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HOME > ABOUT > PRESS > HEALTH SERVICES SPARED FOR NOW
Article published - May 6, 2009
Credit: DAILY DEMOCRAT
Health services spared - for now
Supervisors hope major provider will take over cases
By CRYSTAL LEE
The Yolo County Board of Supervisors hope to find alternative funding options for medical services to indigent residents by engaging in talks with the region's major healthcare providers.
Supervisor Helen Thomson suggested at Tuesday's meeting that Woodland Healthcare, Sutter Davis Hospital and CommuniCare -- which have clinics throughout the county -- can collaboratively fund health services for impoverished residents.
Supervisors postponed voting on the county staff-recommended reductions to the Medi-Cal program and the Yolo County Healthcare for Indigents Program, also known as YCHIP.
Supervisors instead agreed to revisit the issue at a May 19 meeting, after the talks with healthcare representatives.
Staff had proposed eliminating reimbursements of Medi-Cal "optional benefits," including the dental, vision, chiropractic and podiatry services; and changing the share-of-cost and eligibility under YCHIP to require legal documentation of residency.
The changes would take health services away from thousands of county residents. Requiring proof of residency for healthcare is also illegal, according to attorneys from Legal Services of Northern California's Yolo County Office who attended the supervisors meeting.
"(The) residency requirement ... is illegal and cannot be enacted," said Alysa Meyer, the managing attorney, during public comment.
Many others spoke on the negative effects the healthcare reductions would have on the community. They argued
that contagious illnesses, if untreated, spread regardless of residency status.
Other concerns included cases where individuals with health problems will eventually end up in hospital emergency rooms as they get sicker without treatment, and the difficulty legal residents might have in obtaining documentation during emergencies.
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