Health Care

Brilliant move highlighting “Porn star karaoke night” at a local Burbank restaurant (“Their naked talent,” July 25). Thanks for featuring such an inspiring event for the young people and families of Burbank. There was actually a time in Burbank when celebrating the pornography business on the front page would have been an incredible insult to our community. Apparently not anymore. One of these days, perhaps you can tell us all what in the world you were thinking?

This serves as an open message to Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and Rep. Adam Schiff: As influential Democrats, we implore you to actively oppose the universal health-care proposals now before Congress. We have voted for you in past elections. However, should you back universal health care — as opposed to the needed reform of Medicare and Medicaid — we will not support you again. No, we are not extremists. We are simply everyday senior citizens who are raising their voices in opposition to this misguided legislation.

Lynn McGinnis (“Schiff never got around to the tab,” Aug. 15) is concerned how Congress expects to pay an approximately $1-trillion cost for the first 10 years for a health plan covering Americans; this topic related to meeting of Rep. Adam Schiff on health care for Americans. I’m also concerned on how we’ve financed a more than $1-trillion war effort in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003. And, also lost about 4,500 American soldiers. Don’t forget billions to Wall Street and banks.

BURBANK — For Lauri Michele-Feingenbaum, whose list of maladies and the medications to cure them stretches almost as long as the letters in her name, the past week has been nothing short of a horrendous, the 46-year-old said. Michele-Feingenbaum, along with her 26-year-old caretaker, Todd Pulling, saw their apartment go up in flames last week, killing their rescued dogs Scooby and Shaggy and setting off a weeklong standoff with the landlord. The Burbank Fire Department responded to the small fire at 8:21 p.m. last Thursday, knocking down the fire and clearing the scene within two hours, according to the initial report.

CITY HALL — Thousands of low-income children across the region are expected to lose health insurance coverage this year as a result of steep state budget cuts. The California Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board voted last week to begin terminating coverage to more than 60,000 low-income children enrolled in Healthy Families as of Oct. 1 in order to cope with a projected $112.6-million budget gap. About 229,000 of the program’s nearly 1 million participants are Los Angeles County residents.

Rep. Adam Schiff’s recent town hall meeting on health-care reform did more to highlight vehement distaste with government than the actual proposal, and that’s unfortunate. Instead of an adult conversation on the merits of President Obama’s proposed health-care insurance reform bill, the general public have been blasted with images and footage of people engaged in everything from shouting matches with their Congressional representatives, to holding signs that show Obama in the likeness of Adolf Hitler.

Five days a week we have the delivery trucks in the Village and on East Palm Avenue on business. Seven days a week we have the fire trucks from the Burbank Fire paramedic wagon to the ladder truck in the Village and on East Palm on nonbusiness. The city is concerned about smoke-free air and they should also be concerned about diesel-free and noise-free air in the Village and keep the fire equipment out, or at least give us a break on weekends on East Palm. DON LARSEN Burbank   How about hitting up the rich for money?

Assemblyman is just bettering himself I agree with the Leader’s editorial (“Lawmaker taking some undue heat,” July 25) about Assemblyman Paul Krekorian. He is an able legislator working the system as best he can to rise up in the Legislature. A moderate Democrat who should perform well as he rises up the ladder. There’s nothing wrong with trying to better yourself and do well in higher office. WESLEY GREENE Burbank   Medicaid is example of good health care I wish to extend a sincere “thank you” to Rep. Adam Schiff for his efforts to bring meaningful reform to our dysfunctional health-care system (“Health-care reform is direly needed,” July 29)