The City Council has received the Annual Financial Report for the fiscal year ending June 20, 2000. The report, which is still subject to a formal audit, shows only $6,886,940 of the year’s budgeted expenditures of $7,979,537 was spent. The resulting $1 million and the sale of Myers Park property resulted in an increase of reserves for the year of approximately $180,000. The budget called for a reduction in reserves for the year of $1,548,445, but did not anticipate the Myers Park property sale.

Although general revenues for the City averaged out just over the budgeted $6 million, there was some variation in the anticipated revenue from individual sources.

Property taxes produced $344,717, slightly higher than the $325,679 anticipated. Franchise taxes for KPL Gas were predicted at $200,000 but generated only $172,942. Parking fines collected were shown as $5,423 with the budget expecting $8,000. Other police fines where shown at $132,387, with only $115,000 expected. Transportation tax revenue was slightly lower than expected, but local gasoline tax revenue was slightly higher. Cigarette tax was also slightly lower.

Medicare Fraud and Abuse Seminar.

news release

A free Medicare Fraud and Abuse seminar will be held Wednesday, August 30, from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at Memorial Hall, 121 W. 8th Street, Joplin.

One hundred billion dollars are lost each year due to fraud and abuse of the Medicare program.

The seminar is being held to provide information on this important issue and to help people learn how to identify questionable charges on their Medicare Summary Notice and what to do about it.

Paula Dillar from Operation Restore Trust and the Division of Aging in Jefferson City, Richard Monroe from the United States Attorney General Office, and Bill Deal from the Federal Bureau of Investigation are scheduled to speak.

The event is sponsored by AARP and the Area Agency on Aging Region Ten with financial assistance provided by Arvest Bank.

There is no charge and everyone is invited to attend. There will be door prize drawings and refreshments will be served. For more information call (417) 627-0600.

Annual Senior Day at Northpark Mall.

news release

Reservations for exhibitor space at Senior Day 2000 are now being accepted. Senior Day will be held Wednesday, September 13. Information packets and reservation forms are available at the VantAge Point in Northpark Mall and the Area Agency office, 32nd and Connecticut, Fountain Plaza, Joplin. Or you may call (417) 627-0600.

Senior Day is an information fair that provides an opportunity for senior adults and their families to learn about a wide variety of products and services available in the area.

It attracts more than 2,000 people from the Four States. The theme for this year’s event is "In this Century. . .the Future is Aging."

The annual event focuses on the fastest growing segment of the population in the United States and provides a wide variety of information.

It is sponsored by the Area Agency on Aging, Northpark Mall, and The Joplin Globe.

As is usual, sales tax and the City’s dividend that’s included in you electric bill produced the biggest chunk of revenue for the City last year. Sales tax came in at just over $1.5 million and the utility kicked in a little over a million.

The $1.2 million that comes from the state and local gas tax is earmarked for improvin’ and maintainin’ the City streets.

Add the $342,000 for property tax and the $244,000 generated by the Carthage fire District you’re seeing ‘bout $4.5 million of the $6 million in revenue. The other million and a half comes from a variety of less than a hunderd thousand a year type categories.

Just for fun, the $6 million equals about $550 for ever person in Carthage. Good thing we get some help from the surroundin’ community with some a that sales tax.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

McCune- Brooks Hospital

Health & Nutrition by Judith Sheldon

SPINAL CORD MIRACLE?

Research on spinal cord injuries has been going on for years. Much of the work has been done in Veterans Administration hospitals where the largest number of paraplegics in the United States come for treatment. But, of course, it hasn’t been confined to VA facilities.

New York’s Rockefeller University and New York University Hospitals have been conducting experiments to try to find ways to regenerate damaged spinal nerve tissue. Recently, the Karolinska Institute in Sweden was able to demonstrate success in re-establishing nerve links in rats with severed spinal cords.

Not only were they able to get the severed nerve fibers to cross the gap between the severed halves of the cord, some function was also restored to the animals’ limbs.

So far, the research has involved severed cords. However, much of the spinal cord injuries suffered by most Americans involves crushed, not cut cords. It’s not known if this procedure will be helpful in these cases.

The fact is, we’re still a long way away from developing procedures for human beings. But this breakthrough could lead to other important findings that will eventually produce a successful spinal cord injury therapy.