Assembly District Candidates Address Senior Needs, Open Space, Lyme Disease

By John Voket

Because legislative hopefuls and incumbents participating in The Newtown Bee’s Candidates Forum October 16 at Edmond Town Hall were able to address only a limited range of questions in the time allotted at the event, the candidates were asked this week to address some additional questions on the topics of senior citizen needs, open space, and Lyme disease.

(Residents are welcome to listen to an audio transcript of the forum at newtownbee.com, or they can tune in to see the forum on Charter’s CommunityVision Channel 12 on October 28 or November 2 at noon or 8 pm.)

The 106th District Republican candidate Mitch Bolinsky and Democratic candidate Lisa Romano; 112th District Republican incumbent DebraLee Hovey and Democratic challenger Robert Dombroski; and Second District GOP incumbent Dan Carter and Democratic challenger Steven DeMoura each responded to the following questions:

1. By 2030, Connecticut’s population of senior citizens is expected to grow by 64 percent — while baby boomers currently constitute roughly one-third of the state’s population. These statistics are likely to influence state-level policy discussions on infrastructure and transportation, nutrition programs, fraud and elder abuse, home medical care, tax incentives, and private insurance issues. What is your greatest concern for the state’s senior citizens, and how do you plan to address it?

2. In 2010, Connecticut reported 55 cases of Lyme disease per 100,000 residents, one of the highest rates in the nation. Some experts believe the actual infection rate is likely ten times the reported inflection rate, and has become a public health issue of “epidemic proportions.” To date, some municipalities in the state — including Newtown — have tried to address the problem and associated issues of deer tick control individually. What role should state government have in attacking this “epidemic” of Lyme disease in Connecticut?

3. Last June, Governor Dannel Malloy signed legislation creating a state open space plan, which is intended to integrate open space acquisitions with existing environmental priorities of preserving critical wildlife habitats and ecological systems. Yet in its 2012 Environmental Scorecard, Connecticut’s League of Conservation Voters asserted that “the biggest obstacle facing the environment remains inadequate funding for our environmental agency, DEEP [Department of Energy and Environmental Protection].” Do you believe the state needs to follow through on its environmental and open space initiatives with more resources and funding to the DEEP?

Below are the candidates’ responses:

 

Mitch Bolinsky

1. Luisa [Bolinsky] and I both have senior parents and face a variety of challenges in managing their care. Recently, we moved her dad to Newtown and in the process, discovered some of the many gaps that exist in home medical care and respite care. I also have encountered concerns from a multitude of Newtown seniors about issues from property tax burden on a fixed income to a lack of accessible transportation services. And everyone is concerned about the current administration’s $713 billion cuts to Medicare. Locally, Newtown did the Planimetrics population study in 2008, showing that our local 65+ age group will nearly double by 2030 (from 2,822 in 2010 to 5,558 in 2030), mirroring the state’s trend. The needs of these residents will increase. Additional services will cost more money. The solution is to create new revenue for the state and local economies, not default to more new taxes. I want to get working on turning around Connecticut’s unfriendly business environment and getting our economy growing again by making it attractive to invest in, grow, start or relocate, 21st Century employers to our state and to Newtown. The key to providing seniors the services they require will be attracting the jobs to get our youthful population growing again with the creation of 21st Century jobs. How do we make this happen? We need to make Connecticut more business friendly so that we can pay for more services.

2. Many towns have studied the Lyme disease issue and have created individual municipal plans to address this important public health issue. Lyme disease affects every corner of the state. I think this would be a great initiative to set a pioneering example of state leadership by pooling resources and best practices in order to hammer out a collaborative solution that works for all affected communities. It’s time the state launched a comprehensive analysis of all towns to help better identify the breadth of the problem, including all diagnosed cases and research into why so many go undiagnosed. Finally, the state could embark on a plan to improve public knowledge so residents can better protect themselves from Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses. I support Pat Llodra’s position of engaging the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) to attempt a deer population study and resident survey in the coming months.

3. Newtown has a longstanding commitment to open space. I would continue that same commitment at the state level. Open space is an important quality of life issue. However, I would look for savings in order to reduce the cost of banking land while preserving open space. As we have done in Newtown, I would also incorporate other strategies, such as land trusts, which would reduce the cost of preserving land while preserving open space. Additionally, I would look to find ways for the state to provide greater flexibility in allowing towns to pursue open space acquisition.

Lisa Romano

1. All of the issues you mention are going to be important as the population of Connecticut ages. I have had comments from voters about transportation and tax relief. I also feel strongly that home medical care needs to be easy to set up if an individual prefers to stay in their home, and assistance should also be available if a senior decides to move to a more manageable residence. Also, it’s going to be important to keep more of our younger residents in the state when they graduate from high school and college, to rebuild our economy and create tax revenue to provide the services that our seniors will need. In Newtown, the Commission on Aging has been working for several years on options for a new senior center. Unfortunately, with the economic downturn of the past five years, this has not been possible yet. I have talked with several members of the commission and have told them I will help in any way I can to solve this. I am committed to meeting the needs of our seniors, to maintain their quality of life.

2. First, we need to ensure more aggressive diagnoses and treatment. I have heard too many tragic stories of doctors not testing for Lyme, with debilitating results for patients. In Connecticut, our first assumption has to be that any unusual symptoms is possibly Lyme disease, and this needs to be part of patient screening. Then, to have more streamlined and accurate testing, perhaps we can set up a state testing center either where patients can come in directly to be tested, or where blood samples can be sent. Also, to prevent the spread of ticks, the Newtown Conservation Commission recommends a installation of “four-poster” devices in areas with large deer populations. This uses bait to get a deer to rub up against an insecticide, which kills ticks on the deer and on foliage that the deer touches as it moves through the forest. Lastly, we do need to raise awareness of how to check oneself for ticks. Perhaps this could be made part of the health curriculum in the public schools.

3. I think that this effort to provide more funds to the DEEP for open space acquisition was unfortunately a victim of the $3.5 billion deficit that Gov Malloy was handed when he entered office. I am sympathetic that he and the legislature had to postpone this funding until the state returns to fiscal health. I am interested in exploring other ways of adding to the state’s open space acreage. After all, historically, individuals donated their land for use as parks and for preservation. We need to encourage Connecticut residents to return to this type of legacy gift to the people of Connecticut. Also, perhaps we can explore public-private partnerships to acquire open space by offering a tax incentive for private companies to purchase open space for the state.

Rep DebraLee Hovey

1. I am concerned for all the citizens of Connecticut. Our youth as well as out elders. The significant burden of taxation here in Connecticut is troubling for all our citizens. It is especially difficult for those on fixed incomes as they have little or no way to increase their incomes and the tax demands continue to grow. In a person’s older age they should have comfort and security, and I have tried to provide that with my votes against government growth and further taxation. That being said, I would suggest that the costs to seniors in the last years of their lives is overwhelming. One way we can provide security for seniors is to have them be able to receive services in their homes. The comforts of having their family and beloved possessions around them makes for higher quality of life. Providing less expensive prescriptions and home health care services are legislation I have already supported. I believe we need to increase our public transportation opportunities for the all populations for many reasons; it is safer for the aging population and better for our environment. This is a very complex issue and requires thoughtful deliberation by all entities.

2. This is a public health issue and as such there needs to be concerted effort on behalf of the state and the Northeast region. No one community can respond to this epidemic individually. There needs to be a recognition by the state DEEP that there needs to be a coordinated response and all communities must participate in the activities that have been determined to reduce tick populations. The research shows there needs to be use of widespread pesticides, reduction in host animals, and individual responsibility to get ahead of this public health epidemic. It is my hope researchers come up with a vaccine against Lyme disease which seems to me to be the only way to assure individual safety. All other solutions have implications that can be negative to a state that is so densely populated.

3. I am unsure as to how we would ever be able to fund DEEP at the levels they (DEEP and their advocates) would believe to be adequate. We have many laws on the books that are often broken and when one inquires about enforcement it always comes down to the lack of money to have boots on the ground. I believe we are administratively top heavy and would like to see reallocation of jobs and financing to the enforcement and practical side of the equation. I believe we locally can have significant impact on the preservation and protection of our open space and it is our responsibility to do so.

Robert Dombroski

1. The post 2007-08 Bush Era economic disaster brought on a $5 trillion national loss of real property value which plagues every Monroe/Newtown homeowner/taxpayer. Those same devastated home values are the vital foundation of most older citizens’ financial security they carry into retirement, especially since pensions and earmarked retirement savings have eroded to the vanishing point for many baby boomers over the past 30 years. We all have become victims of the War on the Middle Class. Of course palliatives like property tax relief are essential, but state legislative oversight of existing regulation of the financial bodies which caused this mess is more critical, and a much tougher job to take on. I have the tools, the will, and persistence to get it done.

2. Certainly the state health department has to continue active case surveillance, to monitor disease trends. I think they should also provide funds for tick collection and testing for various pathogens, so education efforts can be tailored to communities where the need is greatest. Education (avoidance and protection, along with early recognition of infection) is probably the single most helpful tactic that can be implemented on the state level, and should be geared toward both physicians and the population at large.

3. Of course.

Rep Dan Carter

1. I am concerned senior citizens cannot afford to stay in Connecticut. Many senior live on a fixed income and are having a tough time, especially those who are trying to stay in their homes. We should not be taxing social security of those who are barely getting by. We should restore the personal allowance for those in a nursing home on Medicaid. Legislators should stop passing mandates on towns, which lead to increases in property taxes. Repeal the tax on over the counter medications, which some seniors rely on.

2. Lyme disease is a significant problem in our area. I co-sponsored a bill which would create a task force to study the diagnosis process of Lyme disease. The role of the task force should be broaden to include treatment, prevention, the impact of the disease on children, public awareness/education, animal/environmental issues, and the associated health risks that occur from the disease.

3. I would agree with the Conservation Voters that funding is a huge obstacle for helping the environment. The state does need to follow through with its environmental and open space initiatives, which is why I supported the legislation signed by Gov Malloy to create a state open space plan. We do need to restore funding to some of our environmental programs, especially considering the significant return we see on our investment. Unfortunately, the administration continues to overspend in other areas, which leaves nothing left for these programs. With responsible spending we could right our economy and invest in the environmental initiatives, many of which will boost our economy.

Steven DeMoura

1. I think that there are four principal areas of concern when it comes to issues which affect our senior citizens. First, we need to ensure financial stability for our seniors, by making sure that the income streams that they expect to have in retirement — pensions, social security, investments — remain protected and their vitality preserved. Second, we need to ensure that all senior citizens have access to quality, affordable health care, either through government programs or through adequate controls on private insurance. Third, we need to provide recreational and social opportunities for our senior citizens, to keep them involved in our communities. Fourth, we need to focus on end of life care, to ensure those final days are as comfortable as possible, by increasing access to assisted living facilities and hospice care. Finally, each of these four issues must be coupled with strong protections against fraud and against those who would seek to take advantage of our most vulnerable citizens.

 2. State government should provide two basic functions to combat the spread of this chronic, potentially debilitating disease: education and research. First, the state should ensure that all of our citizens are aware of basic prevention steps they can take. These efforts can explain how the disease is contracted and spread, identify high risk areas for the disease, and teach people how to care for their skin, hair and clothes after spending time outdoors, especially in the high risk areas. Second, the state should ensure that we are funding high priority, high quality research into funding a cure for the disease and limiting both the spread of the deer tick population and the incidence of the disease in the deer tick population.

 3. The DEEP provides a number of important functions for the state, only one of which is the identification, acquisition, protection, and management of open space. I believe strongly that we should be acquiring open space lands to preserve the nature of our communities for future generations. DEEP must be adequately funded both at the administrative level and in acquisition funds in order to ensure this occurs. However, adequate funding of the DEEP also presents an economic development issue. DEEP is responsible for issuing many permits for the construction and rehabilitation of buildings throughout the state. With inadequate funding, the processing time for applications requiring DEEP approval has risen to unacceptable levels. Simply put, any development requiring a DEEP approval is near infeasible, due to the lengthy delays caused by inadequate staffing. Finally, the protection of our air, land and water is one of the most important legacies we can leave our children. The inadequate funding of DEEP renders them unable to enforce our laws, and lets polluters get away with ruining our precious natural resources.