likely face a vote until some version of the plan moves to the House floor this fall. Meanwhile, GOP representatives Peter Roskam of Wheaton, Don Manzullo of

the Rockford area, Judy Biggert of Hinsdale and Mark Kirk of Highland Park have been vocal opponents, raising the specter of a governmentrun health care system that will ration treatment and hike taxes. Kirk is running for Obamas old Senate seat. Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias is running for that spot on the Democratic side. He helped lead the health care rally Tuesday. At the end of the day, something needs to get done, Giannoulias said after giving his speech. Also among the politicians at the rally was Gov. Pat Quinn, who apparently supports the plan even though some versions could add hundreds of millions of dollars to the beleaguered state budget. He has been pushing an income tax to patch an $11 billion budget hole. This is long overdue, he told the crowd. On Capitol Hill, versions of Obamas plan have been approved by House committees, but more work is needed to get a preliminary version to the floor for a full vote. The House is on a break until Sept. 8. A Senate committee is continuing work on a separate version of the measure. The Senate is scheduled for a break from Aug. 10 to Sept. 8. Obama is pushing for final passage by the end of the year. Daily Herald reporter Ted Cox contributed to this report.

Watch out for bats: State health officials are warning against contact with bats as 37 of the animals in Illinois have tested positive for rabies so far this year. Dr. Damon Arnold says the last several years have shown an above average number of rabies cases in bats. Last year, 103 bats in Illinois tested positive for rabies. Rabies is a virus that humans can contract after being bit by an infected animal, such as a bat, raccoon, skunk or fox. Rabies can be fatal. Arnold says there isnt a way to tell if an animal has rabies just by looking at it. If a bat is found in a home, call an animal control agency. Gaps in Internet use: Spanish-speaking Latinos in Chicago are far less likely to use the Internet than their English-speaking counterparts. Thats one conclusion of a new study on Internet use in Chicago. The report, called Digital Excellence in Chicago: A City-Wide View, is coauthored by Karen Mossberger of the University of Illinois at Chicago and researchers at the University of Iowa. Overall, the study found that 25 percent of all Chicagoans dont use the Internet. In a citywide survey, the study found that only 39 percent of Spanish-speaking Latinos are Internet users. That compares to 79 percent among English-speaking respondents. Disparities between blacks and whites arent large as far as overall use. But fewer blacks have access to the Internet at home.

Victims of mentally ill get new legal voice

By John Patterson
Senior State government editor jpatterson@dailyherald.com

SPRINGFIELD Spurred by the circumstances surrounding a suburban murder, the governor signed into law a proposal that gives victims of violent crime new legal voice when the perpetrators are found not guilty by reason of insanity. Ive been unofficially calling it Jimmys voice, said Barbara McNally, whose husband Jim was gunned down in

2006 by James Masino in Bartlett. Masino was later deemed legally insane and unlikely ever to be mentally fit to stand trial. Hes been confined to a state hospital for treatment. Barbara McNally pushed lawmakers to give victims and their families some say in the process. The law signed Tuesday by Gov. Pat Quinn allows for impact statements at the initial commitment hearings in cases where the defendant was found not guilty by reason of insanity. Obviously, Im pleased

with what we accomplished, McNally said. Sponsored by state Sen. John Millner and state Rep. Randy Ramey Jr., both Carol Stream Republicans, the new law will take effect Jan. 1. Quinn signed the law, one of several he acted upon Tuesday, without comment or elaboration. Other new laws include an immediate ban on child sex offenders driving ice cream trucks or emergency vehicles and 2010 requirements that public schools teach students

about cancer and that high school athletes be asked about family history of cancer. In addition, a testicular examination will be required as part of a sports physical.

Protect Your Brick Paver Patio or Driveway

by having us clean and seal your brickwork.
Our exclusive sealing process: Enhances the natural color of your brickwork
We Guarantee No Weeds or Ants for 12 months!

Prevents weeds, ants and water seepage

SUNKEN PATIO? We also lift and level sunken pavers!

Prohibits erosion, salt damage, stains & more Adds to the value and beauty of your home
SERVICES INCLUDE:

If you have...
Unilock Paveloc Other Brick Pavers Aggregate Surfaces ...then you need Stamped Concrete

www.brickguysgoto.com

SureSeal,Inc.

Acid Bath, Power Wash, Resanding & an Application of our Superior Sealant

847-401-4018
Receive an additional 20% on the sale of your gold, at the stores and hotels listed below. (YOU MUST PRESENT THIS COUPON!)

REFINISH YOUR METAL PATIO FURNITURE

Sandblast Weld Repair Powder Coat Baked on Finish 15 years of quality service & product! WARRANTY WORK Magnetic Insp. Lab
1360 Jarvis, Elk Grove 847-806-6986 Pickup & Delivery Available

Watch an actual gold event on our website!