I would like to say even though part of me cringes at the use of our resources for drug related injuries, another says "Hey why not" Our resources, meaning free health care given to indigent patients is given to all without a moral judgement involved. No, I do not like doing it, however where do we draw a line? Our high insurance costs now are adjusted by obese people who cannot or will not lose weight creating many medical problems for themselves. The costs are also adjusted by people that smoke, drink and indulge in all of the unhealthy habits that are known to man. Can we say ok to some but not ok to all? Where do you draw the line? Maybe the substance
abuse has to be legal. Ok, then what....illegal by what standards? Illegal to use as in drugs or illegal to overuse and operate machinery as in alcohol. Illegal to use at a certain age like
tobacco and alcohol. Then a step further, you can't hurt yourself and expect the state to pay the bills if you're using drugs,
alcohol, or tobacco, but if you're using food it's ok. If you dispense medical help with moral judgements as a guideline you are truly opening a can of worms that has no bottom. Does the man that is next in line for a heart transplant really deserve that heart over the man that is third in line? Maybe the man that is fourth in line is a better person overall than either of the ones before him. Should the heart go to him because his lifestyle is more acceptable to the people that are paying the bills? And on and on.....We as a society can not dispense medical care on a "value to society" basis.

My concern is not that our resources are used for drug related injuries, but that our resources are being used for out of state drug related injuries.

The state to state problem can be solved by the state of Mississipi paying Georgia a flat fee per head for referrals of burn patients as well as transportation costs. Of course when you bring the government eitherstate, federal or local into any situation-that's when things really get messed up. I would suggest looking for private funding as well. There is no easy solution. It's rather like the $100.00 toilet seats of yesterday-our hospitals have boxes of tissue for which they charge patients $8.00 dollars a box. If I remember when I delivered my last baby I was charged $20 dollars a box for sanitary pads. As distastful as that is to mention-it shows
how utterly stupid costs are in the typical hospitals. If the hospital bought their non-medical supplies through the manufacturers or at least through Food Lion or Kroger they could
sure save but that's much too full of common sense. Go figure.

a patient is a patient. If it was your love ones, you would want the best care for them also. So stop being hypocrites and be REAL. Yes I said it. NURSE SHERYL WILLIAMS

Of course a patient is a patient. But, don't try to tell me that each patient gets the same treatment, with or without insurance. Plus, I know that these burn patients will be treated, the question that I am asking is who is paying for their treatment.

And to make myself even clearer. If a child was burned and a Mississippi Crystal Meth user was burned; I would want the child to get the better treatment.

Crystal Meth Users and sellers-Attention! To get their attention and money for treatment of drug related burns, we can get them to sign a paper prior to or after they've been treated enough to sign a form. The form can say...if your injuries are proven to be derived from the use or sale of illegal drugs you will be expected to pay for your medical treatment. The average drug seller can more than afford good medical treatment or if it is a user, after they are treated and are in decent shape -put them in jail! We need to quit tolerating abuse of our medical resources.

I still mean what I said earlier about not using moral judgements before "offering" treatment but we do not need to offer a free ride for people that abuse the systems. I would never withhold treatment for anyone however I would demand payment afterwards if they are hurt while breaking our laws. It's time to get tough and let people know that if you're playing the game you also have to pay the price.

I have found that because the use of drugs causes people to not be able to make logical decisions we end up with patients in the hospital for the ridicules reasons. When people are mixing ingredients for meth and it blows up what can they possibly say to explain what they were doing let alone make it sound reasonable. These people are not experts and they are not chemists. We need strong drug ed and great rehabilitation facilities like Narconon Vista Bay so that way we can not just keep sending the same people back to prison but get them rehabilitated so that they an become productive members of society.

I have found that because the use of drugs causes people to not be able to make logical decisions we end up with patients in the hospital for the ridicules reasons. When people are mixing ingredients for meth and it blows up what can they possibly say to explain what they were doing let alone make it sound reasonable. These people are not experts and they are not chemists. We need strong drug ed and great rehabilitation facilities like Narconon Vista Bay so that way we can not just keep sending the same people back to prison but get them rehabilitated so that they an become productive members of society.