Relationship seminar
Focus on effects of dual-careers
Page 4
Cramped quarters
Police station to get expansion
Page 5
GEORCrBlOm
Sunday/
1 lie tsattalion
4 'i |/ol. 80 No. 89 USPS 045360 10 pages
College Station, Texas
Tuesday, February 5, 1985
Texans want
Defense cuts
in budget
*f| Associated Press
III ■ WASHINGTON — Despite their
|^f Bitty differences, Texas’ two sen
ators agreed Monday President Rea-
Bn's proposed fiscal 1986 budget
laves too oig a deficit because of too
few cuts in the Defense Department.
I “I think the president’s budget is
tough and somewhat of a bitter pill,”
said freshman Republican Sen. Phil
■ramm. “But the problem we face in
die deficit, which imperils recovery,
which put seven million people to
work and brought inflation to a
Standstill, is still a problem.”
I “The president’s deficit for next
year is $180 billion, and that’s too
[ies stilldofltnuch,” said Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, D-
:al approJ Texas. “Democrats and Republicans
aim. Tn the Congress must work together
e the conitii in a bi-partisan spirit to make deeper
v said. “Tit
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eaten Ark
s tough met
cuts. . . .The Pentagon must accept a
stretchout of the defense buildup.”
I Analysts in Gov. Mark White’s Of-
■ice of State-Federal Relations said it
appeared local governments would
■ear the brunt of the cuts in Texas,
if the budget were approved as-is by
Kongress.
V Elimination of all the grant pro
grams Reagan wants out would cost
■ exas $440 million, estimated the
Plate analysts. The Texas Legislature
is already faced with a $1 billion def
icit.
Military budget calls
for $34 billion boost
Photo by FRANK IR WIN
Alone in the Cold
The cold, rainy days of winter seem to have banished bicycl
ers From campus. This bicycle rack outside Bolton Hall gives
testimony to the perils of bike riding in freezing tempera
tures. Only one rider braved the weather on this day.
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — President
Reagan is asking Congress to ap
prove a 1986 military budget that
would increase spending by $31 bil
lion and leave intact every major
weapons program begun in his first
administration.
The budget calls for a major in
crease in research spending, partic
ularly for the president’s so-called
“Star Wars” missile defense plan,
and coritinuing large purchases of
conventional weapons.
Republicans and Democrats com
plained Monday that President Rea
gan’s newly released budget for
1986 was too generous to the Penta
gon, but also agreed the administra
tion will win at least some of its re
quested $39 billion in domestic
spending cuts.
House Majority Leader Jim
Wright, D-Texas, predicted Con
gress would approve “some varia
tion” of the $974 billion plan that the
president formally signed over in a
White House ceremony, but even
Republicans edged away from em
bracing the president’s proposals in
their entirety.
Defense Secretary Caspar W.
Weinberger, in a background brief
ing for reporters on Saturday, de
scribed the increased spending as
absolutely essential to maintaining
national security and posing no
threat to the economy.
“We believe that we are on the
right path for restoring our secu
rity,” Weinberger said. “I think the
Soviets are more cautious now and
our allies are certainly more reas
sured.
“We believe our resolve to stay
stroiig is what has brought the Sovi
ets to the negotiating table ...”
The proposed Pentagon budget,
the subject of months of intense de
bate, projects total actual spending
of $277.5 billion in the 12-month fis
cal year that starts Oct. 1. That total,
which represents 28.5 percent of the
government’s total spending, is an
increase of $31.2 billion over the es
timated outlays of $246.3 billion in
the current year.
The entire 1986 budget calls for
$973.7 billion in spending and pro
jects a $180 billion deficit.
' r Overall budget authority — the
amount authorized by Congress for
defense programs in 1986 and be
yond — would rise from $284.7 bil
lion to $313.7 billion. That would
represent an after-inflation increase
of 5.9 percent.
The Defense Department never
spends all the money that is autho
rized by Congress in the same year,
primarily because weapons pur
chases are spread out over several
years. In fiscal 1986, for example,
$106.2 billion of the $277.5 billion in
actual spending, or more than 38
percent, already had been approved
by Congress in past years.
It is Reagan’s so-called strategic
modernization program that re
ceives the highest priority.
For example, the budget calls for
the procurement of 48 more MX
missiles, at a cost of $4.04 billion,
completing the planned acquisition
of 100 of the 10-warhead nuclear
weapons. So far, Congress has ap
proved only 21 of the 100 missiles,
and the program stands in jeopardy.
A series of key test votes will be
taken this spring on whether the 21
missiles included in this year’s bud
get actually will be purchased.
The 1986 spending plan also ear
marks $6.2 billion to acquire the last
48 B-1B bombers, bringing die total
to 100.
Further, it asks for $1.7 billion to
acquire a 13th Trident submarine in
1986, as well as another $2.86 billion
to continue research and devel
opment of a larger, more accurate
Trident II missile for the vessels.
continue development of a mobile,
single-warhead missile known as die
Midgetman that would augment the
MX force.
ore doctors now turning to rural practice
| Editor’s Note: This is the second
article in a two-part series on rural
health care.
By VIVIAN SMITH
Reporter
( One positive movement toward
| improving rural health care in
America is that more doctors are
now setting up shop in the country.
| Since the inception of the 1950s
■trend toward specialization, doctors
now tend to stay in urban areas close
to hospitals.
I And, combined with the fact that
many rural doctors are near retire-
| ment age, the number of physicians
has declined in recent years.
But today smaller communities
are expressing a desire to lure doc-
1 tors to their rural environments and
the Texas Department of Health
(TDH) is trying to satisfy that desire.
The TDH has entered into a con
tract with the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services to ad
minister the National Health Service
Corps program in Texas, NHSC
Field Coordinator Clara Gonzalez
said.
The program’s purpose is to im
prove the distribution of primary
care physicians in designated health
manpower shortage areas.
Individuals become involved in
NHSC while in medical school by ac
cepting four year scholarships for fi
nancial support.
Upon completion of their resi
dencies the doctors are obligated to
repay this support with two to four
years of service in a designated
shortage area, Gonzalez said.
To become a designated man
power shortage area a community
must meet specific federal criteria,
Gonzalez said.
The community must show a doc
tor to patient ratio of 3,500-to-l or
greater, 20 percent of the popula
tion below the poverty level, a five
year average of infant mortality rate
greater than 20 per 1,000 births and
more than 100 births per 1,000 fe
males aged 15 to 44, Gonzalez said.
Approximately 100 physicians
have been placed in rural Texas
communities thus far, Gonzalez said.
The NHSC hopes to place approxi
mately 80 additional doctors by
1986.
A doctor going into a health man
power shortage area can work in a
community health center or set up
his own “pure private office.”
Only 30 percent of the 100 doc
tors placed by NHSC are in PPO’s,
Gonzalez added.
Why such a small percentage?
Most choose to work in the com
munity center (if the community has
one) where the hours are 8 a.m. to 5
p.m. and the salary is stable, Gonza
lez said.
The maintenance costs for PPO’s
are higher in rural areas and the col
lection rates from patients are lower.
Also, many doctors complain of
no time off, lack of social and cultu-
raj opportunities, inability to main
tain an adequate hospital and inade
quate education for their children,
Walker said.
However, as some rural doctors
E oint out, money cannot buy some
enefits of practicing rural medi-
“I love medicine,” Dr. Howard
Kweller said.
“My biggest concern is with the
quality of care for patients.”
Kweller, the town doctor in
Emory, population 813, settled there
after living in New York for four
years.
“There is tremendous pressure
and competition in New York,”
Kweller said.
“I enjoy the slower pace and
friendly people in Emory. This is a
good place to work and raise our
children.”
Another physician, Dr. Mario
Ramirez, returned to his hometown
of Roma to practice. He provides the
following anecdote to express his af
finity for the practice of rural medi-
“Suppose you are just sitting
down to supper at 8:30 p.m. and the
young resident on duty in the emer
gency room phones. A woman from
a very poor family is suffering from
severe adominal pain.
“You are tired and hungry and
your first impulse is to relinquish the
patient to someone else. But your
conscience argues: What if her con
dition deteriorates?
“At the hospital you find the pa
tient has a surgical emergency. Yon
hurry with the arrangements.
“The surgery is done — success
fully —and as you leave you stop a
moment to comfort the patient’s two
small children.
“It is very late when you finally eat
your reheated supper but it tastes
even better, and you have a feeling
of satisfaction and contentment.
“It has never been a dull life for
me as a small town doctor. It’s been
very rich and very rewarding.
“The real sacrifice would have
been not to have returned here to
practice.”
1 p.m.
1 p.m.
1 p.m.
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-2625
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Caperton to review
Hobby’s budget plan
in search of revenues
By SARAH OATES
Stall Writer
State Sen. Kent Caperton said
Monday that he plans to go over Lt.
Gov. Bill Hobby’s budget proposal
with “a finely-tuned pencil to see if
we can generate more revenues.”
At a Bryan press conference Fri
day, Caperton endorsed Hobby’s
budget plan that would cut higher
education funding by 6 percent.
Caperton said ne thinks even the
6 percent cut could be eliminated by
adjusting fees to bring in additional
revenue.
Hobby’s alternative proposal to
the state budget includes a wide
range of fee increases, including re
directing 1 percent of the state ciga
rette tax (intended for development
of local parks) into general revenue
funds, increasing the amount of
highway fees used to support the
Department of Public Safety, reduc
ing the planned increase of the
state’s contribution to teachers re
tirement funds and increasing fees
from management audits of state
lands.
Hobby also proposed doubling lu-
ition for all students, which could
raise $120 million over the next two
years. Tuition would be raised for
Texas residents from the current $4'
an hour to $8 an hour in September.
The Legislative Budget Board in
December suggested paring higher
education by 26 percent, including a
20 percent cut for Texas A&M.
Caperton said he supports the in
creases, so long as students who
need financial aid will still be able to
go to college. He said he expects
some student groups will protest the
tuition hike.
“I have read some statements
from the Texas Student Lobby and I
think students are alarmed about tu
ition,” Caperton said. “I think they
have a legitimate concern. I’m for
the increases so long as there are
scholarship and loan provisions to
protect students who can’t afford to
go to school.”
Caperton said the state should
Students Shipman, Rosanoff
to be honored at Silver Taps
Sen. Kent Caperton
look at reducing funds from state
agencies that previously received 95
percent to 100 percent of current
funding.
He said he also is considering a
budget proposal from Sen. Carl Par
ker of Port Arthur, suggesting the
state charge out-of-state students the
same tuition as Texas students are
charged in their states.
He said the state’s fiscal problems
will only worsen in coming years,
and that a comprehensive study of
the Texas college and university sys
tem may show that some schools
should be closed.
“The Texas Coordinating Board
See Caperton, page 7
Two Texas A&M students who
died in January will be honored
at Silver Taps today at 10:30 p.m.
in front of the Academic Build
ing.
Silver Taps will be held for
Paul J. Shipman, 19, a business
major from Bryan, who died Jan.
28 and Kenneth A. Rosanoff, 30,
a graduate student in toxicology
from Cherry Hill, NJ., who died
Jan. 1.
Silver Taps honors those stu
dents who, at the time of their
death, were enrolled in graduate
or undergraduate courses at
Texas A&M.
During the ceremony the Ross
Volunteers fire a 21-gun salute
and “Silver Taps” is played by six
buglers three times — to the
North, West and South.
Silver Taps is held the first
Tuesday of each month, Septem
ber through April, when nec
essary. The name of the student
is posted at the base of the flag
pole during the day of Silver
Taps, and the flag is flown at
half-mast.
Photo by MARCY BASILE
Cadets raise the flag to half-mast for Silver Taps.