Opinion : Letter to the Editor: VOTE NO TO EMS

By Vinton Today · November 6, 2023, 11:15 am

Dear Editor,

How many of you realize that voting yes to ems will raise your taxes .68 cents per $1,000 of your land value? That is a lot of money! If your land is appraised at $100,000 you are paying an extra $68 a year...after they just raised our assessments 30%. It's already hard enough to live, and this is going to crush some people. How much money do they think they need???

Valerie Bearbower

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RB November 6, 2023, 12:55 pm Nothing more important than quality health care and emergency services. How much is your life worth to you? VOTE YES!!!!

TH November 6, 2023, 12:57 pm I think your decimal is in the wrong place. $68.00 per year for a home valued at $100,000.

P.S. Yes, she just corrected that :)

DL November 6, 2023, 1:30 pm Emergency healthcare for $68/year. Doesn't seem like much to pay, for life saving services.

SG November 6, 2023, 2:35 pm The $.68 per thousand is based on taxable valuation NOT assessed valuation. There are other exemptions that apply such as homestead, rollback and military (if applicable).
The auditor's office will provide you accurate amounts if needed.

MD November 6, 2023, 2:39 pm Why do responsible property owners have to always carry the weight of these projects? Schools, 911 radios in the millions, roads, now this. Why not a sales option tax where EVERYONE pitches in. I simply cannot afford a "mere" $68 per $100,000 minus whatever. I can barely pay bills and buy groceries let along get my medications. Seems like if we pay for it the city or county should manage it.

HH November 6, 2023, 2:49 pm There was an incident of someone lying in the road for 45 minutes waiting for an ambulance. Will this help them respond faster? Another time a different friend was told there was no ambulance available. So is this going to buy ambulances and hire more people, with the shortage of help that is happening? We might need other options.

VB November 6, 2023, 2:53 pm Four out of ten Americans are struggling to pay their bills, that was of June of this year. Twenty million Americans are behind on their utility bills. We have record breaking numbers visiting the food banks every week, even in Vinton. I can guarantee it hasn't gotten any better. There are many people who are stretched to the limit already. This could lead to many people losing their homes. People can not afford any more taxes, & certainly not for another 15 years.

RB November 6, 2023, 3:21 pm Let's look at important issue here
Life lived longer verses NOT! All because of lack of EMT being available 24/7,proper equipment and vehicle and EMT CONTINUED EDUCATION.the costs and regulations are expensive
IN 78 years I never wanted to see the inside of an ambulance and last year I got a really good look at its inside.Vote YES so incase you need an ambulance ,It'll be available for you and no waiting to find a find a volunteer to drive it or attend to you.
Vote yes to save your life. Thanks

PK November 6, 2023, 3:24 pm Seniors on a fixed income: Get way behind on your property taxes and find out your options. Who cares?

VB November 6, 2023, 5:13 pm RB...if you want to vote yes to save your life then maybe you should look at the problem with our Healthcare system. It's not set up to save your life, it's set up to soak you dry of money.

https://meridianhealthclinic.com/how-rockefeller-created-the-business-of-western-medicine/#:~:text=Rockefeller%20knew%20that%20to%20get,up%20Farben's%20involvement%20in%20WWII).

TS November 6, 2023, 5:38 pm A call to 911 for an emergency guarantees a Fire response and/or a Police response, as those entities are funded by our taxpayer dollars and I don't know about you, but that gives me a great peace of mind knowing that someone will respond when we need them.
An ambulance is not guaranteed. They are not funded. They are a non-profit that relies on income from billing. Do you know what insurance reimburses for an ambulance call? Look it up, it's pennies on the dollar, and that's if they pay anything at all. This does not include the patients that require an ambulance and do not have any coverage at all.
Yes, a yes vote for EMS will help to address all of the scenarios mentioned here. Yes, a yes vote for EMS will ensure that someone will be there when you call. And I pray you don't have to make that call. Ever. But for those that do, the most welcome sight they will see is an ambulance and/or first responder willing and ready to save a life.
If it's not worth $68 a year or .17 a day to you, Valerie, what is it you would propose to keep our transport services and first responder services running? What is the value you think should be placed on guaranteeing an ambulance or first responder for your family or your neighbors?
VOTE YES FOR EMS to provided the support that these services need to keep us all safer every single day. Every life is worth it.

Tamara Stark

jt November 6, 2023, 5:41 pm There was an article that explained current funding for EMS includes insurance payments and those trips for uninsured or underinsured have to be covered somehow. I will be more than willing to help fund the emergency care for those that are financially vulnerable. It could be a grandparent, young child, or next door neighbor. I have seen our tax dollars used in a lot less meaningful ways.

VB November 6, 2023, 9:53 pm TS...What do I suggest Tami? Do you really want to save lives? If so, then, I suggest we stop throwing money at an already broken system. I suggest you we take good look at the fraudulent insurance business. I suggest that we start looking at why there are so many sick Americans to begin with. I suggest that we rebuild the system. If we did this, people wouldn't be as unhealthy as they are now, therefore cutting expenses across the board, therefore clearing more money for ems. I suggest that everyone that's so keen on western medicine do their research & figure out why all of our medicines are petroleum based. It all comes down to money. I've been suggesting that people do their research for a couple of years now, but everyone refuses to do so. Everyone wants a quick, easy fix, and I guarantee this wont be it, so nobody will even entertain the idea. Follow the money people, our world wont be any healthier until you do. Why don't you start by reading this link:

https://meridianhealthclinic.com/how-rockefeller-created-the-business-of-western-medicine/#:~:text=Rockefeller%20knew%20that%20to%20get,up%20Farben's%20involvement%20in%20WWII).

But, who am I kidding, you, & everyone else will just ignore this.

I should just keep my mouth shut, but, for some reason, I still have faith that one day, people will start waking up to the extremely corrupt system that we're living in, & we will actually unite against the elites who have forced us into this system. It may be a long, extremely difficult process, but isn't every life worth it?

Respectfully,
Valerie Bearbower

By the way, Tammy, I bet you still haven't done your research into Agenda 2030, Klaus Schwab, the WEF, the WHO, the members of Bildeberg, everything that Blackrock, & Vanguard own, etc., because if you had, we probably wouldn't be having this discussion.
So, don't ask what I would suggest, when you've already ignored my other suggestions. I invite you to go down my Facebook page with an OPEN MIND, & listen to/watch everything that I have posted, also visit the groups All Truth Matters, & Truth Exposed, heck, even Jen's Biblical Flat Earth Academy, if you don't question what you've been told your whole life after the mounds of evidence posted on these pages & doing your own research, then MK Ultra worked very well on you, & I pray God eventually helps you see the light.

GM November 7, 2023, 10:30 am I completely agree we need a good EMS system however I cannot recall ever a time when the ambulance did not show up for a call they even had area ambulance come out of cedar rapids because the other two units in Vinton was on other calls I've seen him call in Dysart Urbana the next available unit sure it takes him a little longer to get there but our boys in blue and our fire department have BLS skills and equipment whenever you get the government involved with EMS things turn into the negative how would you like the three clowns that are running the county now control the EMS system for betting county look what they have done to the health board already do you think them running the ambulance service is going to make it better? The service needs to go back to the way it was back in the good old days if they needed the equipment or money have fundraisers like our local fire department does healthcare is expensive but if you look at Medicare and Medicaid who's running them and that's why the ambulance service is always getting shorted on reimbursements for calls

PK November 7, 2023, 12:32 pm How many seniors and poor can't afford medicine or trips to the doctor's office? Unfortunately, way too many! Most seniors can't afford healthcare policies to help them pay what Medicare doesn't cover. So, they either don't go to the doctor's office, or they go and end up with another bill. And the poor? Not in their tight budget.
[There are utility bills, food, medicine, gas, property taxes...on and on.] So...why are there so many unhealthy people in our country? I just answered that.

The part of this problem that enrages me is the fact that there are almost 10 million illegal immigrants who get three meals a day...a roof over their heads...clothing...and free healthcare. WHY DO THEY GET WHAT OUR AMERICAN CITIZENS DON'T GET? Something is wrong when we don't care about our own people first!!

KH November 7, 2023, 5:41 pm God I love this comment section so much. For every posting of city council minutes, or news of local interest there's at always at least a few comments underneath that may as well read "Martian Joe Biden Stole My Husband's Skin."

Far be it from me to be one of those doofuses that laments the state of political discourse in this country, but I've got to know: how long have the Illuminati been pulling the strings in our little community? And what do they stand to gain once they take our ambulance service away from us?

Let's break this down:

On one side, we have a rural population in need of EMS services, a ballot measure to fund them by slightly raising property taxes, as well as in this thread a sitting member of City Council explaining why the measure is so important.

And on the other we have VB, who's point is either that things are hard and therefore we should vote against our own interests as a community because it saves her a tank of gas a year, OR that there is a grand conspiracy to control our minds and bodies and we are all powerless to these lizard people anyway.

I should consider myself lucky that the only time I've ever had to use Benton county's EMS services was back in the Halcyon days of 1998. Back before Facebook rotted the brains of an entire generation and convinced them that any money spent on public services was LITERALLY Marxism.

I live in Vinton. Many of the people I love live in and near this community. Young, old, healthy and not so much. My property taxes will go up if this ballot measure passes, which IS a bit of a bummer. But thats the cost of living in a functioning society. And even if I never take an ambulance ride again, I'd rather know that someone who really needs it can.

EVERYONE deserves access to emergency services when they need them, no matter how hilariously bad their politics are.

Vote yes.

Kyle Hanson

TS November 7, 2023, 8:18 pm Kyle Hanson, I look forward to shaking your hand the next time I see you.

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

Tamara Stark

DE November 8, 2023, 3:49 am "Illegal immigrants".

There's a distraction- when they tried providing healthcare for "American citizens" y'all cried about that, too.

PK November 8, 2023, 12:16 pm DE...The "provided" healthcare you're talking about still cost the American citizens money they DID NOT have. The illegals get their healthcare FREE. But we are ALL paying for it. Americans will be paying for these people for the rest of their lives.

Do you really believe ALL these people will get jobs and be able to rent their own places and pay for food and medical care? GET REAL!! Our citizens are having trouble doing this.

Americans can thank Joe Biden for this horrific mess in our country. It started the day he took office and rolled back all the border policies. [One of 17 things he did on his first day in office.] And the illegals have been destroying our country ever since!!! Have you seen the videos of towns in Texas? Have you seen Chicago and New York City? That's Joe Biden's New America.

THANKS JOE!!!!!

GB November 9, 2023, 8:28 pm MD is right. A sales tax would be a fair way to pay for it. That way everyone pays.