Started by Lopez Community For Health Care
Nov 4, 2023
Nov 4, 2023
4
A LCHC Response to Recent Hospital District Postings
Nov 4, 2023
We, members of LCHC, are disappointed once again with the LIHD because you have not addressed what we perceive to be the biggest concern we have with the “Yes on 1†group’s messaging to the public. The levy as it is written is a multi-year,significantly increased, request to raise funds for activities which to date have not been adequately spelled out for voters.
None of your pre-election education material or communications from the commissioners themselves have been able to explain what exactly will be done with the increase in money raised each year. Why would any taxpayer vote for an increase each of the next 6 years unless a reasonable plan for when the increase is in place? Where is your long-range plan? What services will be added for our increased tax dollars?
As members of Lopez Citizens for Healthcare, it has been our experience that this board of Commissioners has not been willing to listen or acknowledge gaps in service and recognize the discord among Lopezians with their current ability to access appropriate, holistic healthcare. A month ago, the Commissioners and Clinic staff realized bringing our issues out in the open might affect the passing of their levy increase so the scare tactics began and we as a group have been blamed for wanting to “close the Clinicâ€, “close Physical Therapy†and take away any money to help the Pharmacy stay open. All these claims are false and if you look at the actual budget and books for the Hospital District you will find that there are plenty of funds to operate “as is†for 2024. Beyond that without a levy increase the financials do get questionable. Our focus has been on asking the Hospital District Commissioners to prove they can solicit input from the community about gaps and well-functioning aspects of current healthcare, create a strategic plan to keep what works and generate solutions to improve what could work better, and being willing to be transparent and accountable to the citizens rather than acting defensively and derisively.
So, our unsolicited advice to the Commissioners of the Hospital District:
•Improve communications and begin listening to and acting on all input. We all want to have the best healthcare possible for where we live. We are a group of resourceful individuals who are used to thinking outside the box to meet our local challenges. Be humble enough to call on the community to work together to solve tough problems.
•Accept whatever the levy vote results are and then begin your real work. You have left the community with only one way to voice their support or frustration with the healthcare that exists on the island this election cycle, which is Prop 1. If the levy passes, earn back the trust of the community and make a clear, well-researched and informed plan for how this windfall will maintain and improve health care for all. If the levy fails, it’s time to take a long hard look at some tough choices ahead.
Lopez Citizens for Healthcare (LCHC) Dixie Budke, Corey Casper, Larry Eppenbach, Jim Ghiglione, Connie Harris, Carol Hendel, Larry Hendel, Becky Smith, Jim Smith, Ingrid Stuiver
None of your pre-election education material or communications from the commissioners themselves have been able to explain what exactly will be done with the increase in money raised each year. Why would any taxpayer vote for an increase each of the next 6 years unless a reasonable plan for when the increase is in place? Where is your long-range plan? What services will be added for our increased tax dollars?
As members of Lopez Citizens for Healthcare, it has been our experience that this board of Commissioners has not been willing to listen or acknowledge gaps in service and recognize the discord among Lopezians with their current ability to access appropriate, holistic healthcare. A month ago, the Commissioners and Clinic staff realized bringing our issues out in the open might affect the passing of their levy increase so the scare tactics began and we as a group have been blamed for wanting to “close the Clinicâ€, “close Physical Therapy†and take away any money to help the Pharmacy stay open. All these claims are false and if you look at the actual budget and books for the Hospital District you will find that there are plenty of funds to operate “as is†for 2024. Beyond that without a levy increase the financials do get questionable. Our focus has been on asking the Hospital District Commissioners to prove they can solicit input from the community about gaps and well-functioning aspects of current healthcare, create a strategic plan to keep what works and generate solutions to improve what could work better, and being willing to be transparent and accountable to the citizens rather than acting defensively and derisively.
So, our unsolicited advice to the Commissioners of the Hospital District:
•Improve communications and begin listening to and acting on all input. We all want to have the best healthcare possible for where we live. We are a group of resourceful individuals who are used to thinking outside the box to meet our local challenges. Be humble enough to call on the community to work together to solve tough problems.
•Accept whatever the levy vote results are and then begin your real work. You have left the community with only one way to voice their support or frustration with the healthcare that exists on the island this election cycle, which is Prop 1. If the levy passes, earn back the trust of the community and make a clear, well-researched and informed plan for how this windfall will maintain and improve health care for all. If the levy fails, it’s time to take a long hard look at some tough choices ahead.
Lopez Citizens for Healthcare (LCHC) Dixie Budke, Corey Casper, Larry Eppenbach, Jim Ghiglione, Connie Harris, Carol Hendel, Larry Hendel, Becky Smith, Jim Smith, Ingrid Stuiver