Last Tuesday I received a phone call from a friend informing me that the Miami County Kansas County Commissioners passed a vote to not apply for a section of the Health Department grant. They voted to not include a $9,000 proposal for birth control pills. The vote was 3 against 2. The three that favored the exclusion were George Pretz, Jim Wise and Danny Gallagher.
I was outraged. (well, honestly I'm still outraged!) Here we are in 2012 fighting for women's rights again and in my front yard!
There is a large outcry from my community. I have always been proud to be a member of a community that cares and encourages one another. This action shows just the opposite of a caring and encouraging community. My call to my community is, "How are we going to respond?"
It is not a question as to will we respond because we must. We must speak up as a community and let our Commission know that this decision is unacceptable.
I am in fear that we are too late. The grant has been turned in and we stand to loose the $9000 for birth control and the grant as a whole. The state has responded that they are unsure if they will grant any of the money requested because the grant was modified. So if the vote cannot be undone. If we loose the birth control pill funding what will our community do? We must become more involved and we must find a way to support the women and children that need this service.
Get involved! We cannot live in fear of offending our employers and friends. The world is moving so quickly (4G speed) and we must act quickly! No longer can we sit back and hope the powers that be will take care of us. We must speak up as a community.
Today at 1pm the County Commission will gather for their weekly meeting. The chambers will be full with concerned (and some supporting) citizens. We will all get a chance to speak our peace (for 5 min). No action will be taken, no response will be given. Because while the commissioners know this is a concern, they have not placed it on their agenda.
I will be asking the commission today to respond and to take action. George Pretz is quoted in the paper saying he does not believe that tax payers money should be used for a private issue such as birth control. And while I completely disagree with him, I challenge him to explain why the Miami County Employees and Commission are eligible to participate in a health insurance plan which offers birth control pills! It is my tax dollars that pay for this plan. While we disagree on the issue, it is my hope that we can agree on fairness for all and this is not fair treatment.
The tax dollars we spent to support the Title X funding to the health department will still be paid by our community. The money will be reallocated somewhere else.
Be mindful and take action.
No comments:
Post a Comment