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Just weeks ago, I sat down with three people who all shared the same concern.
Although these three people were very different, they were connected
by this concern, a concern that had potential to change operations at a place
that strives to serve people of all walks of life.
"I am pleased to report that last night the Joint Finance Committee (JFC)
of the State Legislature delayed until July 2016 the changes of Medicaid reimbursements
to community health centers sought by the Governor in his
state budget," an email from Dr. Ken Loving, CEO of Access Community
Health Centers, read.
Just days before the JFC's decision, Dr. Loving, Trina McCormick and
Wally Orzechowski had opened my eyes to the work that is done at the Access
Community Health Centers Dodgeville Dental Clinic. Over 4,000 of
the area's most vulnerable community members had become patients at this
clinic since its creation in 2009. Projected numbers had shown that 3,000
patients alone would be using the clinic in 2015.
After listening to the concerns of Dr. Loving, Dodgeville Dental Clinic
manager McCormick and SWCAP executive director Orzechowski, it was
quite clear to me how devastating a several million dollar cut could be. It
was even more clear how important this article could be, as I wondered if
others in the community were unaware of the positive impact the Dodgeville
Dental Clinic has had on thousands of residents from Iowa County and beyond.
For those who do not know much about the clinic, McCormick encourages
them to stop by and ask for a tour. She also invites our senator Howard
Marklein to tour the clinic, as Marklein is a member of the JFC but has never
toured the Dodgeville facility that serves so many of his constituents.
I had to ask myself if the Governor had actually visited a clinic like
Dodgeville's too, if he had seen the good work these doctors are doing, if he
had listened to the hundreds of citizens who wrote, emailed and called their
legislators with the same concern as Loving, McCormick and Orzechowski.
McCormick is proud of the care Access Community Health Centers
Dodgeville Dental Clinic is able to provide for residents. And as residents
of Dodgeville and Iowa County, we should be proud too.
I am among the grateful that applaud the JFC for recognizing that the
change in reimbursement would impact thousands of people who deserve
the same quality of health and dental care as anyone else.
Our voices were heard.