• Insurance hike, CEO raise don’t add up • Are we the next Maui? • A scientific response goes both ways Insurance hike, CEO raise don’t add up Imagine my surprise when I received a letter from HMSA’s CEO Micheal Gold, justifying a
• Insurance hike, CEO raise don’t add up • Are we the next Maui? • A scientific response goes both ways
Insurance hike, CEO raise don’t add up
Imagine my surprise when I received a letter from HMSA’s CEO Micheal Gold, justifying a 28 percent rate increase approved by state insurance commissioner Ito.
Mr. Gold wanted to assure us that he understood that “any premium increase can create a financial burden” and that HMSA’s goal “ is — and always will be — to charge only enough to cover your health care benefits and the cost of administering those benefits.”
As we all know, Mr. Gold himself recently received a 19 percent pay raise, bringing his compensation for HMSA’s leadership to a whopping $1.3 million.
Perhaps it is an appropriate time for our newly elected state legislators to have a chat with insurance commissioner Ito in hopes of understanding why one man’s annual bonus could potentially cover the increase in premium costs for 3,000 Hawaiian families with HMSA’s two-party plan.
Richard King
Kilauea
Are we the next Maui?
In 10 years time, Wailua Bridge was widened and a north connector to the Kapaa roundabout was built. Also, the Courtyards at Waipouli was built (82 units), the Waipouli Beach Resort was built (196 units) and Longs Drugs will be finished soon.
Recent TGI articles state Coconut Beach Development plans to build 335 units in front of Plantation Hale and 198 units north of the Courtyard Marriott. All of this development is in less than one mile along the Kapaa corridor.
If Coco Palms comes to fruition, that’s another 363 units plus the bungalows. Assuming everything is built, that’s 1,200 new units in a tiny area. These numbers are absolutely ludicrous!
Plus, I recently overheard one of our (mayor-appointed) planning commissioners in a doctor’s office say, “Yeah, I voted for the Longs project, but the state is going to have to figure out something with the traffic.”
This thinking is outrageous! We have never seen proper planning of infrastructure to handle new development before projects are approved, and we are currently living with horrendous traffic as a result. How is this responsible planning?
I have significant concerns, not only about daily traffic, but also emergency impacts from tsunami and hurricane threats. In 10 years, next to nothing has been done to address these issues.
Whatever is being planned, it won’t happen anytime soon. How can we count on the county to do the right thing? Where is the state in this process? Kauai is being set up for disaster and ultimately we have no control.
Only the developer flashing money before the planning commission has sway over the final say, because that is what creates more tax revenue. Are we the next Maui?
Jeff Demma
Lihue
A scientific response goes both ways
There is one simple question that I would like answered by those who rave on about the so-called lack of science by those of us in opposition to the chemical experimentation going on here on Kauai.
Where is the science in the chemical companies’ response to our law requiring them to tell us what they are doing on Kauai?
How scientific are they being when they say to the citizens of Kauai, “We won’t tell you what we are spraying on this island?”
Craig Millett
Kalaheo
