CMS must admit its mistakes. I challenge school leaders to answer Kenny Smith.

I want answers from CMS leaders

Regarding “Losing my faith in CMS leadership,” (Feb. 3 Opinion):

Kenny Smith’s criticism of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is right on. The CMS administration seems to have a policy of “cover up” rather than openness. I challenge them to honestly answer Smith. I would support CMS for admitting its mistakes and I challenge CMS leaders to write to the Observer answering the questions Smith has raised.

Watson Burts, Charlotte

A good reason to expand Medicaid

Most of us do not wish to give non-deserving people something for nothing. However, let’s look at the ramifications of not expanding Medicaid.

One example: Mrs. A becomes pregnant. Being uninsured she does not get prenatal care. Unfortunately, she develops preeclampsia, is hospitalized, and delivers a premature baby. Who’ll pay these bills? Hospitals cannot turn away emergencies, but neither can they operate without money. To recoup these costs, hospitals need to increase their fees to insurers, who then raise our insurance rates.

Is it more economical to expand Medicaid to prevent preventable illnesses that when untreated become expensive hospital expenditures, or to keep the status quo?

Linda Thede, Matthews

Health care access is a main cause

The Feb. 3 report on the higher mortality rate of black babies in North Carolina points to a fatal flaw in our health care system. The problem is complex, but lack of access to health care is a main cause.

Black adults also suffer for the same reason. Studies show that many health disparities between blacks and whites disappear in the Veterans Administration system, where all races enjoy equal access.

Black History Month is the perfect time to stand up for equal health care access. The VA has proven this can be done. It only makes sense that a nation that wants to be great should work for a more just health care system — Medicare for All.

Zach Thomas, Charlotte

Consider the role of systemic racism

Thank you for your reporting on the racial gap in infant mortality.

When I was 9 months old, my mother took me to the emergency room with a 105-degree fever. After initially being ignored, her insistence got me in to see the surgeons who saved me from what could have been a deadly case of bacterial meningitis.

Like other neonatal conditions, the mortality rate for black babies is over twice as high as for whites. Had my mother been black would she have been given the same prenatal and postnatal care? Or, would she had been ignored longer in the waiting room?

Those of us who are white must consider how systemic racism has advantaged us from even the earliest parts of our lives.

Stephen Hairgrove, Charlotte

Include nuclear in clean energy plan

Regarding “North Carolina is a leader in the fight against climate change,” (Jan. 31 Opinion):

To paraphrase Ronald Reagan, “There he goes again.” In his op-ed Michael S. Regan, Secretary of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, lauds North Carolina for being a leader in the fight against climate change. However, he forgot to acknowledge the essential role of nuclear power, which is far and away the No. 1 source of clean energy in the state.

We must acknowledge reality if we are to accomplish the important goal of significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Steven P. Nesbit, Charlotte

I see a slippery slope of judicial bias

Thanks, Republican Party, for creating “Trump Justice,” a new and ever-evolving justice system which gives the defendant (or his lackeys) the power to determine who shall or shall not be a witness for the prosecution at his trial.

Money, power, and Alan Dershowitz-style attorneys with convenient ethics and Constitutional interpretations custom tailored for each defendant will be the driving forces advocating for this new “justice” system.

Congrats for creating this slippery, slimy slope of judicial bias for those who can afford it.

Edward Kouri, Charlotte

Which loss are those flags mourning?

Why is the U.S. flag currently being flown at half-staff at many homes and businesses around Charlotte? Is it in honor of Kobe Bryant (admirable) or are some citizens and businesses mourning the irreparable harm that the Senate’s “trial” and acquittal of Donald Trump will have on our democracy and country?

Richard Van Hooser, Charlotte