Yet another example of how our leaders' small-mindedness and lack of foresight and ingenuity only feed the ignorance of our populace and hold us down. Senator Vitter is reacting as if building a world-class medical complex is the absolute worst idea ever proposed. I've posted my thoughts on this before . (In a nutshell, I'm all for going bigtime on this thing. I mean, raise your hand if you'd rather not have the best doctors and hospitals in your own city. Unless, of course, you enjoyed your exodus in Houston so goddamn much, you'd do anything to go all the way to M.D. Anderson for treatment.)
It's also funny how those with access to the best in life (and who will do anything to keep that standard of living) suddenly become all apoplectic when the rest of us would like to use OUR public money to get the best for US. That's a whole 'nother post though. I'm not at all knocking the awesome healthcare providers we've had past and present. But what's wrong with aiming higher?
Why haven't things gotten better here in the past several decades? Because people here want easy answers.
Crime's up? Just lock everybody up in jail.
The schools suck? Just blame parents and morality.
Huge fuckin' pothole on your street? Ehh, just put some cones and yellow caution tape around it. Aw shoot, it's flooding again? Just go rake your damn leaves out of the catch basins!
Oh, we forgot to re-open the hospitals down there? Just throw some paint on Charity and open it back up like it was before.
To OPPOSE improving pretty much the only industry we had aside from tourism just plain don't make a lick o' sense to me.
Wake up, my neighbors! It's time to realize we have to INVEST in our future, which means putting something IN to get something good out. Most good things don't come without sacrifice, and these days good healthcare sure as hell don't come cheap.
2 comments:
EJ, I'm all for a charity hospital-type facility. Unfortunately, I think the LSU big-wigs just want a new facility for their own egos. The Charity building itself is sound (from what I've heard) and could be gutted, cleaned and rebuilt *with* state-of-the-art equipment which I *strongly* believe the poor deserve. Yes! They deserve the best healthcare this country can provide. But who do you think is going to ultimately pay for this brand spanking new complex? It'll trickle down to the poor, just like shit does.
My opinion comes mostly from having worked and trained in some of the best hospitals in the nation, the type LSU is proposing. Granted, those were private/non-profit institutions but they served, and more importantly ATTRACTED, Medicaid/publicly funded patients as well as privately insured patients. The revenue from the increase in private insurance and out-of-pocket $ should end up allowing the taxpayer to pay LESS of the hospital's operating costs. Also, the type of research medical center proposed would draw down probably 100s of millions in research funding. AND it would ensure that the people treating us are in an environment where they have access to the latest advances.
Basically, I've found working in such places to be very rewarding and capable of providing some extraordinary care at times.
And we're not exactly overrun with prestigious, well-known university research hospitals down here. Not that the ones we have aren't good; but they could be better.
And I'll have to do a better job of not namecalling... You are definitely not part of the "ignorant populace" :-)
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