Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Doctors in Drug Rehab Treating Patients; Truckers Protest High Fuel Costs; Zimbabwe Poised for Historic Change or Power Struggle?; Bipartisanship Deal on Home Foreclosure Crisis
Aired April 01, 2008 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: OK, I'm going to ask you this very bluntly. Is your doc a drunk? Would you know if he or she were? Probably not, and probably not. But you will be shocked at what we have learned about doctor surgeons in drug or alcohol rehab.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Wall Street comes off the critical list, at least for a day. New signs of life in the credit sector leave many investors cautiously optimistic about the economy.
Hi there. I'm Brianna Keilar, in today for Kyra Phillips, at CNN Center in Atlanta.
LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
OK. Well, depending on whom you believe, Zimbabwe is either poised for historic change or stuck in a post-election power struggle. The opposition and ruling parties are giving vastly conflicting versions of what's being done to decide the presidential vote three days ago.
CNN's Robin Curnow joins us now from Johannesburg, South Africa, with the very latest on this -- Robin.
ROBIN CURNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there.
Well, I think it's important for our viewers to know that CNN is banned from reporting in Zimbabwe, which is why we're here in Johannesburg in South Africa, which is a neighboring to the south of Zimbabwe.
Now, the issues in Zimbabwe are critical, because what happens in Zimbabwe affects the whole region, which is why this -- the discussions and the questions over the fate of President Robert Mugabe are so important. He's been in power for 28 years in Zimbabwe.
He came to power when Jimmy Carter was still president in the U.S. That's how long he's been there. So, the implications that he might be being forced to resign or he is in talks to have some sort of exit strategy is very significant for the region here.
Now, this has all happened after a presidential vote that took place on Saturday. We haven't got the official results from that vote yet. But, by all accounts, according to the opposition, they have won. And the fact that we haven't heard the official results means that many people suspect that they -- that the ruling party and Robert Mugabe have been sitting on these results while negotiations have been taking place.
And we're hearing from a number of sources from the opposition inside Zimbabwe that the negotiations revolve around Mr. Mugabe taking an exit.
LEMON: Robin Curnow, thank you for that report.
(BUSINESS REPORT)
LEMON: Well, it's also April Fools' Day, and lawmakers say big oil is playing a big joke on you, raking in record profits and taking tax breaks while gas and oil prices hit record highs. Right now, executives from some of the world's biggest oil companies are facing a House panel. They say their profits and taxes are in line with other industries, but some lawmakers, well, they are simply not buying it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. EDWARD MARKEY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: For too long, this administration's energy policy has led to tax breaks for big oil and tough breaks for American families. American consumers shouldn't have to break the bank to fill the tank. The American people deserve answers, and it is time for big oil to go on record about these record prices.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, so you have heard the basic argument. Oil companies are making too much while consumers struggling at the pump. But Headline News host Glenn Beck says some of you might have a vested interest in big oil making big money, whether you know it or not.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GLENN BECK, HOST, "GLENN BECK": The biggest shareholder in ExxonMobil are retirement funds. A lot of people's retirement is going up as they're making more money. As their stock goes up, we're making money. It's not like the only people that own ExxonMobil are these giant fat cats smoking cigars. The average person, through their 401(k), owns a lot of ExxonMobil. So, you have got to look at their profits as a good thing, at the same time you scream at them at the gas pump.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: And you can check out Glenn Beck seven nights a weak on Headline News.
KEILAR: Independent truckers say soaring fuel costs are driving them out of a job. So they're protesting really the only way that they can. Let's take you now to a truck stop in the Atlanta area, where CNN's Rusty Dornin is hanging out.
And, man, you're getting an earful there. I bet it's really tough for these truckers. RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're getting an earful both from truckers who have parked their trucks and also from the guys who can't afford to park them.
Now, let's take a look at one of the trucks here and talk -- this truck right here, this 18-wheeler, costs between $900 and $1,000 to fill up with diesel fuel at this station, which actually is below $4 a gallon. Now, here to talk to us, the owner and operator of this truck, Vernon Gillis, who is going to give us a little economics lesson in why he's having trouble.
Now, Vernon, you couldn't afford to fill up your truck this time, could you?
VERNON GILLIS, TRUCK DRIVER: No.
DORNIN: So, how much did you end up filling in? How much did you put in?
GILLIS: I put $500 worth of fuel in.
DORNIN: Right.
GILLIS: And with a debit of $3.87, that was cheap.
DORNIN: Right. But how much did you get paid, are you going to get paid? Now, you're going to haul butter. How much are you going get paid?
GILLIS: Seven hundred dollars.
DORNIN: Seven hundred dollars. Now, how long is this trip going to take? Where are you going?
GILLIS: Two days.
DORNIN: It's going to take two days. You're only making $200. So, you have to pay for your food and what else?
(CROSSTALK)
GILLIS: Food, anything I can -- food and everything else, you know, that comes available.
DORNIN: Your insurance costs.
(CROSSTALK)
GILLIS: Insurance, truck payment. I have just had to pay 25 more dollars on truck washout to get my trailer washed out. OK, we're down to $175 now. OK, if I put another -- if I have to have any refuel, it's going to cost $25 for every $100. So, I don't have even have enough here to fill up my (INAUDIBLE) unit.
(CROSSTALK)
DORNIN: So, why didn't you decide to park your truck today?
GILLIS: Well, I have had my truck parked for four days, and nobody's done nothing for me, or nobody's done nothing. I mean, (INAUDIBLE) ain't doing nothing. The truckers are still moving, and everybody's wanting to say, what do you do?
DORNIN: Is that kind of the problem? It seems like a lot of people -- there's not a lot of agreement, not a lot of organization.
GILLIS: This is my dream, right here. It's my own truck, my own business, my own trailer, doing my own thing. And the federal government is messing up my dream, because he's taking -- because the freight don't match up with the fuel.
DORNIN: What do you want them to do in Washington?
(CROSSTALK)
DORNIN: What can they do?
GILLIS: Well, if they lower the fuel prices where we can make -- to where it would cover us for our maintenance, because I don't have enough money now to wash my truck, to grease my truck, to service my truck. And if we don't -- or bring the freight rate up where we can compensate everything, because we don't have enough money to maintain our trucks and all now.
DORNIN: And this is the story we have been hearing from trucker after trucker all day long, the realities, of course, of these men and women who are hauling everything from butter to auto supplies to everything.
And they're trying to send that message, but is it going to be enough? That's the big question, Brianna, because, of course, not all of the independent truckers did it. And they're not -- there are also a lot of other truckers out there who are driving for companies who weren't able to take part in something like this. So, they're just hoping that people are hearing the message that fuel prices are driving them out of business.
KEILAR: Yes. It's amazing that price of diesel.
Rusty Dornin for us, thank you so much.
And also another note on the economy as well. If the mortgage crisis is worrying you, well, listen up, because we have got some big news coming off of Capitol Hill. The Senate Democrats and Republicans just announced that they're going to allow the Senate to take up legislation on the housing crisis.
Basically, there had been a stalemate over a Democratic plan that would allow bankruptcy judges to reset mortgages on primary residences. That's going to be dropped. So, again, Democrats and Republicans coming together. We're going to be talking with Kathleen Koch shortly. She's going to be telling us what this means for all of those folks who are worried about the mortgage crisis. Meantime, the slumping economy is affecting you in even more ways than you know. And you can check out CNNMoney.com's special report. It's called "ISSUE #1." From protecting your money to finding a job that's right for you, there's just a ton of information that could even save you money, certainly some misery. Plus, we have got some interactive tools and a whole lot more. You can check it out at CNNMoney.com.
LEMON: OK. Pay attention to this next story because it's shocking and it's coming from South Georgia. Get this. Up to nine children, too young to be charged with a crime, are accused of plotting to kill their teacher at this elementary school in Waycross.
And police have evidence to back up those accusations. They have seized a bag with a frozen steak knife, handcuffs, rolls of tape, and other items. Police say they were called after another student tipped off a teacher that a girl had brought a weapon to school. Now, officials says the plot apparently began taking shape last week after the teacher who was the alleged target punished a girl for standing on a chair.
Police are calling the plot a serious threat, and they say the children's parents are cooperating with the investigation. School officials say the accused plotters will be disciplined.
KEILAR: Anyone can become addicted to drugs or alcohol, but doctors in rehab and still allowed to operate? A shocking story coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, well, the calendar says spring, but winter is hanging on in the Western part of the country. Interstate 70 is open again over Vail Pass in Colorado. It's the day after a snowy pileup there. Dozens of vehicles smashed right into one another. One person was killed. Several other people were hurt in that.
KEILAR: Parts of the Upper Midwest could get up to 10 inches of snow before it's all over. And it's been coming really down hard in northern Wisconsin. To the south, though, there's rain and fears that it, combined with melting snow, could cause more flooding.
(WEATHER UPDATE)
KEILAR: Coming up: a must-see story -- and I am not using that phrase lightly -- a doctor under fire accused of operating on patients while battling his own addiction to alcohol. Well, now his patients are coming forward with horrific stories.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Right now, across the country, thousands of doctors are enrolled in drug or alcohol abuse programs that their patients don't have a clue about.
In a special investigative report for CNN's "ANDERSON COOPER 360," our Randi Kaye heard from patients who say they were disfigured by their alcoholic doctor. Now, their scars, they say, are proof of their medical nightmares.
A warning, though -- some of the images you're about to see may be too graphic for sensitive viewers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dr. Brian West looks good on paper. A board-certified, Stanford-educated plastic surgeon. Missing from his resume: Dr. West is an alcoholic and a member of a special program in California called the Physician Diversion Program, which allows doctors to secretly get treatment for addiction while continuing to operate on patients.
(on-camera): Would you have liked to have known that your doctor had a substance abuse program before he treated you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely.
KAYE (voice-over): These are some of Dr. West's former patients. And this is what they say he did to them. The result of a common procedure, where abdominal muscle is used for breast reconstruction or tummy tucks.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I had a hole in my abdomen that would not heal.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was nothing but plastic mesh holding my wife's insides in.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He took a scapula and cut me back open and said I would heal better.
KAYE: Former patients say Dr. West butchered them and that he frequently smelled of alcohol and looked flushed. Dr. West declined our request to interview him, but his lawyer said there's no evidence he ever treated a patient while under the influence of alcohol.
Becky Anderson had a mastectomy after learning she had breast cancer. Dr. West used stomach muscle to perform a breast reconstruction, leaving her with a volleyball-sized pouch.
BECKY ANDERSON, VICTIM OF BOTCHED SURGERY: This is what I have now. So this is my intestines, just covered by a skin graft right here.
KAYE: That was last year. Becky had to forego cancer treatment while battling complications from the surgery, and today she is dying of cancer, too sick to be interviewed.
If only she had known about Dr. West's two convictions for driving under the influence, one of them on the way to treat her. He later lied about the DUI, blaming the missed appointment on a car accident.
She sued Dr. West. He never admitted any fault but settled for more than $250,000.
(on-camera): Here in California, the state medical association says there are about 200 to 400 doctors in this program on any given day. And a nationwide study found about one percent of all physicians in the U.S. are in confidential treatment. That's about 8,000 doctors. Eight thousand doctors whose patients have no idea they're addicts.
(voice-over): In California, five program audits since 1982 found a string of failures. Physicians appointed underlings as monitors. The medical board found Dr. West's office manager, who was also his program-appointed monitor, forged Alcoholics Anonymous sign- in logs for him. And the board also found the random testing for drugs and alcohol was anything but.
JULIE D'ANGELO FELLMETH, PERFORMED 2004 AUDIT: The drug testing was, in a word, ridiculous. They were using untrained collectors who were not collecting samples on the random date generated by the computer. Instead they were routinely doing it on days the physician could anticipate.
KAYE: California's medical board, which oversees the program, decided to abolish it come July, saying it failed to protect patients. Still, one powerful state agency is fighting to keep the program alive and keep the names of doctors enrolled confidential.
Keeping Them Honest, we will ask them why.
(on-camera): How many people do they have to hurt or mutilate before something gets done about it?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. That's not the end of it. Up next, the California Medical Association weighs in on this. And what about this Dr. West? Does he still have a license? Is he still practicing? And if you think this is just a California issue, we will look at other confidential rehab programs for doctors nationwide.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
KEILAR: And I'm Brianna Keilar, in for Kyra Phillips. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
LEMON: All right. We're working on a couple stories for you here in the CNN NEWSROOM today, including this one.
It is the first day of the second quarter, and it's starting out with a bang on Wall Street, where stocks are surging. Investors are hoping the worst of the credit crunch is over, and they're heartened by some big-time financial firms issuing new stocks to bolster their balance sheets.
Lawmakers vs. big oil on Capitol Hill. They're asking why oil companies are raking in record profits and taking tax breaks at a time when gas prices and other energy costs are soaring. Oil industry executives say their profits and their tax breaks are in line with other industries.
Perhaps no one bears the brunt of high energy costs more than independent truckers. And they are shutting down their big rigs across the nation today as a sign of protest. It's not clear how many are taking part.
KEILAR: Now more on Randi Kaye's special investigation of addicted doctors.
About one percent -- that's some 8,000 practicing physicians in the U.S. -- are in confidential rehab programs.
Once again, Randi Kaye.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE (voice-over): Sharon Mikulecky had a mastectomy after learning she had breast cancer. So she went to California plastic surgeon, Dr. Brian West, for breast reconstruction.
Neither Sharon nor her husband were aware Dr. West was an alcoholic, had two DUI convictions and would soon secretly enroll in a state rehab program that requires outside treatment and lets him continue operating on patients while keeping the addiction confidential.
KEN MIKULECKY, HUSBAND OF SHARON MIKULECKY: When that person's right to privacy hurts other people, harms other people, that should not be allowed to happen.
This is the second hospital we were in.
KAYE: Ken Mikulecky says Dr. West operated using abdominal muscle to rebuild the breast. His wife's incision became infected, leaving a gaping hole in her abdomen.
MIKULECKY: She told me several times that she could smell alcohol on his breath. Until the day I die, I've got to live with that. And that hurts pretty good, because I didn't believe my wife.
KAYE: Dr. West refused to be interviewed for this story, but Ken Mikulecky says his wife was so weak she had to postpone cancer treatment for about a year. In 2003, cancer killed her.
(on-camera): Do you think that your wife would be alive today if she hadn't been treated by a doctor who was an addict?
MIKULECKY: I think she would have had a better shot at surviving.
KAYE: Have you forgiven him?
MIKULECKY: Yes, I have. That's between him and God. I've got my own soul to look after. I just want him to stop.
KAYE (voice-over): Mikulecky and some of these former patients, along with California's attorney general, are petitioning to have Dr. West's license revoked. The California medical board says Dr. West flunked out of the state diversion program, was placed on probation for five years and could not operate for one year.
(on-camera): Don't patients have a right to know if their doctor is abusing alcohol or drugs? Wouldn't you want to know? Keeping Them Honest, we asked the head of California's Medical Association why this program must remain a secret and why he's fighting to keep it alive.
JOE DUNN, PRESIDENT, CALIFORNIA MEDICAL ASSOCIATION: We believe very strongly this is the absolute best way to ensure patient safety. You need to get physicians out of the shadows.
KAYE (voice-over): Medical Association President Joe Dunn argues if this program shuts down in July, doctors will continue to feed their addiction privately and not get help.
(on-camera): Why shouldn't a patient know, if they were going in for surgery or just going in for a consultation, that their doctor had a drinking or drug problem?
DUNN: Without a diversion program, no one knows -- patients don't know, health professionals who could help don't know.
KAYE (voice-over): Nearly every state has a similar program and a recent nationwide study found they've an 80 percent success rate.
His lawyer tells CNN Dr. West is back in the program and has been in recovery for years. But that's no comfort for his former patients and their loved ones.
MIKULECKY: I don't want to see any more people get hurt, any more innocent people go under the knife because people are hiding other people's addictions. I want to see that stopped.
KAYE: Despite the claims against him, Dr. Brian West is back in business, operating on patients in Beverly Hills.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: And the story by no means ends here. Viewers have been sounding off on CNN's "AC 360" blog, as you can imagine.
Genevieve from Texas writes: "If one can be put in jail or lose driving privileges for DUI, why can't medical professionals who practice while under the influence be jailed or lose their medical licenses? Both groups put lives in danger and should be punished severely."
LEMON: And Sharon wrote in and she said: "Someone needs to sue the whole system, not just each doctor, for letting addicted doctors continue to treat patients. The doctors should be put on leave until they either recover or fail to recover and thus face termination."
KEILAR: And Tim put it this way. He said: "This is a sad story that misrepresents a number of issues. Doctors are human and have personal issues. Doctors need to feel safe in order to get help. With proper monitoring, a doctor in recovery can and should be able to practice medicine."
And you can read more blog entries and more about Randi Kaye's investigation on ac360blogs.com. Randi also sharing her personal feeling about how difficult it was to cover this really disturbing story.
LEMON: And it's just really outrageous when you look at the people there and you see what their injuries are. We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Breaking news into the CNN NEWSROOM. Senate Democrats and Republicans announced they've come to a deal that's going to allow stalled legislation meant to deal with the mortgage crisis to move forward. This is some big news from Capitol Hill. That is where we find Kathleen Koch with all of the details.
Kathleen -- you there?
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, here I am, Brianna, on the cap set (ph) in the D.C. bureau.
Senate leaders, though, have, indeed, agreed to give the heads of the Senate Banking Committee -- one Democrat, one Republican -- 24 hours to come up with a homeowner relief bill that both parties can agree on. And it appears -- and I emphasize appears -- that a controversial issue that Republicans opposed that would have given bankruptcy judges the power to cut interest rates and principal on troubled mortgages may have been dropped from the body of the bill. But Congressional leaders are hinting that there could still be a vote on that idea as an amendment.
The main thing, though, is that everyone -- that everyone has agreed on, and that's the need for action on the housing crisis now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: This is the crisis that we have. The only way it's going to be solved is working together. We can both go and do our separate press availabilities and beat up on the other. The time has come for us to legislate, not continue our bickering.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), MINORITY LEADER: This gives us a maximum chance of demonstrating to the American public that we can deal with important issues on a bipartisan basis quickly. So we've arranged a way to go forward that we think makes sense. (END VIDEO CLIP)
KOCH: It's unclear what exactly will be in the new bill that Senator Chris Dodd and Senator Richard Shelby come up with. Among the provisions that were initially in the bill -- $4 billion for local committees to buy and refurbish foreclosed properties. Also, $200 million for counseling to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, tax breaks for the homebuilding industry, also, measures to improve loan disclosure and transparency.
We're hearing that likely to be added is a Republican plan to give a $15,000 tax credit to people who buy and occupy a home that is in or near foreclosure. But the emphasis is that this is going to be a brand new bill.
As Senate majority leader Harry Reid put it this afternoon, referring to Senators Dodd and Shelby, "It's up to these two men what to put in it" -- Brianna.
KEILAR: Yes, a developing story, of course, as you said, appearing that this controversial bankruptcy provision could be dropped. We're going to wait and see. We know you're following it there.
Kathleen Koch for us at our Washington bureau. Thanks.
KOCH: You bet.
LEMON: OK, check out this video. Well, some advice -- if you're ever running from police, tow trucks don't make for good getaway vehicles, especially with a minivan attached to it. We'll show you one of the wildest police chases we have ever seen -- all caught on camera.
KEILAR: And security with a smile -- how mood lighting and music are supposed to make you safer in the sky. We've got a look at how the TSA plans to beef up security by keeping you mellow.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: If you're a frequent flyer, maybe you travel with a pet or you book your ticket over the phone, get ready to pay more if you're flying Delta. The airline is imposing a bunch of new or higher fees as of today to try to make up for those soaring fuel prices.
These include a $25 handling fee for booking certain frequent flyer tickets over the phone. The fee for taking a pet in the cabin goes up from $75 to $100. And then the oversize bag fee, it's now $150, up from $100. Also, another $100 to send your child unaccompanied on a Delta flight.
United Airlines and Northwest have raised some of their fees, as well.
LEMON: Well, we told you yesterday about Aloha Airlines yesterday going out of business. Well, Aloha Airlines says it comes down to the numbers. But that's little consolation to the 1,900 workers who lost their jobs when the Hawaii-based airline shut down passenger service. Some confronted Aloha's president yesterday as he came out of bankruptcy court, accusing him of not doing enough to save the 61-year-old inter-island carrier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What matters is the inner island people will have work.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But the mathematics don't work.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mathematics?
Screw mathematics. Look at us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, I'm not going to get into (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of course you're not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Wow!
Well, Aloha says it tried to save its passenger service, but couldn't find investors. It also blames rising fuel prices and competition. Hawaii's governor asked a bankruptcy judge to keep Aloha in business, at least for a while, but the judge said that was up to the airline.
KEILAR: Five days after its opening, Terminal Five at London's Heathrow Airport, it's still a mess. British Airways estimates 20,000 -- that's right -- 20,000 pieces of luggage have piled up after a failure in the terminal's high tech baggage system. The scene today is calmer, but only because of dozens more flights being canceled. And officials have called the $8 billion terminal a national embarrassment.
LEMON: High tech?
KEILAR: High tech has problems sometimes.
LEMON: Yes.
KEILAR: We've seen this at other airports, as well.
LEMON: I don't know about that, high tech.
KEILAR: Yes.
LEMON: OK, well, hostile screeners, uncooperative passengers -- it's no wonder some people get nervous in airport screening lines. But the TSA has new plans aimed at keeping you calm and safe at the airport.
Here's CNN's Jeanne Meserve. She has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mellow music, cool spectrum lighting, snappy graphics -- all aimed at making checkpoints calmer so an agitated terrorist will stand out in the crowd. And there will be more employees in front of the checkpoints studying behavior, hopefully picking those terrorists out.
RANDALL LARSEN, AUTHOR, "OUR OWN WORST ENEMY": Our technology will not allow us to detect many types of bombs today. So the best way to find a bomb is by looking in the eyes of the bomber. And so we want to get those TSA people out there.
MESERVE: You will still need to take off your shoes, strip off your belt and take out your laptop, but now there's counter where you can get organized -- plastic bags for liquids provided. More sophisticated bag screening machines will automatically recycle empty bins and divert bags that need a closer look instead of tying up the line. Some travelers will be asked to step into a body scanning machine.
(on-camera): And how do you pick the people who go through?
ELLEN HOWE, TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION: Well, we don't tell you that part.
(LAUGHTER)
MESERVE (voice-over): If you are uncomfortable with the intimate image the machine provides, you can opt for a pat down. Posters will even introduce you to the screeners, who are getting new training on how to deal with travelers, even uncooperative and abusive ones. A former head of security at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport says the TSA is right to try to get the public on its side.
RAFI RON, NEW AGE SECURITY SOLUTIONS: Our work in easier because then they cooperate, they do what we ask them to do and they actually help us to do what we are there to achieve.
MESERVE: But Teri Watson, a frequent traveler, is skeptical.
TERI WATSON, TRAVELER: Window dressing. Window dressing.
MESERVE (on-camera): It's not going to improve the things that you think need to be improved?
WATSON: No. I think staffing is the number one thing. Having ample lines is another.
MESERVE (voice-over): The first of these checkpoints will be rolled out this spring at Baltimore/Washington International Airport and then officials will see if it delivers what they hope -- improved security and a better travel experience.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington. (END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: The Bush administration is bypassing more than 30 federal laws to finish 670 miles of fence between the U.S. and Mexico. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says Congress gave him the authority to cut through red tape and environmental regulations. Three hundred and sixty-one miles of border fence remain to be completed in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas by year's end.
KEILAR: The high cost of caring for children with autism.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHELE IALLONARDI, PARENT OF AUTISTIC CHILDREN: Eight dollars for a bag of pretzels. This cost like $6.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Whether it is special diets they need or expensive therapies for autism, it adds up quickly -- often sending families deep into debt.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: We are bring you stories of love and courage this week, as we focus on autism -- unraveling the mystery. Among the awesome challenges facing families with autistic children, well, is money. Early intervention and proper care can be hugely expensive.
CNN's personal finance editor, Gerri Willis, takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR (voice over): A house in the suburbs...
RALPH IALLONARDI, PARENT OF AUTISTIC CHILDREN: Old MacDonald had a...
WILLIS: ...three young children and loving parents.
R. IALLONARDI: Pass it back.
WILLIS: Your typical family. Except...
M. IALLONARDI: All three of my boys were diagnosed with autism. Jackson was diagnosed at two-and-a-half. The twins were diagnosed right around their -- a little after their first birthday. So actually all three of our children were diagnosed within one year's time.
R. IALLONARDI: At the very beginning, you just know. I mean you just think, OK, three kids with autism.
M. IALLONARDI: Where do you go from here?
R. IALLONARDI: Where do you go from here? WILLIS: Where they went was into debt.
M. IALLONARDI: We first took out a loan to kind of set up an area for the children in the house to do therapy. And we started out with like $15,000 or $20,000 on a home equity loan. And that was three years ago. The home equity loan is now up to, I think, $67,000.
R. IALLONARDI: It's very easy to say no to, you know, buying clothes and saying no to buying a better car and saying no to, you know, painting your walls or whatever. But it's hard to say no to some kind of supplement or diet or therapy that could help your kid talk.
M. IALLONARDI: E-I-E-I-O. With an...
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Oink, oink.
M. IALLONARDI: ...here. And an...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oink, oink...
M. IALLONARDI: There, here an oink, there an oink, every where an...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oink, oink.
M. IALLONARDI: Eight dollars for a bag of pretzels. This costs like $6.
WILLIS: It adds up quickly. A study by Professor Michael Ganz puts the lifetime cost of caring for an autistic child at more than $3 million.
MICHAEL GANZ, HARVARD UNIVERSITY: $3.2 million per person or $35 billion for society consists of medical costs, such as doctor's visits and medications and therapies. It consists of non-medical costs, such as adult care, child care, special education, transportation, if necessary. And it also consists of lost income -- both parental lost income and the lost income of people with autism.
WILLIS: For Ralph and Michele Iallonardi, it's not about the cost -- it's about their kids.
M. IALLONARDI: You're talking about meeting basic needs like...
R. IALLONARDI: Basic needs, right. So you'll do whatever.
WILLIS: One thing the Iallonardis aren't doing is consulting a financial planner, which some say should go hand in hand with the diagnosis.
Michael Beloff is a financial advisor with Morgan Stanley and the father of an autistic son.
MICHAEL BELOFF, FINANCIAL ADVISER, MORGAN STANLEY: I find that parents tend to focus on the day-to-day issues -- the next doctor's appointment, meetings with the schools, meetings with the therapist. What sometimes gets lost is the long-term planning.
WILLIS: The Iallonardis still need to plan for the financial future of their autistic sons, but that plan now involves two instead of all three of their boys. Luca (ph), one of the twins, was recently declassified and is said to be developing normally.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: That was funny.
M. IALLONARDI: I love my boys.
R. IALLONARDI: Right. We draw inspiration from them.
M. IALLONARDI: We love each other. You just draw inspiration from your kids.
R. IALLONARDI: If you told me a year ago that, you know, Jackson would say his first words, I couldn't put a price tag on that.
M. IALLONARDI: Right.
R. IALLONARDI: The house, the equity, line of credit, who cares?
That would all be frivolous.
WILLIS: Gerri Willis, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, tomorrow is World Autism Awareness Day. And CNN brings you a special report on autism at noon Eastern. That's Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. Eastern. And tomorrow night at 12:00 Eastern, Larry King interviews entertainer Jenny McCarthy, whose son is autistic.
An amazingly intricate artwork that attracted an international following -- all of it created by a talented man who has autism. Tomorrow in the CNN NEWSROOM, you'll meet artist Stephen Wiltsure as he gives us a tour of his London gallery and shares what it's like to live with autism. You don't want to miss that.
KEILAR: Time now to check out what's clicking on CNN.com.
A four-year-old boy who weighs 10 pounds the subject of a Nancy Grace segment lots of you are checking out. His mother has been arrested on a charge of felony neglect.
A Georgia judge in the spotlight after he briefly orders all white people out of his courtroom. The judge says he wanted to talk just with black defendants about their life choices.
And after pleading guilty in a hit and run case that left two women dead, a Florida man apologizes over and over to his victims' families. Through tears, he insisted he had no idea he hit anyone when he last the accident scene.
These stories and much more on CNN.com. I know it's a question everyone wants to know the answer to -- how do you wrangle a nine-and-a-half foot gator?
LEMON: Very carefully.
KEILAR: You never know, this could happen to you. So the answer -- it's very carefully, especially if he's hanging out during morning rush hour. This was all caught on camera. We're going to show you the whole thing coming up.
Plus, the Dow -- taking a look at the big board on Wall Street, up 381 points. Investors responding to some welcome news. We're going to have the closing bell and a wrap of the action on Wall Street straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, need a tow? Well, don't ask this guy. He was caught on camera. Ocala, Florida is where it happened. A tow truck driver leads police on a nine-mile high speed chase with a minivan in tow.
The guy finally crashed into some trees and tried to make a run for it, but police tackled him and towed him away to jail. They initially tried to stop and question him in connection with a sex crime.
North Lauderdale, Florida -- this nine-and-a-half -foot gator -- there he is. He just likes -- he likes to hang out in rush hour. You know, no big deal. But can you imagine?
It was found this morning perched on the side of a highway. A wildlife officer couldn't nab the gator with a catch pole, so he ended up using a lasso -- or lasso, as some people say. The tooth critter tossed and turned until a couple -- what are you laughing at, Brianna?
A couple of sheriff's deputies...
KEILAR: My nephew does that.
LEMON: ...deputies and another man taped its mouth shut and that's how they got him. Oh my gosh.
KEILAR: That's amazing.
LEMON: Look at that.
KEILAR: Well, movie critic Roger Ebert is going back to work. Good news here. The Pulitzer Prize winning writer says he is cancer- free. And in a letter to his readers in the "Chicago Sun-Times" newspaper, Ebert says he'll return to his movie beat, writing reviews, after his annual film festival later this month.
But he won't be going back to his syndicated TV show. He says because of complications, surgery he had in January failed to restore his ability to speak, unfortunately. But Ebert says he'll need another surgery to regain his speech.
LEMON: And Chaz and Roger Ebert are two of the nicest people I know. I'm very good friends with their daughter. And he actually -- they came on last year after his first surgery.
KEILAR: Well, that's good news --
LEMON: The first round, then they did a thing.
KEILAR: -- good news for him.
LEMON: Yes.
KEILAR: Because it's been such a long recovery.
LEMON: They're just -- they are fabulous people. And, Roger, we wish you the very best. All my love to you and Chaz and to Sonia, as well.
All right, so, listen, did you see this? Robert get a shot of this. So this came today -- Butterfinger. I'm going to do that -- there we go. No glare. They sent out this press release saying they're changing their name, right?
KEILAR: To The Finger.
LEMON: Where's yours, Brianna?
KEILAR: Uh --
LEMON: So we gave Brianna one for the -- before the show and there it is.
KEILAR: And Don ate it.
LEMON: No. No.
KEILAR: Why did you go eating my --
LEMON: I didn't eat it. I did not eat it.
KEILAR: You ate my candy bar.
LEMON: But, anyway, there you go. There's a bunch of them, Robert. There you go. And it's a bunch of Fingers. So they sent out this press release, Susan.
Do you see these?
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I see it.
LEMON: They're saying Nestle USA announced today that after 80 years, it's retiring the name Butterfinger and officially changing the name of the popular candy for The Finger. The change is effective immediately -- Susan, we're giving you The Finger.
Explain this one to us.
LISOVICZ: (LAUGHTER)
I'm not saying thank you to that.
(LAUGHTER)
LISOVICZ: Got you. April Fool's Day.
LEMON: April Fool's Day from Nestle USA. So many interesting business stories today.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
LEMON: Susan, have a fantastic evening and happy April Fool's day.
LISOVICZ: You too.
KEILAR: And Susan, do not let Don Lemon get near your candy bar. It will be gone.
LEMON: All right. John King in "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- save me, sir.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxantshop.com
