Health Options Digest
June 20, 2004
Coalition for Health Options In Central Eugene-Springfield (CHOICES)
In This Issue
From the Editor
Week in Review
The big news this past week was that the Eugene City Council voted unanimously to extend and improve streets to serve a new McKenzie-Willamette/Triad hospital at the exising EWEB site on the Willamette River on the edge of downtown Eugene. The roadwork could cost taxpayers $15 million to $25 million. This action certainly increases the chances that McKenzie-Willamette/Triad will build a new hospital at a central Eugene location.
But we aren't quite sure how this move fits into the bigger picture of which hospitals go where. Despite what they might say, PeaceHealth's plans to move to Springfield are on hold, perhaps indefinitely. At least for now, PeaceHealth is located in Eugene less than a mile from where McKenzie-Willamette/Triad looks like it would go. After all the twists and turns in the "Musical Hospitals," wouldn't it be ironic -- and tragic -- if Eugene ended up with two hospitals and Springfield none? Ironic because Springfield has been trying to get both hospitals on its side of I-5. Tragic because Springfield residents poured their heart and money into getting their own community hospital and it would be a shame for them to lose it as a result of the decisions of their leaders.
But wouldn't it be great if folks could just sit down and figure out which hospital goes where in a sensible, adult-like way rather than playing all these games?
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Looking Ahead
There are no events this week directly related to hospital siting issues. The three justices in black robes have ruled. Who knows what PeaceHealth and Springfield will do in the wake of the court ruling? Until something big happens, we plan to enjoy summer in Oregon and urge you to do the same.
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Rob Zako, Editor
343-5201
rzako@efn.org
PeaceHealth
Commentary -- PeaceHealth has only itself to blame
| By Al Johnson | June 16, 2004 |
The June 11 Register-Guard editorial on the Oregon Court of Appeals decision in the PeaceHealth case makes some unsupported assumptions. A brief response is necessary before those and other unhelpful assumptions become dogma and close minds that need to be open. (more...)
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Editorial -- Eugene to Springfield, Springfield to Eugene? Hospital dance goes on
| The Springfield News | June 16, 2004 |
It's been some time since PeaceHealth announced it planned to build a new hospital called RiverBend in northern Springfield in the Gateway area.
While that was good news to the city of Springfield (and bad news to the city of Eugene), it wasn't good news for McKenzie-Willamette Hospital, Springfield's own hospital of more than 40 years. (more...)
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Sprawl Hits the Wall
PeaceHealth left with few options after Court of Appeals ruling.
By Alan Pittman
Eugene Weekly | June 17, 2004 |
PeaceHealth wants a sprawling new hospital.
The Oregon Court of Appeals ruling against PeaceHealth June 9 appears to leave the hospital with few easy options in its plans for a massive complex on the banks of the McKenzie River on the outskirts of Springfield.
The court ruled against PeaceHealth and its squad of attorneys -- some of the most expensive in the state -- and said the hospital plan failed to meet land use and transportation rules. (more...)
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Letter -- Make LUBA find hospital sites
| By Julie Brown, Eugene | June 18, 2004 |
Maybe we should approach the need for an adequate medical facility to serve our communities and southwest Oregon from another angle. The Land Use Board of Appeals has turned down PeaceHealth's plan for a state-of-the-art facility at RiverBend. Why not require LUBA to do the research and find several 180-acre parcels that they would approve? PeaceHealth could then build the much-needed regional hospital on one of them.
In the meantime, residents can continue to have their surgeries at the present hospital postponed until a bed becomes available. This happened to an acquaintance of mine last month.
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Creating a Healing Environment
SPRINGFIELD -- A national expert of hospital design says the site for Sacred Heart's newest hospital can help patients get well faster.
Dr. Roger Ulrich toured the RiverBend site in Springfield Tuesday. Ulrich is one of the nation's leading experts on healing environments and how it impacts patient outcomes. He says the natural surroundings and beauty of the fifty acre area has potential in becoming the nation's leader of hospital design.
"It's not only something nice to look at," said Center for Health Systems and Design Director Roger Ulrich, Ph.D, "but it has quickly measurable stress reducing effects, for example, reduce blood pressure."
"We feel this site represents not only for the Eugene-Springfield area, but the whole region, the best opportunity to get a great site and really aid in the healing so people are going to wind up get better faster and stay better for a longer period of time," said Sacred Heart Medical Center Public Affairs Director Brian Terrett.
Doctor Ulrich adds hospital designs that focus on a healing environment can help patients improve faster, while attracting higher quality medical professionals. (more...)
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McKenzie-Willamette/Triad
Hospital Obstacles Worked Out
EUGENE -- The Eugene City Council debated how best to keep McKenzie Willamette from building its new hospital somewhere else.
A $25 million road access plan may be the answer. The city wants plans to build an underpass and extend a road to gain easy access to the hard-to-reach site next to Eugene water and electric. The site along the Willamette river is hemmed in by railroad tracks and E.W.E.B. facilties.
McKenzie Willamette is threatening to build in Springfield or Glenwood if a solution is not found.
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City to pay for street extensions to hospital
By Joe Harwood
The Register-Guard | June 17, 2004 |
Eugene solidified its effort to lure McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center downtown Wednesday when the City Council unanimously agreed to extend and improve streets serving the proposed site.
Rough estimates put the cost at $15 million to $25 million to extend Patterson Street to the north through a new railroad underpass, and to extend Agate Street to the northwest so it reaches the 26-acre Eugene Water & Electric Board property. Additional work would improve and realign Hilyard and Ferry streets as well as Eighth Avenue.
Most of the roadwork is contingent upon Triad Hospitals Inc., the Texas-based majority owner of McKenzie-Willamette, building an $85 million hospital on the EWEB site.
City Manager Dennis Taylor said money for the street work could come from a mixture of state and federal sources, Lane County road funds, systems development charges and urban renewal district bonds.
The City Council asked the city staff to devise a specific financing plan.
Triad officials were thrilled. (more...)
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Editorial -- Eugene sends a signal: City Council vote moves Triad project forward
| The Register-Guard | June 18, 2004 |
In the municipal game of musical hospitals, Springfield's McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center edged closer to a sure seat in Eugene on Wednesday. But a lot can happen before the music finally stops, so don't assume anything just yet.
Still, officials from McKenzie-Willamette and its majority partner, Triad Hospitals, Inc., got great news Wednesday when the Eugene City Council voted unanimously to extend and improve streets serving the Eugene Water & Electric Board property on which Triad hopes to build a new hospital. (more...)
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Letter -- Triad should consider Glenwood
By Elizabeth Oswald, Eugene
The Register-Guard | June 16, 2004 |
The incredible gall of Eugene's City Council never ceases to amaze me. They played manipulative tax and land games with PeaceHealth and lost the hospital for Eugene. Their get-even mentality toward PeaceHealth for moving from Eugene continues to control them. Now they want to play the eggshell tax shuffle again and con the public into their latest manipulation ploy to get Triad Hospitals, Inc. to locate the McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center in Eugene at the Eugene Water & Electric Board site.
I hope the public doesn't fall for the City Council's con the taxpayer game again. It's difficult to understand why any credible business such as Triad would even think the EWEB site is a good hospital location. In an emergency, people north of the city couldn't get to that hospital location easily.
The Glenwood area is much more accessible to the public and less expensive property. Besides being a better location, Triad wouldn't have to deal with the loony Eugene City Council. That benefit alone should be a great incentive to locate elsewhere.
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Health Care, etc.
County budget cuts deal blow to three rural health clinics
By Randi Bjornstad
The Register-Guard | June 18, 2004 |
Under the budget adopted by the Lane County commissioners on Wednesday, financial support for three rural health clinics in Oakridge, Cottage Grove and Florence will be eliminated, although some temporary funding will remain to keep family planning and immunization services operating until alternative providers can be found.
Betsy Meredith, a nursing supervisor in Public Health, said Thursday that the county "is scrambling to patch together a public-private partnership" to make sure children continue to receive needed immunizations and women have access to family planning counseling and assistance.
The clinics almost closed last year when the budget committee faced cutbacks of millions of dollars in general fund services. However, the county allocated a small amount of emergency funding to keep bare-bones rural health clinic programs operating. (more...)
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Report finds fewer risks in Canadian drug imports
By Mark Sherman
The Associated Press | June 17, 2004 |
WASHINGTON -- Congressional investigators found that prescription drugs obtained from Canadian Web sites pose fewer risks than medications purchased from online pharmacies elsewhere.
In some instances, Canadian pharmacies had stricter standards than those in the United States, according to the report by the General Accounting Office.
The report was being released in conjunction with a Senate Governmental Affairs subcommittee hearing today where prominent opponents of imported drugs were to testify.
Lawmakers who advocate drug imports from Canada and elsewhere are trying to force a Senate vote to legalize the practice. The Food and Drug Administration has said it cannot guarantee the safety of the foreign products. (more...)
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Commentary -- Prescription plan offers little relief
| By Peter DeFazio | June 17, 2004 |
On June 1, Medicare prescription drug cards became available to seniors. Of the 41 million seniors eligible for the cards, 1 percent have voluntarily signed up. There's a reason for that. Even though the government has provided assistance through a Web site (http://www.medicare.gov) and a toll-free number (1-800-MEDICARE), the plethora of 73 cards, each offering different prices and benefits, is nearly impossible to decipher.
Even worse, seniors are only allowed to purchase one card per year, while the pharmaceutical companies that provide the cards may change the cost and availability of the prescription drugs covered by the card on a weekly basis. In fact, many drug companies in anticipation of the release of the discount cards increased the cost of prescription drugs to protect their profit margins. (more...)
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Editorial -- Lose the scare tactics: Program disparaging Canadian drugs is a waste
| The Register-Guard | June 20, 2004 |
Oregonians, beware! That prescription drug you've purchased in Canada for half of what it would have cost you in Eugene could be dangerous. It may look like an American drug, but (cue monster movie organ music) Looks Can Be Deceiving!
So says the Food and Drug Administration, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy and the Oregon State Pharmacy Association in a blatant scare campaign dubbed (cue monster movie organ music) "Looks Can Be Deceiving!"
The trouble is, while the FDA was cooking up the (cue monster movie organ music) "Looks Can Be Deceiving!" project, the General Accounting Office was discovering that, actually, Canadian drugs are quite safe and in some instances, Canadian pharmacies had stricter standards than those in the United States. (more...)
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Some doctors vent anger over insurance costs
By Don Babwin
The Associated Press | June 16, 2004 |
CHICAGO -- A South Carolina surgeon dropped a patient when he found out her husband was a trial lawyer.
In New Hampshire, a neurosurgeon told the head of the state's trial lawyers that he wouldn't treat him for nonemergencies.
A plastic surgeon in Mississippi refused to treat the daughter of a state lawmaker because of his stand on malpractice suits.
The long-running battle over the high cost of malpractice insurance has taken an ugly turn. Many doctors blame trial lawyers and their malpractice suits for causing huge jumps in insurance premiums. Lawyers blame it on the insurance industry.
At this week's meeting of the American Medical Association, many doctors stayed out of the fray. They angrily shouted down a proposal by Dr. J. Chris Hawk of Charleston, S.C., to refuse treatment for attorneys involved in medical malpractice cases.
But the actions of other doctors and hospitals suggests that plenty of them agree that taking out their anger on lawyers -- and sometimes their families -- is an acceptable response to what they see as a threat to their livelihood. (more...)
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Nearby Developments
Civic center discussion continues
By Amber Fossen
The Springfield News | June 18, 2004 |
It's needed, wanted and past due.
The city is without a civic center and Springfield Chamber of Commerce members are trying to push the project along. Potential private developers have been consulted and a few locations are on the table, but a clear vision, financial plan and what the city's involvement will be are still up in the air.
Dan Egan, Chamber of Commerce executive director, said conversations were held in April and May with private parties interested in the concept of the Northwest Center at Springfield -- a working title. (more...)
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Meet me in Springfield
By Bob Keefer
The Register-Guard | June 19, 2004 |
Since the Clarion Hotel closed its doors this spring, the city's been without a conference center where groups such as the Chamber of Commerce could hold a meeting.
At a City Council work session Monday, chamber leaders and elected officials discussed the possibility of a large center opening up -- perhaps as big as 400,000 square feet, a third again bigger than the Hilton complex in Eugene. The key to making that work financially, said Chamber Executive Director Dan Egan, is to include a 150- to 200-room hotel in the package.
"We need some civic space in Springfield," he said. Eugene, Springfield and Lane County aren't keeping up with the rest of the Willamette Valley, he said, noting convention centers being built in Corvallis, Salem and Albany. "We have some great scenery, but we haven't built a lot of facilities here."
Even though the city is looking at urban renewal districts in downtown and in Glenwood, the most likely place for a hotel and conference center would be in the Gateway area, Mayor Sid Leiken said.
"I look at Gateway not being just the hottest spot in Springfield, but the hottest spot in the metropolitan area, and maybe in the valley," he said.
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Civic Center Plan
EUGENE -- The drive to connect downtown Eugene with the riverfront continues with plans for what's being called the civic center.
Comprehensive civic plans are on the drawing board and the Eugene city council put it under the microscope today.
Those details are far from resolved, but the idea is to create an urban campus complete with government buildings and private businesses in the heart of downtown.
It's something to jump start the area and revive a long stagnant district. It's called Eighth Avenue right now, but it could someday be called the Great Avenue and look completely different. (more...)
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Commentary -- Eighth Avenue has fatal flaw as a Great Street
| By Don Kahle | June 18, 2004 |
Where is mixed-use urban planning when we need it? That darling concept of downtown planners and promoters is nowhere to be seen in the city's latest Great Street plan to transform Eighth Avenue into a one-stop shopping street of government services.
Trouble is, nobody "shops" for government services. Unlike consumer destinations, government appointments don't lend themselves to synergy. Nobody stops down for a building permit and decides on the spot to renew their dog's tags, file a restraining order and pick up a marriage certificate.
So why are we contemplating a new police station to be sited next to a fire station, across the street from City Hall and kitty-corner from a new municipal courthouse? It's not so you and I can do a little comparative safety shopping. It's so cops can walk to the courthouse to testify, the chief of police can drop in on the fire chief and they can go together to see the city manager.
Fine and good, but that's an altogether different synergy than the one required for a Great Street. No matter how wide you make the sidewalks, the public won't be strolling down them to shop for municipal services. And those cops walking across the street will not be stopping for a leisurely latte before making their court appearance. (more...)
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Big-box store issue back to council
By Edward Russo
The Register-Guard | June 15, 2004 |
Thanks for thinking of us, but we don't have the time or money to study the thorny issue of the effects of big-box stores on the local economy, a citizens committee told the City Council on Monday.
That was the unanimous message from the Mayor's Committee on Economic Development, which rejected the council's request to figure out how stores more than 50,000 square feet in size affect the city's other businesses, its land use decisions, transportation network and other things. (more...)
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Slant -- Big-Box Stores
| Eugene Weekly | June 17, 2004 |
Predictably, the mayor's Committee on Economic Development is not jumping up and down to prioritize a study on the impact of big-box stores on jobs and the local economy. But even a cursory reading of the research done by other cities points out major problems associated with Wal-Mart and other mega-stores. Living-wage jobs are lost and local cash is sucked out of state to finance construction and acquisition of more concrete and asphalt atrocities elsewhere. An easy solution is a moratorium on the size of retail outlets until the research can be done.
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Elections
Springfield council declines to name interim councilor
By Bob Keefer
The Register-Guard | June 15, 2004 |
SPRINGFIELD -- Thurston residents will have to wait until at least November and possibly into next year to have their own elected representative on the City Council.
Without taking an actual vote, a majority of council members at a work session Monday evening declined Mayor Sid Leiken's invitation to appoint a new Ward 6 councilor to replace Tim Malloy. He resigned his post in March to move to Washington state. (more...)
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Ward 6 position to remain unfilled
By Amber Fossen
The Springfield News | June 16, 2004 |
Thurston residents will have to wait a little longer for their own representative on the Springfield City Council, but they won't get left out of the fold.
Springfield City Council members discussed the possibility of appointing an interim councilor to fill the Ward 6 seat vacated by Tim Malloy in March but opted against it during a Monday night work session.
The responsibilities of representing Ward 6 will be shared among councilors until a permanent replacement is tapped in the Nov. 2 election. (more...)
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Spending signals costly campaign
By Randi Bjornstad
The Register-Guard | June 18, 2004 |
Final financial reports from the May primary election show that the top three candidates for the East Lane County commissioner position together poured nearly $161,000 into the effort and split the vote fairly evenly, setting up what could be another high-price campaign for November. (more...)
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Piercy defends six-figure mayoral campaign
By Diane Dietz
The Register-Guard | June 18, 2004 |
Mayor-elect Kitty Piercy broke city spending records when she took in $122,000 in campaign contributions -- and she's unapologetic.
Piercy said she learned that it would take a six-figure war chest to win after she was trounced four years ago by a candidate who had twice the money. (more...)
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Applicants sought for school board seat
| The Register-Guard | June 16, 2004 |
Thursday is the application deadline for anyone interested in applying for a soon-to-be-vacant seat on the Eugene School Board. Board veteran Chris Pryor won a seat on the City Council last month and will resign, effective June 23, in order to prepare. (more...)
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Other News
The Chamber of Commerce: What has it done for me lately?
By Finn John
The Springfield News | June 18, 2004 |
For many of us, the Springfield Chamber of Commerce is a bit like a neighbor you've visited with for years but never really got to know. You know, the one who you finally learned last month was a Korean War hero or a famous writer of children's books.
Everyone knows it's a local business group, and most people know where it is. But the details of who it is and what it does -- those aren't so well known. (more...)
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Councilor fights to save drug program
By Bob Keefer
The Register-Guard | June 19, 2004 |
Dave Ralston has made it clear from the get-go: He's not going to stand by and see the D.A.R.E. program cut from the Springfield budget.
It looks as though the city councilor will at last have his way. When the council meets Monday night to approve the city's final 2004-05 budget, Ralston expects to pull enough council support to restore funding for the drug education program, which was cut last month by the Budget Committee.
"The bottom line is, the world is crazy these days," said Ralston, who will drive back from a family vacation in Central Oregon to cast his vote at the meeting.
"D.A.R.E. is about more than drugs. It's about dealing with violence. And it's about the relationship kids can build with a police officer."
The Springfield School District, which has in the past paid half the program's cost, has agreed to pay three-fourths. That leaves the city to dig up about $22,500 for its share, which Ralston expects will come this year from reserves.
"We need to find some kind of permanent funding for next year," he said.
The council will hold its public hearing on the proposed budget at 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall, 225 Fifth St., Springfield.
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