Citizen Action

Bureaucratic waste is driving up the price of commercial health insurance in Pennsylvania and costing consumers and businesses hundreds of millions of dollars, a group charges in a report scheduled for release today. In 1988 alone, duplication of services and excessive overhead costs added $404 million to the bills of Pennsylvania consumers, according to the group, Citizen Action. That amount could have bought health insurance for an estimated 343,343 Pennsylvanians who are uninsured, the group said.

Manufacturers, paced by chemical companies such as Du Pont, poured almost 5 billion pounds of toxic chemicals into the nation's air, water and land in 1990, an environmental group said yesterday. The emissions included about 408 million pounds of suspected or known carcinogens and 1.2 billion pounds of chemicals associated with birth defects, Citizen Action added. And as substantial as the reported pollution is, that which is unreported is much greater, the group maintains.

Even as Congress prepared to pull the plug on health-care reform, a consumer advocacy group reported yesterday that the health and insurance industries opposing reform pumped more than $46 million into the coffers of House and Senate members from January of 1993 through July of 1994. The report by Citizen Action reveals that increased contributions from proponents of the status quo flowed not only to members of key committees debating proposed legislation, but also to members in election struggles with advocates of reform.

GOP SHOULD FEND OFF THE DEFECTORS - NOT THE RIGHT So, Pennsylvania's liberal Trojan horse inside the Republican Party, Arlen Specter, thinks that the Republican Party would become more inclusive by jettisoning its principles ("GOP must cut off far right if it hopes to defeat Clinton," July 21). No doubt he's right. AIDS makes the body more inclusive, too - by stopping the immune system from rejecting unfriendly viruses. What's happening here is that some groups long associated with the Democratic Party are now understandably embarrassed and want to move into the Republican Party - but they want to bring the same values that ruined the Democrats with them.

U.S. Rep. Jon D. Fox, a freshman Republican from Montgomery County, has raised more money for reelection - $576,731 - than 80 percent of all House members, according to an analysis of campaign reports by the consumer-advocacy group Citizen Action. Fox is one of 85 freshman members whose elections in 1994 swung control of the House from Democrats to Republicans. The 85 on average have raised $380,887 each, far more campaign money than other member of Congress, according to the Washington group.

Two consumer watchdog groups charged yesterday that Philadelphia public schools make "inappropriate and unnecessary" use of toxic pesticides. "Our children are at risk. They are clearly going to school in toxic conditions," said Jeff Blum, director of Citizen Action of Pennsylvania, which released a report on pesticide use in Philadelphia and three other Pennsylvania school districts. Philadelphia school officials immediately attacked the report. "Our first concern is the safety of the students and staff," said Al Dorsey, administrator of facility services for the Philadelphia School District.

Are we the toxics capital, or what? Philadelphia and adjacent Bucks County grow a larger crop of toxic pollutants than any other part of the state, according to a new report released today. The Bridesburg ZIP code area (19137) - which led the state in an earlier report on toxic wastes and emissions - slipped to second place this round behind the Bucks County neighborhood (19030) that hosts the USX steel plant near Fairless Hills. But two Bridesburg industries still ranked among the state's top three toxics producers, in the new compilation of 1989 toxics data by the consumer group Citizen Action of Pennsylvania.

Logic would dictate that an admitted felon could not hang onto the presidency of a nonprofit group that spends federal funds to meet neighborhood needs. Logic, meet Philadelphia. Even though he pled guilty to federal charges of fraud and conspiracy on April 7, Steven Vaughn somehow stayed on as president of the Central Germantown Council until May 27. He finally was forced to resign - not by his political patron, Councilwoman Donna Miller, or any public pressure from City Hall.

The Darby Creek Watershed is a ribbon of green flowing through some of the most built-up sections of Southeast Pennsylvania. Along with its tributaries, it connects four counties and 31 municipalities in a natural web of interdependence, heedless of political divisions. Birthplace of Pennsylvania industry and quintessential urban forest, the creek and its watershed are endangered jewels and untapped assets. Virtually unnoticed except when it floods, the creek begins in a pond in Daylesford near Paoli and flows into the Delaware River 33 miles away at the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum.

Much attention has been paid to the magnificent "star-power" of the Presidents' Summit for America's Future, and this is understandable. After all, when was the last time Philadelphia, or any American city for that matter, played host to three decades of leaders? But, just as exciting as the arrival of the presidents and first ladies and others is the opportunity that this summit presents for us to reconnect with our young people through volunteerism and service. I can clearly remember a cold but sunny day more than four years ago when President Clinton declared in his inaugural address, "There is nothing that is wrong with America that cannot be fixed by what is right with America.

Logic would dictate that an admitted felon could not hang onto the presidency of a nonprofit group that spends federal funds to meet neighborhood needs. Logic, meet Philadelphia. Even though he pled guilty to federal charges of fraud and conspiracy on April 7, Steven Vaughn somehow stayed on as president of the Central Germantown Council until May 27. He finally was forced to resign - not by his political patron, Councilwoman Donna Miller, or any public pressure from City Hall.

The Darby Creek Watershed is a ribbon of green flowing through some of the most built-up sections of Southeast Pennsylvania. Along with its tributaries, it connects four counties and 31 municipalities in a natural web of interdependence, heedless of political divisions. Birthplace of Pennsylvania industry and quintessential urban forest, the creek and its watershed are endangered jewels and untapped assets. Virtually unnoticed except when it floods, the creek begins in a pond in Daylesford near Paoli and flows into the Delaware River 33 miles away at the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum.

Kathleen Hogan had hoped for 30 people, she said last night. But more than 150 crowded into an at times raucous meeting the maverick township commissioner organized to spur citizen action. Some were angry at her for rocking the boat. Others praised her for raising issues they felt had been buried for years. Some were just curious. Unrest has been building in Haddon Township since May's election, when Mayor Bill Park was elected to his fifth term and Hogan and James Broderick won their first as commissioners.

Pharmaceutical companies contributed more than $1.9 million in the last four years to Garden State political parties and elected officials, according to a report released yesterday by the watchdog group New Jersey Citizen Action. Organizers with the group linked the donations to what they termed New Jersey lawmakers' reluctance to regulate the cost of prescription drugs for seniors. Gov. McGreevey promised earlier this year to implement a preferred-drug list of prescriptions purchased through the state at a lower bulk rate, but no provision was made for the program in the state budget, said Bridget Devane of Citizen Action.

President Bush and his closest ally, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, stood side by side yesterday as they sought to bridge differences over diplomatic tactics and then confront and vanquish Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. They said Hussein, in addition to violating U.N. demands that he surrender weapons of mass destruction, already had - or soon may forge - firm links with al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups. Standing to the President's right, Blair, who was described by Bush as "a friend of the American people" and "a friend of mine," ducked a question about links between Hussein and the terrorists of Sept.

People ask me why I offered $1 million to Paula Jones to settle her lawsuit against President Clinton. The answer is simple. Private intervention in this matter is needed to get the country focused on serious issues rather than being absorbed in a sex scandal. If this lawsuit goes on, the chaos created by lawyers and political egos will continue, and the popular media will be drugged on this story at the expense of real issues. I don't expect any laurels for trying to settle this lawsuit.

Much attention has been paid to the magnificent "star-power" of the Presidents' Summit for America's Future, and this is understandable. After all, when was the last time Philadelphia, or any American city for that matter, played host to three decades of leaders? But, just as exciting as the arrival of the presidents and first ladies and others is the opportunity that this summit presents for us to reconnect with our young people through volunteerism and service. I can clearly remember a cold but sunny day more than four years ago when President Clinton declared in his inaugural address, "There is nothing that is wrong with America that cannot be fixed by what is right with America.

Since they're paying some of the nation's highest prices for electricity, consumers in Southeastern Pennsylvania may want to be first in line to see whether a free market for electrical power can lower their energy costs. And the Pennsylvania legislature is considering a fast-track proposal in these waning days of the session. Good news? That's not yet clear. Deregulating the electric industry promises to be nowhere near as simple as letting telephone customers choose their long-distance carrier.

U.S. Rep. Jon D. Fox, a freshman Republican from Montgomery County, has raised more money for reelection - $576,731 - than 80 percent of all House members, according to an analysis of campaign reports by the consumer-advocacy group Citizen Action. Fox is one of 85 freshman members whose elections in 1994 swung control of the House from Democrats to Republicans. The 85 on average have raised $380,887 each, far more campaign money than other member of Congress, according to the Washington group.

Even as Congress prepared to pull the plug on health-care reform, a consumer advocacy group reported yesterday that the health and insurance industries opposing reform pumped more than $46 million into the coffers of House and Senate members from January of 1993 through July of 1994. The report by Citizen Action reveals that increased contributions from proponents of the status quo flowed not only to members of key committees debating proposed legislation, but also to members in election struggles with advocates of reform.