On a more serious note

My seven year old granddaughter and I have been specially invited to go to upstate NY by my brother and his family. They want us to be there so bad they've paid for the tickets to fly there. I know I'm out of shape and much heavier than the last time I saw my family. That doesn't bother me so much. I clean up pretty good. The thing is they have no idea I've had to have most of my upper teeth pulled. All that's left is one on the left and three on the right with a gap in between. You can imagine I'm embarrassed. I was asked prior to this if my teeth were my own since they were so pretty. Although I know this action won't come before my trip to my nephew's wedding near the Canadian border I hope all of you will band together with me to write to your Senator, Congressman, or whomever to request all aspects of dental be covered. Whether you have bad teeth, abscesses, or no teeth there are medical reasons why you should see a dentist. I've done some of the research. People without teeth can have as much as 20 years of their life cut off the norm. If that's not bad enough without the ability to chew can cause stomach problems. An abscess can kill a person if it's not taken care of. Today I heard something that has me frying. What makes me angry about this is a woman from another country lives and works here and SHE had her teeth pulled and new dentures provided by our government. Read on if you'd like to see why this makes me angry.

Dear Senator Alexander,

It's possible we met during the year that Van Hillary was running for Governor. You seem to be such a nice man I am presenting an issue to you that strikes close to home. Would you please present a bill that includes dental care for those of us on Medicare/Medicaid? Teeth are not only for looks. The lack of them can cause a number of physiological problems including death 20 years earlier than normal if they are missing. It's an embarrassing situation to be in when you don't have all your teeth. I know because I'm one of those people. I worked for years both rearing a family and providing an income. I proudly served my country for 3 years. I helped people in domestic violence situations. Although a judge told me I had no business sticking my nose in the abusive affairs of these families, I helped kids, in particular, realize they too have rights, that they can be protected from abuse and neglect. Some of the girls I encouraged to seek help still come back with their children who call me NaNa. The girls regard me as the only mother they've ever had since their own was almost always out looking for drugs or men. Despite all the work I've done being a good mother, a good citizen, serving my country, and volunteering over the years I can't get my present teeth taken care of nor can I get a false plate. You see I have degenerative arthritis of the spine along with a number of other ailments that have rendered me disabled so that I can't work. My SSD and SSI income is small so that makes it impossible to pay bills and have dental coverage. Please, Senator Alexander, set up a bill that enforces coverage of all dental work and false teeth.

 If we each write our representative that's at least 400 people in the US who have voiced their opinion. How about friends and relatives signing a petition?

 Roxann