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St. Louis News Today

Saturday, November 9, 2002

Hospital Expect Hefty Increase In Demand
for Beds and Services
EVANSTON, IL, (PRNewswire), November 9, 2002 - The demand for beds in U.S. hospitals is projected to increase by as much as 46 percent in the next 25 years, according to a new study published by Solucient. This increase of an additional 238,000 beds is expected to result from long-term demographic shifts in the U.S. population, which could drive up demand for inpatient acute care through 2027.

The new long-term forecasts also show that total acute care admissions are projected to increase by 13 million cases during that same time frame -- a 41 percent increase from the current number of national admissions.

Such forecasts come at a time when many acute care hospitals nationwide are experiencing increases in hospitalizations, resulting in capacity constraints, and an unprecedented boom in hospital construction and expansion projects. "To achieve long-term success, capital-intensive projects must not only relieve current capacity issues in the market," says Solucient's product director Paul Presken, "but also anticipate future demand for care over the next five to 25 years."

Several demographic factors are likely to contribute to the 25-year growth in inpatient care, including the aging of the baby boom generation, increasing life expectancy, rising fertility rates, and continued immigration. These factors, however, will not affect each market equally.

"Each community in the United States has a unique set of demographic factors that will determine how fast or slow inpatient utilization will grow over the next quarter century," Presken says.

Regionally, inpatient demand will grow fastest in the Western and Southern states and more slowly in Midwestern and Northeastern regions. However, even in slower-growing communities the aging population will prompt a hospitalization growth rate that will outpace growth of the total population. For example, while the total Chicago population is expected grow by only 13 percent in the next 25 years, the large number of aging baby boomers retiring in that market will spark a 30 percent increase in inpatient bed demand -- more than twice the population growth rate.

Declining Consumer Confidence Level Could
Impact Holiday Shopping Season
ST. LOUIS, (SLFP.com), November 6, 2002 - The outlook for the holiday retail season is now fairly bleak, according to the Consumer Confidence Index. The Consumer Confidence Index, which has declined for four consecutive months, deteriorated even further in October. The Index now stands at 79.4 (1985=100), down from 93.7 in September.

The Present Situation Index fell to 77.5 from 88.5, and the Expectations Index declined to 80.7 from 97.2. Consumer Confidence is now at its lowest level since November 1993, when it stood at 71.9.

"A weak labor market, the threat of military action in Iraq, and a prolonged decline in the financial markets have clearly dampened both consumers' confidence and their expectations for the near future," says Lynn Franco, Director of The Conference Board's Consumer Research Center. "The outlook for the holiday retail season is now fairly bleak. Without the likelihood of a pickup in consumer spending, an already weak economic recovery could weaken further."

Consumers' assessment of the present situation turned notably more negative. Those rating current business conditions as "bad" increased to 27.6 percent from 23.8 percent. Those rating current conditions as "good" decreased to 15.6 percent from 18.5 percent. Consumers reporting jobs are hard to get rose to 27.3 percent from 25.4 percent last month. Those claiming jobs are plentiful declined to 14.8 percent from 15.9 percent in September.

Consumers' expectations for the next six months fell in October. The percent of respondents expecting a deterioration in business conditions in the next six months rose to 14.1 percent from 9.7 percent. Consumers expecting conditions to improve declined to 19.0 percent from 21.6 percent.

The employment outlook was also less favorable in October. Consumers anticipating more jobs to become available dropped to 15.0 percent from 17.3 percent, while those expecting fewer jobs in the coming months rose to 22.1 percent from 16.8 percent. Income expectations were also more pessimistic. Now, only 17.8 percent of consumers anticipate a rise in their incomes, down from 21.5 percent in September.

Historic Preservation Council to Consider
Nominations for National Register
JEFFERSON City, (SLFP.com), October 31, 2002 - The Missouri Advisory Council on Historic Preservation will consider nominations to the National Register of Historic Places for a variety of property types and styles during its quarterly meeting on Friday, Nov. 15, 2002. The meeting, which is open to the public, is at 8:30 a.m. in the first floor conference room at the Kirkpatrick State Information Center, 600 W. Main St., Jefferson City.

The agenda for the council meeting will include nominations to the register for the individual listing of two residential buildings, a bridge and three commercial and institutional buildings. In addition, one district, representing approximately 15 institutional and commercial buildings, will be nominated including:

The Emmanuel DeHodiamont House is an uncommon example of residential Gothic Revival style architecture in St. Louis (Independent City). The original rectangular stone portion of the DeHodiamont House, which is considered one of the city's two oldest houses, was constructed circa 1830. The most prominent Gothic Revival details, a steeply pitched central gable and pointed arch windows, were added in the 1870s. The original building was constructed by Emmanuel DeHodiamont who came to America from Belgium around 1803. The DeHodiamont House was designated a St. Louis City Landmark in 1972.
Constructed in 1905 for Washington University, the Smith Academy and Manual Training School in St. Louis (Independent City) is a reminder of the renowned institution's involvement in preparing young men for its university-level classes. Active from 1905 until 1917, the complex consists of two brick Renaissance Revival style four-story school buildings and a one-story shop, all connected by a system of hallways. The school is to be nominated for its significant role in education.
The Charles A. and Annie Buddy House in St. Joseph, Buchanan County, is associated with the growth of St. Joseph's middle class and their ability to invest in the growing community. Built in 1883 by a prosperous wholesale fruit and produce dealer, this impressive brick house displays features of the Italianate and other Late Victorian styles. The Buddy House is being nominated under the Historic Resources of St. Joseph Multiple Property Submission for its architectural significance.
The 14-story R. A. Long Building in Kansas City, Jackson County, is locally significant for its association with one of the nation's leading lumber producers, the Kansas City-based Long-Bell Lumber Company. Constructed in 1906, the Italian Renaissance style building was the city's first steel-structure skyscraper. Commissioned by company president R. A. Long and designed by architect Henry Hoit, the building expressed stability, strength, and the prosperity of Long's company.
Constructed in 1920, the Western Union Telegraph Building in Kansas City, Jackson County, originally served as a regional telegraph wire switching center and was adapted over the years to use new communication technologies. The four-story commercial style building is associated with Western Union during the early to mid-20th century when the company dominated long-distance communications in the U.S.
The South-McDaniel-Patton Commercial Historic District in Springfield, Greene County, consists of 15 one, two and three-story buildings constructed south of the Public Square between 1872 and 1930. As a group, the buildings exemplify late 19th and early 20th century commercial architecture and are important for their role in the commercial history of Springfield. The district is being nominated under the Historic and Architectural Resources of Springfield Multiple Property Submission.
The Jefferson Street Footbridge in Springfield, Greene County, has statewide significance in the area of engineering as the oldest cantilever-type bridge in Missouri. Constructed by the American Bridge Company in 1902, the bridge served area residents who needed a safe way over the busy St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad tracks. The steel footbridge is 486 feet long exclusive of approach stairs and the floor is 25 feet above grade in the center.

The council will also receive status reports on programs provided by the State Historic Preservation Office, and discuss business related to the function and duties of the Council.

'No Spam' Legislation Modeled on 'No Call' List
JEFFERSON City, (SLFP.com), October 25, 2002 - Attorney General Jay Nixon and State Rep. Chuck Graham of Columbia have announced that Graham will introduce legislation in the Missouri House of Representatives in the 2003 session to create a "no spam" list to help Missourians eliminate unwanted commercial e-mails. State Sen. Wayne Goode of St. Louis is expected to introduce similar legislation in the Missouri Senate.

The model for the "no spam" list would be the highly successful No Call list administered and enforced by Nixon's office. The Attorney General's No Call list has grown to include almost 1.1 million residential phone numbers, representing an estimated 2.7 million Missourians.

In a statement, Nixon said, "Spammers are uninvited house guests and it's time for Missourians to have the option to protect their privacy. Missourians, especially parents of young children, are rightly concerned about the messages that can be easily viewed by anyone with access to an electronic mailbox. We will work with Rep. Graham and Sen. Goode to craft legislation to help consumers stop those e-mails."

"Missourians with e-mail addresses are increasingly frustrated as they have to clear out their mailboxes stuffed with messages advertising everything from get-rich-quick schemes to online Viagra to pornographic Web sites," Graham said. "Consumers should be able to protect themselves from these unwanted intrusions, much as they can with telemarketing calls under the No Call law."

Indications are that the problem of unsolicited commercial e-mails, or UCEs, is only going to increase, Nixon said. An April 2002 study by the marketing firm The Radicati Group estimates that by the end of 2002, more than 2.3 billion spam messages will be sent on a daily basis, with that number expected to increase to more than 14.5 billion daily spam messages in 2006.

"One of the other problems we see is that many of the spam messages are not from reputable or legitimate businesses, adding the problem of fraudulent schemes to the burden of receiving unwanted and unsolicited e-mails," Nixon said. "When we reduced telemarketing calls made into Missouri by vigorously enforcing the No Call law, we also saw complaints to our office about telemarketing fraud cut in half. An anti-spam law could help reduce fraud perpetrated over the Internet as well."

According to information from the Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email (CAUCE), the most commonly seen unsolicited commercial e-mails (UCEs) advertise chain letters, pyramid schemes and other get-rich-quick schemes; offers of phone sex lines and ads for pornographic Web sites; quack health products and remedies; and even offers of software for collecting e-mail addresses and sending UCEs.

Nixon said his staff will help Graham and Goode develop a legislative plan that would include creation of a database of e-mail addresses as well as an easy way to register those addresses.

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