Anyone who thinks that the average citizen does not have any input into

state government should ask Coal Grove businessman Les Boggs how important even a single voice can be.

Last Friday Boggs and Jeff Hunter, home care director for the Area Agency on Aging District 7, traveled to Columbus to testify in front of the Senate Finance and Financial Institutions Committee about the need to continue funding the Passport program.

Passport is a state funded program that helps keep senior citizens out of nursing homes by providing personal care and homemaking services.

"I have always been a believer that one person can make a difference," Boggs said. "That is how our system works and we must utilize it."

For Boggs, owner of Accent Health Care Inc. in Coal Grove and a member of the Dawson-Bryant Board of Education, it was his first experience testifying in front of the Senate. The title of his speech was the same as his overall message, that legislators need "to do the right thing."

Despite planned cuts and no additional funding, Boggs said his agency has continued to try to do what is right by giving employees deserved raises and continuing to provide quality services.

The concerns began in March when legislators proposed limiting new entrants to the Passport program. The Area Agency on Aging covers 10 counties and averages 80 new Passport clients each month. The proposed cuts would probably not affect existing services but would limit it to 59 new patients a month, Boggs said.

Many of these additional applicants would be forced into nursing homes while they are on a waiting list, he said.

"The main objective I had was to fight for the rights of seniors," Boggs said. "They are the greatest asset we have in Lawrence County."

To illustrate how efficient the Passport program has been, Boggs used figures from the Scripps Gerontology Centers. According to its study in 1992 it cost $30 per client per day. In 2002, Passport only cost $31 per client per

day, which is a very modest increase for a 10-year period, Boggs said.

"I was showing them how the Passport program saves the state money and creates jobs at the same time," Boggs said. "It costs the state $55,000 per year to keep someone in a nursing home. It costs $12,000 to provide these in-home services through Passport."

In Lawrence County, several health care agencies account for 400 employees whose jobs are directly related to the Passport program, Boggs said.

Senator John Carey (R-17th), vice chairman of the committee and acting chairman when Boggs spoke, said the Coal Grove resident did a good job of illustrating the magnitude of the situation.

"I think it is always important for people to hear how state policy affects them directly in local communities," Carey said. "I think his testimony was well received."

The Committee is scheduled to vote on the health care cuts later this week. The state must adopt a finalized budget by June 30.