Letter to the Editor

Many of you may recall that I placed an ad questioning the Bond Election for Faith Community Hospital. I have serious concerns anytime there are elections that raise taxes.

Politicians will promise the world. The voters, who are all giddy about getting the world, vote for that politician. Then reality sets in. They (the voters) were not given what was promised by the politicians. Their taxes go up. Now they are in a hangover that is going to last for years . Unfortunately, the voters forget who made their lives miserable. These are the concerns I had (and still have) about the bond election for the hospital. I heard bond election which I translated to .. . more tax dollars. I thought “the audacity of the hospital to ask for more money for something the voters had already rejected.”

Mr. Beaman called me when he read the ad to discuss my opposition. We talked for, quite a while. In that time Mr. Beaman addressed my concern of new taxes . He states unequivocally that there will be no new taxes. If this is true, it is great! My unfortunate circumstance is that I am not a lawyer. I do not know the fine print. In fact, if what Mr. Beaman tells me is true, it would then be irresponsible for the hospital to not seek the bond election. He addressed Mrs. Rogers’ letter to the editor regarding Tricare and Blue Cross and Blue Shield. Tricare is accepted and was accepted. There was a “government technicality” that needed addressing. As far as my personal situation, He told me that there was a large paper trail with my coverage provider UHC. FCH was told by UHC to send the claim to several places and in each occasion the claim was sent to the wrong group. Bottom line for me is that I was told by FCH my claim was denied and UHC says that I am covered and they only asked for more information regarding who provided which service. Someone is lying.

Conclusion, in 2012 the voters, including myself, voted down the Bond Election. Personally, I believed the hospital was a place to go to get a band aid and doubted their ability to do that without incurring more bodily harm. I believed that our money could be better spent on other Jacksboro projects ... like repairing the streets and other infrastructure! I will not disparage the doctors and staff of the hospital that are currently working there since it is a new “crop of people”. I still have reservations about the need of the hospital in a community that is just too small to support expensive items. Rural is a choice for most residents of the hospital district. There are things one gives up to live away from the hustle and bustle of metropolitan areas. In 2012, the bond election was voted down. The people in charge of the hospital circumvented our decision and took loans to make the new hospital happen anyway. That is my biggest problem with this bond election. Due to the cost of the loans and the intended reason for the bond election, I am now battling reason and logic with angst and resentment. 

How will I vote? How should I vote? I honestly do not know.

Rick McCleney