With Rotarians in Office

Well, the race for the next president of the United States has already begun. The amount of dollars being collected by wanna-be candidates is excessive and appears to be growing. Why are they starting to campaign so early?

From this onset, I am afraid that the government will be at a standstill for another 15 months. After all, why should two political parties, Democrats and Republicans, work with one another? They each have to show their party is different, and we, who are paying for all this, are not even considered. The word “bipartisan” seems to mean to these politicians that “you have to do things my way,” and there is no room any longer for a meeting of the minds.

Thus far, I have heard talk from the candidates about all sorts of programs designed to ensure that health care, which is our business, would be protected and all American citizens would receive only the finest attention possible.

Let me ask if the competitive bid will bring better health care or only drive things to the very bottom of the barrel? Under competitive bidding, are only the least-expensive items to be the standard? Certainly the government can recognize the damage that this will do.

I have been an active Rotarian for many years. As such, I try my very best to comply with an oath I have taken called the Four-Way Test. If you are not a Rotarian, this is a pledge so that “of the things we think, say or do,” we ask:

1. Is it the truth?
2. Is it fair to all concerned?
3. Will it build goodwill and better friendships?
4. Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

Perhaps if the politicians were all Rotarians, they would honor the second test: Is it fair to all concerned? If politicians thought about how our citizens would benefit, then we might make some progress.

As a teenager I campaigned for Wendell Willkie, and in every presidential campaign since then — and I am now a senior citizen — I have looked not for a political party but at what I thought the candidates would accomplish. Yes, I have been disappointed, but I still look to the future as being bright for our industry.

A battle has begun. Lawsuits have been filed to bring an end to the competitive bid, which CMS thinks will resolve all its problems. It will not. Until congressmen forget their political parties and consider what is best for all Americans, there will be no system that can untangle Medicare and Medicaid and bring these programs to where they can provide services to those who require them.

As the competitive bid and reduced reimbursements cause providers to fail, jobs will be lost. Tax money that these companies paid will be gone, and unemployment payments will have to be sent until the newly fired find jobs.

We all have to join together to fight to protect not just our businesses but also all Americans. Work with your state and national associations and, with a strong, combined effort on our part, perhaps we may be able to bring about some changes.

The Four-Way Test

According to Rotary history, the Four-Way Test is one of the most widely printed and quoted statements of business ethics in the world. It was created by businessman Herbert J. Taylor in 1932 when he was asked to take charge of a company that was facing bankruptcy.

Looking for a way to save the company, Taylor came up a with a 24-word code of ethics for its employees to follow in their professional lives. It became a guide for sales, production, advertising and all relations with dealers and customers. The survival of the company is credited to this simple philosophy.

The Four-Way Test was adopted by Rotary in 1943 and has been translated into more than a hundred languages.

Something to Think About

The Federal Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled 467 products manufactured in China last year, which accounted for 60 percent of the total recalls.

Sheldon “Shelly” Prial is based in Melbourne, Fla., with Prial Consulting and also serves as the director of government relations for Atlanta-based Graham-Field Health Products. In 1987, he founded the Homecare Providers Co-Op, now part of The VGM Group. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at 877/553-5127.