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S E P T E M B E R | O C T O B E R 2 0 1 4 W W W . N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G N A T I O N A L N U R S E 9 transportation services to allow access to needed care. In response to these intense needs, the report does recommend restoring "limited inpatient services," but states those services, however necessary, be restored "only if the BMC North site (the recently purchased site of NARH where BMC now operates a satel- lite emergency department) is designated as a Critical Access Hospital." Under federal law, if a hospital is designated a "Critical Access Hospital," it is eligible for higher federal reimbursement for healthcare serv- ices because that facility serves a rural, isolated population. While the Massachusetts Nurses Associ- ation has been leading the fight to secure this designation for BMC North, nurses firmly believe that residents of Northern Berkshire County should have access to inpatient services in their community and that if the federal government won't provide Critical Access designation, then it is still up to the state and Berkshire Medical Center, along with other stakeholders to find the resources to provide those services. Most significantly, the report confirms the need for inpatient services in northern Berkshire County. Equally significant, in assessing the purported financial viability of providing those services, the report only looks at historical data from North Adams Regional Hospital as a stand-alone facility, rather than making a new assessment based on improved efficiencies and enhanced reimbursements that will result from now being part of the much larger Berkshire Health Systems. Nurses object to allowing state and local public officials, Berkshire Medical Center, and the Massachusetts healthcare system refuse services to the resi- dents of Northern Berkshire County simply because they live in an economically disad- vantaged and isolated region. The healthcare needs of residents have not changed. They had a full-service hospi- tal that was illegally closed due to gross mismanagement by administrators and the board of trustees, and they still deserve one. In coming weeks, MNA nurses will be working with residents, stakeholders, and policymakers to ensure the needs of the community are met, including holding public forums to discuss the report and next steps in the campaign to restore a full-service hospital. —David Schildmeier MICHIGAN M ichigan Nurses Associa- tion members were on hand to treat a bad case of "Affluenza" during its "Billionaires Ball" protest, held Sept. 30 outside of Gov. Rick Snyder's office in Lansing, Mich. Attendees wore plastic top hats, a small orchestra played, and the "1%" celebrated the wealth gained from the recent rewrite of Michigan's tax code that included a tax on pensions and eliminated the Michigan Business Tax. The tax code change created an oppor- tunity for businesses to save $1.65 billion, but increased individual income taxes by $1.42 billion. Gubernatorial candidate Mark Schauer, an MNA-endorsed candidate, has stated that he will repeal the "Snyder retirement tax," which has hurt thousands of Michi- gan seniors who are dependent on their pensions. The nurses were on hand to make sure that the "billionaires" had appropriate care in the form of compassion pills, doses of reality, and accountability pills. "I want to warn you about a disease that is affecting only the rich and powerful, including Governor Snyder," said Kelly Brunk, an MNA member and registered nurse from Sparrow Hospital in Lansing. "Affluenza sufferers can experience such symptoms as: a constipated conscience, delusions of unlimited entitlement, and a compulsion to tax hard working seniors." Brunk and other MNA members then showed off large pill bottles labeled with the fake medicine as part of their "Affluen- za" clinic. "Try not to drink too much Dom Perignon," Brunk advised. "It can exacer- bate the symptoms of 'Affluenza.'" —Ann Sincox Michigan nurses treat bad cases of "Affluenza"