Ashe's Redstone Rehab visit highlights senior issues

Date: 10/18/2010

Oct. 18, 2010

By Chris Maza

Reminder Assistant Editor

EAST LONGMEADOW -- State Rep. Brian Ashe stopped by the Redstone Rehabilitation and Nursing Center on Oct. 14 to meet and talk with residents about issues in the district and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Addressing a group of residents and staff members, Ashe admitted that the tough economic times, which he called the most difficult since the depression, led to a great deal of cutbacks.

"When times are tough, you have to cut back on the things that you might think are expected or you might have to tighten your belt on things you need," Ashe said. "It's a shame we had to do that, but a lot of things that weren't needed were cut and now there's a chance to start over and work our way up and start getting the services that are really needed. Obviously, senior services are one of the major issues we face on a daily basis and everybody knows it's important."

Two bills recently passed by the House of Representatives were pointed out by Ashe as moves that benefit the senior population.

The first was the creation of the "Silver Alert," which notifies the community when a person suffering from Alzheimer's disease is lost, much like the "Amber Alert" does when a child is lost or abducted.

"It's the same kind of scenario, where the police and the entire community is out looking so people aren't wandering," Ashe said. "We're trying to be pro-active."

The second was a prescription coupon bill.

"We're the last state in the country -- and I don't know why it took so long -- to pass a prescription coupon bill," Ashe said. "Prescription drug companies want to offer coupons so you can get your prescriptions. Companies can send you coupons on prescription drugs and it can save you $2, $5, $20 and obviously a penny is a penny and anything you can save is good."

Ashe, who also had the opportunity to tour part of the facility, told Reminder Publications that getting to know the constituents in his district was important and, with the growing senior population, it was crucial for the Commonwealth to help ensure that seniors get the best care possible.

"Our senior population is living longer, so there are more seniors around," Ashe said. "It's imperative for us ... to take care of our seniors and make sure that they have living conditions, health care and everything else as good as, if not better than, they had throughout their life."

Ashe said it remained to be seen how national health care reform would affect the senior community and that, in the coming years, the picture would become clearer.

"It's tough to say exactly what kind of impact it's had so far. I don't think there's been a long enough period of time to see what kind of impact, both negative and positive," Ashe said. "It's the kind of thing that's out there and everyone's just weeding through it. I think over the next couple of years, we're going to see what works, what doesn't work and what we need to add or take away from it."

Ashe, who is battling for reelection against fellow Longmeadow resident Marie Angelides, said the senior vote is very important and seniors take it very seriously. Therefore, he concluded, both the state and private entities, such as assisted living communities and rehabilitation centers, have to make voting accessible.

"For seniors, that's a big thing because a lot of them know that they earned that right to vote a long time ago and they want to make sure that they still vote," Ashe said. "If you look around the Commonwealth, seniors are probably the biggest voting population that they have because they understand what a right it is and they don't want to give that up."