[Davis Democrats] Voluntary action op: May 5, Tuesday 10am , Supervisors, 625 Court Street, Woodland-CINQUO DE MAYO-HEALTH CARE FOR INDIGENTS plan to be cut

[John Chendo]

Before recycling yesterday¹s Davis Enterprise newspaper, the former Public
Health Officer of Yolo County, Herbert Bauer,MD, and I agreed it would be
essential for you to read the headline story on page A-1 continued on page
A-7, of Wednesday¹s edition, April 29.

³Yolo May Cut Care‹County Has Been Lopping Costs² refers to a public hearing
scheduled to hear comments from you about the plan to severely cut
healthcare for all indigent poor in Yolo County (acronym is  the YCHIP
program) and to eliminate  healthcare for  undocumented residents.  The
local hospitals as well as community clinics will be affected because they
receive some county reimbursement for providing health care to those who are
not able to pay. 

Sacramento County Board of Supervisors was the first county in the state of
California to do this, by a split vote in March,2009, this year.  The
short-sightedness of this approach of Sacramento County government has been
unfolding in the reporting and editorials  of the Sacramento Bee since then.
This precedent departs from good , proven  policy and should not be
followed. As JFK said, ³If a democratic government cannot help the many who
are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.²


Subject: Yolo County Health Care

The Yolo County Board of Supervisors will hold a special hearing, known as a
Beilensen Hearing, this Tuesday MAY 5, 10:00 AM in the Supervisors' Chambers
at 625 Court Street, Woodland.  For an estimated annual savings of $1.5
million, the Board will be voting to reduce  public health services provided
by the County to  people who have no medical insurance at all, even
Medi-cal. This is the safety net. The Yolo County Board of Supervisors will
also be voting on whether to eliminate all  medical services for people who
do not have proof of documentation.

These are difficult times for everyone and especially cities and counties.
Most of the services counties provide are mandated by law;  and some of
those services are paid for exclusively by the county while others often
come with some level of matching funds.

The County is the provider of last resort for people who have no doctor to
go to. If disease, physical and mental,  and injury go  left untreated, the
sick will wind up at  an emergency room or  incarcerated, where their
medical needs must be treated,  at a much higher cost. For instance,  swine
flu. Or diabetes. Or the untreated mentally ill person who has few
supportive friends.
 
It's difficult to sit back and see the safety net program cut so severely.
For that reason, it's important to take the opportunity to speak out about
the cuts. Perhaps there are suggestions that can be made about short or long
terms solutions to Yolo County's budget dilemma, without cutting  its
responsibility to provide for the public health.   The fiscal long-term
consequences are counter-productive, because earlier  treatment with
prescription drugs can prevent more expensive medical, safety, and social
disruptions later. The current plan has been cost-effective: treating many
people at relatively low cost. The moral lessons are short-sighted: it is
not an answer to simply let the sick get sicker , hopefully out of our
sight. Public health and safety go together. The medical facts are clear:
some diseases will be communicable to the general population through
numerous vectors regardless of documentation. As JFK (the son of the SEC
chairman under FDR) said ³If a democratic government cannot help the many
who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.²

The Biblical teaching is clear : Treat the stranger and the sojourner as you
would want to be treated, for you were once strangers and sojourners also.

The 5 County Supervisors:
Mike McGowan District 1                 mike.mcgowan at yolocounty.org
<mailto:mike.mcgowan at yolocounty.org> or by phone (916) 375-6440
Helen Thomson, District 2                 helen.thomson at yolocounty.org
<mailto:helen.thomson at yolocounty.org> or by phone at (530) 757-5557
Max Rexroad, District 3                    matt at rexroad.com
<mailto:matt at rexroad.com> or by phone at (530) 666-8621
Jim Provenza, District 4                     jim.provenza at yolocounty.org
<mailto:jim.provenza at yolocounty.org> or by phone at (530) 666-8623
Duane Chamberlain, District 5           duane.chamberlain at yolocounty.org
<mailto:duane.chamberlain at yolocounty.org> or by phone at (530) 666-8627
 
Yolo County Health Officer               Joseph P. Iser, MD, DrPH, MSc (530)
666-8645

 
Our 5 County Supervisors are the only ones who have the vote on  this plan.
The hearing on this plan is    May 5,Tuesday, 10am, in the County
Administration Building,  625 Court Street, Woodland, across from the Main
Post office.  






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