---.The Daily Collegian Friday, April 8, 1977
SS benefits,
Medicare aid
popular here
By JAN IVIASCIOLI
Collegian Staff Writer
Social Security and
Medicare assistance are
widely used in the State
College area, according to
James Cochran. manager
of the Social Security
Administration office, 346
E College Ave.
In the State College
postal zone, which includes
parts of Harris, Ferguson
and College Townships and
the borough of State
College. 2.613 citizens are
covered by Medicare, he
said
To he eligible for
Medicare. a federal
program, one must he 65
years of age or older,
disabled for 24 months or
longer in accordance with
the Federal Social Security
Act, or have a chronic
renal disease and un
dergoing kidney dialysis or
transplant.
•Those who qualify for
Medicare also qualify for
Medicaid. a state
assistance program under
the Department
,of Public
Assistance, Cochran said.
According to Social
Security figures of
December 1975. 10.750
people are eligible for
Medicare in all of Centre•
County's posfal pones.
Cochran said the
eligibility requirements for
those, needing sup
plementary security in
come. the adult welfare
category., are "extremely
confusing."
To receive this type of
assistance a person must
be 65 years of age or older,
blind or disabled and have
limited income and limited
resources.
A senior citizen living in
his own household can
receive up to $220.20 per
month. For someone living
in another' household, the
figure is $144.70 and for an
eligible husband and wife,
$300.50. Cochran said.
Anyone who doesn't
qualify , fbr sup
plementary security
income or regular Social
Security can purchase
Medicare if he or she is
over 65 and meets alien
admission requirements.
Part A, which is similar
to Blue Cross and pays for
hospital hills, can he
purchased for $45 per
month. Part B, which is
similar to Blue Shield and
pays for surgeons' hills,
costs $7.20 per month,
Cochran said.
Rut, he said, anyone that
can afford the full
Medicare plan probably
isn't eligible for sup
plementary security in
come and need not pur
chase them.
"Few people are buying
Medicare because of the
premiums' cost,"he said.
Exact figures of, those
using Medicare•and Social
Security aren't available,
Cochran said. "Some use it
constantly, some seldom,"
he said.
Boyish favors senior citizen housing
By JIM LIGHT
Collegian Staff Writer
Paul D. Borish, a
Democratic candidate for
State College Borough
Council, said yesterday he is
fully in favor of housing for
senior citizens and other low
and middle-income groups,
but he described the approved
site for the project on Bellaire
Avenue as "disgusting,"
"They decided to put the
senior citizens out in the
middle of a sewer," Borish
said. He explained that he
used to live in an apartment
across University Drive from
the sewage treatment plant.
"The odor there was
sickening, and I didn't live
there in the summer," he
said. "The senior citizens ,
housing is closer to it than I
was."
Borish also said the project
is a token move to make it
look as though State College
is making advances in this
area. He said it could be
justified if they were building
a high-rise with hundreds of
units, but he said with such a
small number of units he sees
it as "just palming off land
which you can't sell to
anybody else."
Commenting on the human
rights ordinance, Borish said,
"I was rather disgusted
when I found we didn't have
one here. Discrimination,
racism and sexism I find run
Carter discontinues plutonium as energy
WASHINGTON (UPI)
President Carter abandoned
plutonium as a U.S. energy
source yesterday, saying
nuclear fuel benefits offered
by the deadly material are far
outweighed by the danger that
it might cause the spread of
atomic weapons.
Carter, reversing
rampant in this town!'
He said that if the matter
were put on a referendum
at the May 17 primary an
"overwhelming number of
residents of State College
would favor a human rights
ordinance."
He said that there is a
problem because there are
realtors who will not rent to
homosexuals. He also said he
is in favor of hiring women
policemen, minority
policemen and gay policemen
as long as they are as quali
fied as any other applicant.
Borish added, however, that
hiring a member of a minority
group just because he is a
member of such a group can
not be justified.
Borish is a sixth-term
student in extended letters,
arts and sciences, which is a
two-year program, he said.
As a • councilman, Borish
said he would like to create a
government in State College
that is truly representative of
the majority. He said he
would like to open the council
up to input from the citizens of
State College and make it
more responsive 'to their
needs.
Borish said he would like to
see at least one voice on the
council representative of the
large number "of student
residents. He said the
students make up 25 per cent
decisions of previous
presidents, suspended
commercial development of
the .fast breeder nuclear
reactor and said the United
States will note, extract
plutonium from spent nuclear
fuel.
Both the breeder and fuel
reprocessing were once con-
Paul Borish
of the population in the county
and'are a much larger bloc of
vote's in State College.
Borah said he was not just
concerned with students. He
explained that in Many cases
what is good for the students
sidered vital by U.S. , energy
planners. . .
Carter said he found
plutonium as a source of
energy poses unacceptable
risks because it can be easily
turned into nuclear weapons.
He also urged other ad
vanced nuclear nations to join
the United States in halting
Photo by Michael Glass
is good for the other residents
as well.
In stating that the council is
not accessible, Borish said
that if he is elected he would
be against `making decisions
in executive session.
export of plutonium
productiori facilities to non
nuclear nations.
In return for the restraint
he seeks,'Carter said, the
United States will try to
become the enriched uranium
fuel supplier for the world
with safeguards to keep
peaceful atomic energy from
Borish said the council
should make more of an effort
to keep the public informed.
He' said he would like to see
the council meetings
broadcast by a local radio
station, "maybe WDFM could
do it if nobody else," he said.
Borish said the agenda for
meetings should be published,
not just made available at the
municipal building. He also
suggested the council publish
periodic newsletters and that
council members appear
publicly, on occasion, to talk
about what is going on in State
College.
On the question of de
criminalization of marijuana,
Borish said he has done a - lot
of work on the issue on a state
wide basis. He said, "I don't
feel it is something that we
can do in State College; if we
can, I am overwhelmingly in
favor of it."
Borish said that if there is
anything that he could do as a
council member to promote
more lenient enforcement of
the marijuana laws he would
do it.
As far as transportation is
concerned, Borish 'said bus
service is adeqUate but not
good. He said the buses run
mostly dtiring the week days,
"but late nights and weekends
it is
,impossible to get
anywhere."
Borisli said that he would
leading to nuclear weapons
proliferation.
The President's decision
cast serious doubts over the
future of a $2 billion federal
breeder reactor project at
Oak Ridge, Tenn., and a
priyate atomic fuel recycling
plant at Barnwell, S.C.
Environmentalists claimed
/ like to conduct a test of ex
panded service and see what
the responie is. He suggested
24-hour service for one week
"to see when the peak usage
hours are, see , if there is: a
peak at 2;30 in the morning
when the bars close."
Borish said he would not
expect the bus companies , to
lose money on extra service.
He said that if it was a bor
derline case the ' lodal
goveimment could kick in
some money.
Cut-backs in spending are
something Borish said he did '
not see a great need for. "I
would like to see an analysiS. I
can't cite specifics. There are
things, a little bit here, a little
bit there," he said.
A residency tax is just
another word for a poll tax, he
said, and he is not in favor. 6f
it. He also said he cannot
forsee any tax increases in
the near future.
Borish said he does not
'believe that the downtown
district is deteriorating
that businesses are moving
out. In fact, he said, the new
Calder Alley construction
shows the reverse to ; be true.
He also said that a mall on
Allen Street would be a good
idea and would be good for
State College. He said,
however, that the businesses
on Allen Street should have r a
lot to say about the idea. , '
source
it did not go far enough while
the utility industry and the
nuclear industry said Carter's
plans would create energy
problems in the future. 7.
Plutonium is one of the
deadliest poisons known to
man. It is produced as -a
byproduct of the recycling of
spent uranium fuel .