The Michigan Dally
Vol. XCI, No. 61-S Ann Arbor, Michigan-
-Thursday, August 13, 1981
Ten Cents
Twelve Pages
Cost of living
in city high,
survey
By MARK GINDIN
Daily staff writer
The cost of living in Ann Arbor is
almost 10 percent higher than the
national average, with hospital costs
here the highest of the 232 cities sur-
veyed, according to the American
Chamber of Commerce Researchers
Association, which recently released its
quarterly report.
More that 232 cities participated in
the survey, with the Ann Arbor Chamber
of Commerce contributing local price
listings, according to Jean Jackman,
assistant director of the Ann Arbor
Chamber of Commerce.
COMPARISON OF the cities using
the All-Items Index shows Ann Arbor to
be almost 10 percent highter than the
national average of 100. The Index
measures nationwide variations in the
costs of 44 consumer goods and ser-
vices, including food, housing, utilities,
transportation, health care, and
miscellaneous items.
Ann Arbor was higher than the
national average in all the catagories,
but was roughly the same as other
comparably-sized cities. (See chart,
Page 2). "The study has confirmed that
Ann Arbor is not a cheap place to live,"
Jackman said.
Ani Arbor health care costs are
among the highest in the entire survey,
which cited expensive hospital room
charges as the major factor.
A HOSPITAL ROOM in Ann Arbor is
among the most expensive of all the 232
says
cities surveyed. The average of $208
per day for a semi-private room in this
area is much greater than the national
daily average of $120. The number is
less than the amount in the previous
quarterly survey however, because the
Ann Arbor chamber of commerce in-
cluded the surrounding community
hospitals for this year's survey, such as
Beyer Memorial and Chelsea Com-
munity Hospital, Jackman said.
The catagory of health care costs in-
clude the cost of an average visit to the
doctor and dettist along with the
charge for a hospital room. At $17, Ann
Arbor averaged lower for a visit to the
doctor than the national average of
$21.90.
The two major hospitals in the city,
University hospital and St. Joseph's
hospital charge far more than the $208
average reported for this area. St.
Joseph's collects over $254 for a person
in a semi-private room, while costs at
University Hospital start at $282 a day.
Jackman said the charges at the local.
hospitals were higher than the national
average because "both hospitals are,
teaching hospitals" and the University
is a "specialty" hospital, designed to
treat special medical cases.
HOUSING COSTS in Ann Arbor,
as expected, are also above the national
average.bThe housingecatagory in-
cludes both apartment rent and
payments on a home for an average
family.
See SURVEY, Page 2
Sidewalk browsing
Local bookworms easily lose track of time in front of Davids Books on Liber-
ty St. when confronted with rows and rows of hard-cover treasures neatly
stacked on the shady side of the street.
Federal rules may.be relaxed
By The AssociatedPress
with staff reports
WASHINGTON- In its latest assault on federal
regulations, the Reagan administration yesterday
targeted 30 rules-some of which directly affect the
University-for possible elimination or easing in
areas ranging from sex discrimination in athletics
and sexual harassment to building access for the
handicapped.
Rules affecting lead emissions from auto exhaust,
sales of new chemicals and pesticides, employment
discrimination, drug labeling, protection of wildlife
and endangered species, and health planning also are
being considered for relaxation.
VICE-PRESIDENT George Bush, who announced
the new regulations to be reviewed, said the ad-
ministration is seeking to reduce the burdens on
businesses without undermining key social protec-
tions.
"On the environment, for example, there is nothing
in our approach that is destined to diminish the
quality of life and the quality of the air," Bush told a
news conference.
The administration is looking instead for more ef-
ficient ways of achieving the same objectives, Bush
said.
BUT THE NEW regulatory review list has already
prompted new outcries from environmental, civil
rights, consumer, labor, and other groups that have
assailed previous moves by the administration to cut
back many of the regulations they helped establish
over the past 15 years.
Consumer advocate Ralph Nader said Bush's an-
nouncement was "the latest installment in with-
drawing health and safety protections for the
American people. It is another signal to big business
that there will be no law and order applied to them
under the Reagan administration."
Women's groups criticized efforts to loosen
regulations prohibiting sex discrimination in sports
and on the job.
"SEX DISCRIMINATION in the workplace is a
terrible problem for women. The existing regulations
have been effective and we support them," said Carol
Bros, legislation director for the National Women's
Political Caucus.
And, according to Virginia Nordby, University Af-
firmative Action Director and Title IX Coordinator,
there is a limit in these areas of discrimination to
what the executive branch can do, because it is
dealing with an Act of Congress.
"I'm not too worried," Nordby said. "They're
operating within narrow limits." And a review
clearing up the many ambiguities in the rules would
be beneficial, she said.
ALTHOUGH THE question of whether Title IX ap-
plies technically to the Universiy is still up in the air,
Nordby explained, "We're assuming that our athletic
programs, like everything else we do, is not . . .
discriminatory."
Lewis Regenstein, with the Fund for Animals, said
the administration was "going after the heart of
some of the country's most important environmental
laws under the guise of reducing burdensome
regulations."
See TITLE, Page 5