People pay the price for Republican Corruption (Coingate)

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http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050711/NEWS24/507110317

Dave Adams' voice is full of fear as he imagines days ahead without OxyContin, a heavy-duty prescription painkiller and lifeline that warms like an old friend.

He and other injured workers covered by the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation fund received a benefits letter recently that announced changes to the prescription drug program.

The bureau - wracked with about $300 million in investment losses and at the center of a widening political scandal - has decided to cut drug benefits to save an estimated $4 million or more a year.

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Some workers are galled, believing the bureau is just trying to save money after losing hundreds of millions in disastrous investments, including an ill-fated $50 million investment in rare coins and a $215 million hedge-fund loss.

"It's like they're taking away what little I have. They've taken away all my dignity. I don't like being on this medication. But I can't go a day without it. I'm in too much pain. I can't walk. This is about Gov. Bob Taft trying to recoup his losses," Mr. Adams said.