Declarations

Occupancy revoked

“We can’t ignore the fact that the health and safety of the people who live there is in danger. … Conditions there are very dire.”

— Frank Michel, a spokesman for Houston, Texas, Mayor Bill White, commenting on the city’s ordering about 265 residents to move out of Carter’s Grove Apartments because of dangerous health and safety conditions. Violations included electrical hazards, backed-up sewage, leaky roofs and piles of trash. The complex has been handed more than 200 building-code, fire and police citations this year. Michel said it’s the first time the city has revoked the certificate of occupancy for a complex. The owner is listed in Harris County records as Carter’s Grove Garden Apartments on Coney Island Drive in Brooklyn, N.Y. Source: AP

Collect and cover

“I’m a business owner and when I buy insurance for my employees, I expect it to cover their health-care needs. … People need health care. And for the insurance industry to sell a policy and not cover what is needed, that is not right. They shouldn’t collect a premium if they are not going to cover what we need.”

—John Hair, a Tulsa, Okla., business owner, who planned to testify at a congressional hearing on whether insurers should be required to provide equal coverage for mental health and physical illness. When a family member received a diagnosis of schizophrenia a few years ago, Hair found out that the coverage had limits on mental illness services. Tulsa Mental Health Association and the National Alliance on Mental Illness hosted the hearing. Among the people scheduled to testify were Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland; and Terri White, the next commissioner of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse. A federal report issued in 2003 says Oklahoma has the highest rate of serious mental illness among adults. Source: AP

The kids are all right

“Leave these kids alone.”

—Ark. State Rep. Billy Gaskill, D-Paragould, who was among lawmakers in the House voting against new driving restrictions for younger teenagers. The House overwhelmingly rejected a measure that would have barred young drivers from the roads between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., except for work, school or an emergency. It would also have outlawed a young driver’s use of a cell phone, and limited passengers to one, not counting family members. Gaskill, was skeptical of the fatality figures cited by the bill’s proponents. “They said there were more 16- and 18-year old kids getting killed than there are among the 75- and 80-year olds. Well, duh, there’s more of them,” Gaskill said. Source: AP

No pain and suffering for pets?

“With animals, all you get is the value of the property. … There are no emotional damages.”

—Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor, commenting on the fact that pet owners are unlikely to get much compensation if they individually sue pet food-maker Menu Foods as a result of recent pet deaths and illnesses attributed to Menu Foods’ products. Numerous pet owners around the country have sued or are considering legal action against Menu Foods. Some are seeking class action status. Source: AP

Topics Oklahoma