a ns | ! ! | | : / | |e | J I by J.R. Freeman If Herb. Denenberg does nothing else when he meets members of the press, he permits his sincerity to come through. Huddled in a room with 14 members of the Pennsylvania News Media Associa- tion Thursday night near Pocono Downs, Dr. Herbert Sidney Denenberg, Pennsyl- vania’s insurance commissioner, left no doubt that he is the state’s number one consumer advocate. Also unmistakably clear to his listeners was the fact that this man firmly believes what he says. Most public officials who face the press often switch their remarks from ‘‘on the record” to ‘‘off the record’ so fast that a newsman can get confused. Not so with Dr. Denenberg. He lays down the ground rulesgn the beginning: “I'm not used to talki " off the record,” he says with a firm expression. ‘So any remarks I make here tonight will be on the record.” And the controversial and sometimes flamboyant insurance commissioner and consumer advocate par excellance, said plenty. Young looking for his 43 years, Dr. Denenberg is brilliant, aggressive, unafraid, incredibly frank, cocky, slightly profane and cooperative. He is destined to be long remembered, though it’s not certain what he will be remem- bered for. But during his three-year tenure in a state office usually handled so as to placate the whims of the insurance giants, Dr. Denenberg is well on the way to making insurance a breakfast table topic just because he is more concerned about the consumer than he is about the dorporate feifdoms. His concern for consumers, however, does not stop with insurnace. Asked if big oil, for example, was guilty of creating the energy crisis in order to .reap corporate benefits, Dr. Denenberg was adament: ‘ ‘I'm not bash- ful,” he said. “I think the major oil companies are guilty of perpretating a hos on the consumer, just like you and one else believes.” Sked what concessions he thonght big oil was after in addition to the Alaska pipeline, drilling off the East Coast, tax incentives, price hikes, a triple increase in coal prices, oil shale, and a change in U.S. foreign policy, the insurance commissioner told his listeners: “I don’t know what all they want. I know we've already given them the Federal Govern- ment, but I guess they're still not satisfied. They operate as a very powerful unregulated monopoly, and I think they should be regulated just like we regulate the insurance industry in Pennsylvania.” Last year Dr. Denenberg, acting through the Pennsylvania Department of Justice, filed a $2 billion damage suit against the Federal Government dealing with the 1972 Hurricane Agnes disaster. The fifth annual District 2 Though no trial date has been set, the legal action is moving forward through preliminary stages: The commissioner, a lawyer himself, said that he was pleased with the suit thus far. “I think we stand a very good chance of winning,” he said. “But such a suit will obviously take a long time. It will be years before it is finally settled one way or the other.” “The real problem is,” Dr. Denenberg continued, ‘that if Hurricane Agnes hit again tomorrow, we would be in the same boat as before. The Federal Government refuses to enact needed reforms. I like this analogy : The Federal Government is like a senile dinosaur. You kick it in the ass trying to get your message across. Two years later the message reaches the brain, and then you get a reply back that it has received your message. “But that doesn’t mean the govern- ment is going to take any action,” the commissioner continued. “The Federal Government is not only corrupt, it is in- capable of action. There is no leadership in Washington, either in the executive, the agencies, or in the Congress. So when you get word back that it has received your message, that doesn’t mean a damn thing.” Perhaps no issue stirs the wrath of Dr. Denenberg quite as much as does the nuclear power industry. ‘Those cor- porate bastards,” he stormed, ‘‘are not willing to put their ASSets on the line in protecting the public from the unsafety of a nuclear accident.” “Consumer’s Guide to Nuclear Non-In- surance,’’ the U.S. Atomic Energy Com- mission has released studies that in- dicate a major nuclear accident at a utility-owned electric generating station could cause from $7 billion to $280 billion in losses. But Dr. Denenberg quickly points out that under a federal law known as the Price-Anderson Act, total compen- sation for all victims of a nuclear acci- dent is limited to $560 million, most of which would be paid by the taxpayers. “A utility that builds a nuclear power plant may only buy $95 million worth of insurance. If the thing blows up, the government would kick in an additional $465 million. And that’s it. No one else would be compensated. The law says the utility is adequately covered. “The manufacturer of the nuclear rea- ctor gets off scot-free,”’ Dr. Denenberg points out, ‘‘because he’s covered under the Price-Anderson Act, too. Therefore you can’t sue the utility, you can’t sue the manufacturer, and of course, you can’t sue the government.” Loopholes in the insurance arrange- ment in case of nuclear accident irks Dr. Denenberg, because homeowner’s coverage excludes such damage, just as do automobile policies, health insurance policies, life insurance coverage. ment will be held Feb. 22 and 23 The preliminaries will begin Feb. 22 at 6:30 , the semi-finals, Feb. 23, at 10 am., and the finals at 2:30 that afternoon. John Zaleskas is tournament director, assisted by Walter Sarber of Lehman. Boys will be competing in 18 weight classes. Teams competing and their coaches are Abington Heights, Dick Cook; Crestwood, Joe Mama igh Dallas, George Dom- bek, G/A.R., Pat McAndrew; Hanover, Joe Altavilla; Meyers, Fred McDaniels; Lake-Lehman, Ed Ladamus; Plains, Bill Hilburt; Wilkes- Barre Twp.; Willard Bennett; Wyoming Area, Mike Podwika; and Wyoming Valley West, High team will be trying for their fourth team title. Lake Lehman and Meyers rank with them as favorites. Returning champs are Frank Castrigano, (Meyers) 80 Ib, now wrestling at 90; Jack Zal- eskas, (LL) 90 lbs., now 115; Don Kraynak, (Hanover) 130 1bs., ‘now 145; and Leo McGlynn, (Hanover) 145, now 154. Doors will open at 6 p.m. Feb. 29. and 9 am. and 1:30 p.m. Feb. 23. : An ‘‘Outstanding Wrestler” trophy will be awarded and champs and runners-up will re- ceive Olympic style medals. A concession run by Lake-- Lehman mothers will be open hoth days, with proceeds to be used to defray expenses for the wrestling banquet. The Dallas Mountaineers won their exhibition bout wit Abington Heights Saturday night, 26-11. Sophomore D. Dierolf, 95 lb. (D), lost a close 6-4 decision to senior champion B. Heller (A). 105, tied the score at 3- all by outscoring Wunder (A), 7- 0. D. Konnick, 112 (D), made it Rozelle and M. Cook, 119 (D), added three more by outscoring Neufer 8-0. J. Kasper, 126 (D), moved the Mountaineers ahead 12-3 by out- wrestling Spangenburg, 10-5. F. Hazeltine, 132 (D), made it 15-3 by decisioning Evans 4-0. D. Kirshner, 138 (D), dropped a hard-fought 4-2 bout to Bistra- nsin, to move the Comets to six. decision from the Abington’s favored athlete, Kutyna. With the Mountaineers in front 18-6, T. Kirshner, 155 (D), led throughout his bout until the last 19 seconds when his oppon- ent Huggler reversed him and pulled a near fall to pull off a 4-4 draw and move the score to 20-8. R. Thrasher, 167 (D), out- scored Pawelsky 4-0. S. Shook was decisioned by 185 lb. Su- prick (A) to move the score to 23-11. A. Gramps, Dallas heavy- weight, clinched the final bout with a 3-2 score over Suggs to post the final team score of 26- 11. The Mountaineers meet West Side Tech away Wednesday night, and the Lake-Lehman Knights away Saturday. Photo by Dave Kozemchak ‘Remember,’ Dr. Denenberg laments, ‘We're talking about millions of lives and billions of dollars in property damage. It may be that nobody but God could write the insurance policy we need on nuclear power plants. Unless the nu- clear establishment can prove infinite perfection, the only adequate insurance against catastrophic loss from nuclear accidents is to stop building more nu- clear power plants and to begin closing down the ones we have now. It’s that simple.” “And besides,” he adds, ‘it’s been proven that they are not the answer.” During his interview with local mem- bers of newspaper, radio and television newsmen, Dr. Denenberg said that he was happy to announce that he had just refused to grant Blue Cross a requested rate increase in Pennsylvania, which he estimated would save consumers ap- proximately $50 million annually. ‘And while we have managed to hold down the cost of health insurance to the consumer, we have also helped improve health care,’ he said, ‘But we have a long way to go. Open heart surgery,” he continued, “is-six times more risky than it need be. We must do away with the unneeded sur- gery that takes place today.” In one of his 18 ‘‘shopper’s guides’ ” to date, Dr. Denenberg points out that many studies document a national scandal surrounding unnecessary sur- gery. Writing in his “‘Shopper’s Guide to Sur- gery,” which has now been reprinted and distributed by Blue Cross of Greater score of 20-19. “I think the major oil companies are guilty of perpetrating a hoax on the consumer, just like you and everyone else believes.” Philadelphia, Dr. Denenberg says that a study conducted by the Columbia Uni- versity Sehool of Public Health and Ad- ministrative Medicine, points out that it found, for example, ‘‘of 60 hysterect- omies, ‘one third of the patients were operated on unnecessarily and that question could be raised on the advisa- bility of the operation in another 10 per- cent.” Of 13 caesarian sections, ”’ Dr. Denenberg continues, ‘‘There were serious questions about the necessity of surgery in seven cases.” = Quoting Dr. Charles E. Lewis, a Har- vard specialist in community health, who concluded a 1969 study of the incidence of surgery, Dr. Denenberg makes this com- ment: “The results presented might be interpreted as supporting a medical var- iation of Parkinson's law; patient admis- sions for surgery expand to fill beds, operating suites and surgeon’s time.” Dr. Denenberg designed virtually every piece of no-fault automobile insur- ance legislation that has become law in the U.S. and its territories. And it was during his fight to get a no-fault hill through the Pennsylvania General Assembly two years ago that he gained national prominence. Though his ebvious design was to see that a consumer- oriented bill become law in the Common- wealth, the controversial commissioner failed to see his bill enacted, despite Gov. Shapp’s support. Several other states, however, have adopted his guidelines and have now begun to operate under a no-fault law. But Dr. Denenberg, a well- “The Federal Government is like a senile dinosaur. You kick it in the ass trying to get your message across. Two years later the message reaches the brain.” tion which has lobbied against any no- fault bill that would suit Dr. Denenberg, now sees little hope for a ‘good no-fault” bill to pass the Pennsylvania General Assembly. “I don’t think the Pennsyl- vania Legislature will pass a good no- fault bill this year, or even next. I think what we have to do is wait on the Federal Government. It’s up to the U.S. Congress and it will take them another two years to act. They know they should pass a no- tion-wide. But because of lack of leader- ship, it will take them about two years to get around to passing a decent bill.” Last year during his fight with the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association to get a no-fault law on the books in the Commonwealth, Dr. Denenberg was so under fire from his critics, which now in- clude doctors, lawyers, dentists, insur- ers, hospitals, utilities, and auto manu- facturers, that he prepared a form letter requesting his dismissal or resignation to be sent to Gov. Shapp. His office gave copies to anyone who asked. “I’ve only been successful in some of my programs,’ Dr. Denenberg confides, “because Gov. Shapp has supported me and because I had access to the media. Without those two things, there is nothing I could have done to help the consumer.” Despite his) comments, Dr. Denenberg has found other ways to help segments of the consuming public. His latest book, for example, ‘‘Cover Yourself: The Guide to Buying Insurance’ has contributed to- ward several meals-on-wheels pro- Evans, Page “Those corporate bastards are not willing to put their assets on the line in protecting the public from the unsafety of a nuclear accident.” “Our senior citizens are a virtually ig- nored minority,”” Dr. Denenberg con- tends. ‘For the most part they have been ignored by government, pensioned off by industry and forgotten by the rest of the population.” In contributing all of the proceeds from his book to meals-on-wheels programs, the commissioner said ‘The meals-on- wheels program is one way to give senior citizens the help that they need and de- serve. This help is long over-due. I just hope that my small contribution will both help senior citizens and will alert others to this very serious problem.” And while Dr. Denenberg has not issued a ‘‘shopper’s guide to newspapers, radio or television stations vet.” he found words of criticism for the media, none- theless. Charging. flatly that many important events in Harrisburg go completely un- reported, Dr. Denenberg said he was surprised that not a single newspaper, radio or television station in Northeast- ern Pennsylvania maintained any staff either in Harrisburg or Washington. ganizations depend solely on wire service reports of state and national govern- ment,” he said, indicating that here was just another way in which the consumer was getting short-changed. “Government works best for the people when it is being criticized by the press,” the commissioner said in closing remarks. ‘And I don’t think the press is » w gained a P. LaCorte, mat match, varsity against Mastalski. JS ox 195 The Weber, by Sesty. last Saturday night, to drop the Hawkeyes out of a tie for first place, with the Mountaineers and the Meyers Mohawks. The Knights jumped into an early lead when S. Klemunes, 98. decisioned T. Pape 6-0. D. Barbacei, 105 (L) turned over G. Kolbicka in 3:59 for his 13th win of the season and to put the Knights in front 9-0. E> Nixon. 21121: 1b. ¢L), remained undefeated by flat- tening B. Narcum in 2:57 and D. Agnew, 119 1b. (1), outscored B. Evans 10-6, and the Knights were ahead 18-0. H. Jones, 126 (lL), continued to win for the Knights by pin- ning R. Temerantz in 1:32. With his team behind 24-0. L. Kaminski, 132 (H), pinned J. Haczewski in 5:59, and P. LaCorte made it 24-12 by tur- ning over W. Traver in 1:39. jayvees to the put the The first crucial point in the match came when F'. Bleich, 145 (H), was charged with an illegal slam against G. Naugle. Naugle was not allowed to continue and the Knights picked up 6 points, for a team score 30- 12. S. McGlynn, 155 (H), added six for Hanover by turning over R. Case in 1:59. Then the match was put out of Hanover's reach when D. Ksiazkiwicz, 167 (H), elbowed G. Nemetz, causing injury. The Lake Lehman physician refused to allow the: Knight to continue. The Knights again picked up six points, to run their team score to 36. With the win out of reach, the Hawkeyes took the final mat- ches with B. Foley flattening F. Webber, 185. in 3:59 and hwt. M. Pisarcik ' turning over 'T. Williams in 1:50. grapplers threw the Wyoming Valley Wrestling League into a three-way tie last Wednesday night by defeating a much- touted Hanover team 20-19 be- fore ‘a standing room only crowd at the Back Mountain school. The Hawkeyes then fell, 36-30 to the Lake-Lehman matmen the following Saturday night, and dropped out of first place tie with Dallas and Meyers. The Mounts and Meyers are now tied in first. S. Pinter, down to 95 lbs., put Dallas on the scoreboard with 3 points by decisioning Schmoll 7- 0. D. Konnick, (D) 105, remain- ed undefeated by wrestling to a 6-6 draw with Kolbicka. M. Cook, 112 (D), outscored D. Demorat 6-5 to give the Mountaineers an 8-2 lead. B. Photo by Dave Kozemchak superior decision of 14-4 over R. Bridle to move the Hawkeyes to 6 on the board. J. Kasper, 126 (D), wrestled one of the finest bouts of the 4-1 and put the Dallas boys ahead 11-6. Sophomore F. Hazeltine, (D) 132 Ib., surprised the fans by wrestling a close bout with Hanover’'s Len undefeated for the season. Frank scored 2 on a takedown in the first period, and after an escape by the Han- over wrestler, went into the se- cond period leading 2-1. A penalty point for an illegal hold tied the bout at 2-2 where it re- mained until the closing se- conds of the third period when Kaminski reversed Hazeltine for two points for a final bout score of 4-2. Hawkeyes in front 13-11 by out- scoring B. McDonald 11-0, but D. Puchalsky, 145 lb. and unde- feated for the season, put the Mountaineers back in the lead 14-13 by taking F. Bleich, 5-2. McGlynn, (H) 155 lb., out- scored T. Kirshner 10-2 to give the lead back to the Hawkeyes 16-14, but R. Thrasher brought it home to the Mountaineers by decisioning Ksiaskewicz, 167 lb., 7-2. : With the score 17-16 for the Mountaineers, S. Shook (D), 185 Ib. had a rough battle with Foley who took the bout 16-10 and ran the score to 19 for the Hanover matmen. 3 A Gramps, Dallas heavy- weight, clinched the victory for the Mountaineers by outscoring Pisarcik 8-3 to post the final score of 20-19.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers