This is Viewpoints for Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Great judge, better person

Judge Bill Adams took office as the Judge of the State Court of Bibb County in January 1999, after being elected in an uncontested race for the open seat created by the retirement of Judge Taylor Phillips. Judge Phillips had served as the only judge in this court since 1965. Judge Adams had huge shoes to fill, and he did. His last day of service in the State Court was Friday. Then, he will be returning to private practice, but with a new emphasis — mentoring new lawyers and representing individuals with limited financial resources.

I have been honored to serve with Judge Adams for the last four years. Based on my time with him, I have seen that he respects all people and cares about all people.

Judge Adams greets every employee in the Courthouse every day with a hearty, “How ya doin?” He usually adds a handshake or a fist pump for good measure. He spends time speaking on a personal level to each defendant who enters a plea, even though we may have 40 or 50 individuals entering pleas on any given Friday morning. He doesn’t want anyone to feel they didn’t have an opportunity to be heard in this court. He explains to people reporting for jury duty why they are so important to the legal process and exactly what is on the schedule for the week. He enters timely rulings that include an explanation of why he ruled the way he did. In all of these actions, Judge Adams demonstrates his respect for others. It doesn’t matter whether they are co-workers, accused individuals, jurors, parties, or lawyers, he respects all people.

In recent months, Judge Adams has shared with me his desire and vision to provide legal representation for people who need it but cannot afford it. When he talks about his plans, his eyes light up and there is excitement in his voice. He believes all people should have access to justice, and he believes that it is his responsibility, along with all local lawyers, to make sure people in Macon-Bibb do have access to justice, especially those people who might be neglected or abused by the system. His life has and will continue to show that he sincerely cares about all people.

The State Court of Bibb County is going to miss having Judge Adams on the bench. We are thankful for his great service to the court and to the community, and we wish him happiness and success in his next endeavors.

LGBTQ support

There is an issue here in Macon that seems to be ignored by everyone who lives here. And that is the LGBTQ community. There are plenty of cities that showed their support by having marches, and even Atlanta is going to paint crosswalks to show pride. But I heard of nothing in Macon. Everyone knows there are gay people or lesbians and even transgender people living here. I am transgender and to my knowledge because of the lack of resources in Macon, I feel like I am the only one here. I believe I’m wrong or at least I hope I am.

During my transition I have had very little contact with others and have been, and to some extent, still scared of the people here because I don’t know how they feel. We should have support groups here and and events held where the LGBTQ community can go and feel safe and have others show support and support each other. Businesses are sketchy ad well. How do we know that we won’t be discriminated against once we come out? What are we supposed to do when we (transgender people) need to use the restroom? Do you want a woman going in the men’s room or vice versa?

These issues need to be addressed and more support has to happen. This isn’t the stone age. It’s 2017 and it’s time to love everyone no matter the color of their skin or their gender. Love can beat hate.

Facing health care reality

The politics of health care are complex. President Trump has already admitted that the subject is beyond his level of understanding, so his efforts are simply those of a cheerleader. What we see being attempted is a pretense that the rest of us don’t have to pay for poor peoples’ health care. Like it or not, in a modern republic the shift has taken place: those of means accept the obligation to provide care to all, one way or another.

The current ploy is to shift the cost of indigent care from the federal government to the states. We here in Georgia know what happened under ACA/Obamacare; Gov. Deal would not even sign up to gain billions of federal dollars to pay for the more than 600,000 to have Medicaid. Do you think that willingness and ability to pay Medicaid will change as the Senate bill ends federal involvement?

We’re being told that health care insurance is being made affordable so the poor can purchase the insurance they want. So they may have to decide to forgo that new cell phone as one goofball declared. The unspoken illusion we are led to believe is that we can avoid funding health care for the indigent. The truth is we cannot avoid paying. If the Senate dodges federal responsibility and dumps the cost entirely on the states, Georgia will have to come up with billions of dollars to cover Medicaid, or the poor will simply go to the emergency room. As you know, that costs more than an office visit, and we will ultimately pay.

Each local county already pays yearly for indigent care at the Medical Center-Navicent Health using your tax dollars. To avoid hospital closure (as has already occurred in our state), hospitals must raise costs, and those costs are passed on to paying patients. So don’t be fooled. We will pay no matter what the plan is.

Let’s insist on a plan which provides humane care, which saves lives and is not based on an illusion. Fixing ACA would be the most obvious, but Republicans hate that idea even though it was their plan before President Obama employed it nationally. We’re being led to believe that all of us can save money by dumping indigent care on the states. That plan will not work. Federal involvement is required, and, ultimately, taxpayers will foot the bill.

Let’s ignore the shell game and accept our responsibility. Two items to consider: (1) you and I are not immune from the life-altering issues resulting from an accident or illness, and (2) 40 percent to 60 percent of nursing home stays are paid by Medicaid; most of us are aware of someone who would be kicked out of their nursing home without Medicaid.

This story was originally published July 12, 2017 at 12:18 AM with the headline "This is Viewpoints for Wednesday, July 12, 2017."