Healthcare reform: Senators, my blood is boiling!

Those who know me know that I am usually calm and collect but holy smokes!

I spoke to a few senators about helping support the change to Public Law 16-51. This is what was said: 1) I wouldn’t support it because I don’t feel right putting the board of trustees in charge. It should be the doctors. 2) I think we need to put it on the back burner because there are more important issues right now.

Wow! I telephoned Dr. Walker and asked him how I should respond to this. First, he said remain calm. The second is that he had heard the misinformation campaign mentioned in No. 1 above before. He said the current Public Law 16-51 has CEO Muña in charge. She has a committee called board of advisers under her. She appoints them. They do not evaluate her. So there are no, none, zero doctors in charge right now! If we do nothing to overturn Public Law 16-51 then it stays that way. His idea is to put all of the doctors in charge of their own doctoring. No one gets in the way. The CEO will remain in charge of all of the administrative tasks but none of the doctoring. Muña is not a doctor so what have we got now? The board of trustees oversees both arms and two positions on the board of trustees will be doctors. In fact, CMS Medicare currently mandates at least one board member to be a doctor. So, if you truly believe that doctors should be in charge of doctoring then absolutely Public Law 16-51 needs changing. Why not follow the mainland U.S. system anyway? Why do our politicians always feel the need to change things—usually for the worse! Or leaving it now, for the worse!

Personally, I do not think that elected senators have the right to deny healthcare or make decisions that will cost people their lives. Doing nothing means that people from Tinian and Rota must be transferred by airplane to Saipan. Many patients do not make it and those that do may suffer because of the delay. An orthopedic surgeon is not on Saipan so again, another transfer! How can they say «back burner» and do nothing. This is why we elected them. How can you be so blind and stupid!

I also wish to comment on Esther Muña saying we need a neurosurgeon. Dr. Walker is a fellowship trained and board certified spine surgeon. He said it would be great to have a neurosurgeon to perform surgeries in the head and some spine but is Muña dreaming? The hospital has been cited for poor airflow in the operating room. There are no pulsed flow ventilators or ways to monitor intracranial pressure (I don›t know what that means). There is training, equipment and OR upgrades that would be over a million dollars! Maybe the marijuana is being already tested out at CHCC!

Senators, wake up and do something! Get us out of this mess! Shame on you!

Mary Tomokane
Garapan, Saipan