Address local need for dental services In response to Kristina Hunter’s Aug. 29 letter (“People on Medicaid need dental services”) regarding limited access to dental services for Medicaid beneficiaries. The writer has good reason to worry. Hometown Health Center (HHC) is the only provider in Schenectady County that offers quality, affordable dental care for children and families, including the area’s most vulnerable people, without regard for their ability to pay. The system is stressed. Demand for dental services exceeds the number of dentists who accept Medicaid. It’s that simple. Our community deserves better. Hometown is investing in expanding access. Hometown serves as many as 30 dental urgent care patients daily, above and beyond our routine and preventative care appointments, dentures, oral surgery, and more. The Center has limited space and providers – we are maxed out! We are investing in a new state-of-the-art dental facility at the corner of State Street and Brandywine Avenue. This $7+ million project will significantly expand access and vastly improve a blighted corner in Schenectady. HHC requested limited assistance for this project from the $53 million in ARPA funds Schenectady received to support projects that would benefit the city and its people. We were very disappointed to be turned down for this critical project. Fortunately, Hometown has received generous support from The Schenectady Foundation, Rep. Paul Tonko, and others who see the immense value awaiting everyone in the community. This is how we start to fix a problem that’s gone on way too long. Evan Brooksby Schenectady The writer is board chair at Hometown Health Centers.
America founded on individualism Last weekend on a radio show, I heard a congressman state “America is for the common good. That’s who we are.” Incorrect. America is and was founded on the idea of the individual. What this congressman said is altruistic, statist, socialistic and communistic. This is a lie, a false slogan and propaganda. It is true we now have a mixed economy of capitalism and socialism, but one cannot survive with the other for very long. They are incompatible. What side do you want to be on and at whose expense? Bill Whipple Charlton
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Election Letters: The deadline for letters related to the November 8, 2022, general election is 5 p.m. Friday, October 28, 2022. Election-related letters are limited to 200 words. Letters from candidates are not accepted, nor are letters that are part of a coordinated writing campaign.
Categories: Letters to the Editor, Opinion