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Dr. Florence Jameson, right, founder of Volunteers in Medicine, which plans to open a clinic in a building in Paradise Park, argues with Brent Cooper who lives near the park, during an open house about the clinic Wednesday. “I was against the clinic before I got here,” said Cooper, who had changed his mind by the time he left the event.
Saturday, May 16, 2009 | 2 a.m.
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- Volunteers forge ahead with plan to treat uninsured (10-7-2008)
- Doctor driven to start clinic for the uninsured (5-20-2008)
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Proposed clinic
The uninsured won’t find much love in the neighborhood around Tropicana and Eastern avenues.
That’s where Clark County officials may allow a free medical clinic to use an empty building at Paradise Park.
Neighbors want nothing of it.
The influx of people without insurance would lower property values and increase crime, they say. In fact, it would ruin their park. Theirs, as if it were a private park.
“The uninsured, in my mind, are a group of people that are less desirable,” one elderly neighbor told the Sun. “I don’t want them coming into my park.”
He said he knows of an apartment down the street from his home that is shared by several poor families and “you should see the filth.”
“These are the kind of people” the free clinic will care for, he said with disgust.
The nonprofit organization Volunteers in Medicine of Southern Nevada wants to provide the clinic, and county commissioners are soliciting feedback from residents before they consider approving it.
The ensuing vitriol has exposed the prejudice of the haves against the have-nots.
One resident wrote in an e-mail to commission Chairman Rory Reid, who represents the district, that the clinic “is sure to alter the safety and enjoyment of the park. I do not want more ‘at risk’ people there, seeking free medical treatment.”
Reid says he is listening to the residents. If he waits much longer to put the project on the agenda it could be derailed. Clinic organizers said they must have their approval by June or they risk losing about $250,000 in state funding and grant money.
Dr. Florence Jameson, founder of the volunteer group — which includes doctors, nurses, pharmacists and attorneys — said there’s a desperate need for the clinic and that organizers will make every effort to maintain cleanliness and security in Paradise Park.
“While we remain sensitive to concerns raised by some nearby residents, there simply is no evidence to support claims that a family practice medical office serving the working uninsured will result in negative public safety impacts,” she said.
The neighbors remain cynical. They suggest Jameson’s aim is to profit or turn the site into a high volume clinic. At an April meeting to discuss the proposal, they interrupted her presentation with shouts, saying she would perform abortions at the clinic (not true) and said she wants the clinic in the park only because it’s near her medical office (also not true).
On Wednesday, the volunteers hosted an open house at a nearby church in an attempt to win over the critics and rally support. There was open hostility from some neighbors — including cursing at the volunteers and comments that hinted of racism.
Pharmacist Khanh Pham, one of the clinic volunteers, was in tears afterward. Recalling her own refugee status in the United States years earlier, without insurance, Pham said that when one of the residents told her that the “lowlifes” — the people without health insurance — would “trash their neighborhood,” she replied: “I am one of those lowlifes. I am that trash. Do I look like a person who will come and trash your neighborhood?”
Several neighbors, referring to her immigrant status, told Pham that she should “go back where she came from.”
Opponents of the free clinic offer a litany of reasons against it, but most are based on assumptions that poor people and those without insurance are detrimental.
Al Gundy, who said he uses the recreation center at the park five days a week, told the Sun he’s concerned the medical clinic will contribute to the depreciation of his home.
Peggy Bacon, president of a local homeowners association, wrote in an e-mail to Reid that the clinic, which is expected to treat about 50 patients a day by appointment, would “destroy our neighborhood.”
The uninsured are victims of harsh stereotyping.
The advocacy group Families USA estimates that a third of Nevadans younger than 65 went without health insurance for at least a month in 2008, and the number is rising as the jobless rate goes up. Uninsured patients tend to delay treatment, which can cause conditions to become more acute and more expensive to treat.
A low-income pediatric dental clinic is in a building at the park. When asked about its effect on the park environment, the critics said they have no complaints.
A few residents made less mean-spirited arguments against the proposed free clinic in Paradise Park. Lenny Talarico, who sits on a homeowners board, says a medical clinic is inappropriate at a recreational park. He said he met with Jameson and her husband to discuss helping them find a commercial site they could rent.
But such a site would cost $8,000 a month, Jameson estimated. The county would lease the park building to Volunteers in Medicine for $1 a year for at least five years.
Clinic volunteers say Clark County officials have led them to believe for years that Paradise Park would be a perfect site for their clinic. Dr. Raj Chanderraj said then-County Manager Thom Reilly suggested the site about five years ago. Reid has also supported the Paradise Park site for the medical facility, clinic officials said. On his county Web sites, Reid cites putting the dental clinic in Paradise Park as one of his accomplishments.
Volunteers in Medicine was the only bidder when the county solicited proposals to use the building. The group would need to invest about $420,000 to renovate the building, and budget $300,000 a year to operate it, Jameson said.
The group has about $170,000 in state allocated money to renovate the clinic — money that will be lost if the project isn’t approved by the end of June — plus an $80,000 grant that’s tied to the Paradise Park building because the foundation liked the low-rent option. Jameson said the group has enough cash on hand to operate the clinic for six months, plus $300,000 in pledges.
Whether the project moves forward hinges on Reid, who is giving credence to the neighbors’ complaints.
“The question isn’t whether it’s a great project, but whether it should be located in the park,” Reid said. “I think it’s fair to ask whether this will create traffic and other burdens.”
Since when is Trop and Estn a great neighborhood to begin with. These old people need to shut the hell up and take a look at themselves. This clinic is for families and individuals with health issues not a detox clinic.
To the old biddy who thinks the uninsured are lowlifes:
I'm a master's degreed professional and a victim of the economy and not employed at the moment. It's the first time in 27 years I've been unemployed. I can't afford the COBRA premiums to maintain my healthcare. Does that make me a lowlife? Would I sully your neighborhood? Or perhaps because I'm white and have a waspish name, I'd pass muster with you if I needed to use this clinic.
No need to bash the neighborhood. Yet "the not in my back yard" attitude of the residence in this valley simply demonstrates just how souless the community is. If the clinic were located in old west side or NLV those same people would cheer it. Fact is until health care is truley available to all, clinics like this one (and there are far too few) are needed. People need to determine if everyone has a right to health care,if so that means everyone. Not just the old, poor and those provided coverage via full time employment. If we as a country and community can't get past doing this (assuring all have coverage) then we need to state it and proclaim our bias against those who are currently excluded. It's ironic that the emergency services component of of health care "system" in general demonstrates no such bias and we all seem to tolerate it's treat first worrie about cost later. Ohhh, such a bad thing to have free or low cost primary care services in your neighborhood.
Uninsured people are becoming larger in numbers and coming from all kinds of professions and job categories. It's a testament to the crappy healthcare system in place right now. The time has come for a universal healthcare system so we don't have petty issues like this one.
We have been here for a year and we are still unemployed. my husband has diabetes and he has a year without his madicine.If they put a clinic like this one I know it would help alot of people that are uninsured because of the lack of jobs. Pleople without a job and insurance are not lowlifes.I hope to God these people never need free medical services.
Las Vegas may have pretty buildings, wealth etc but this is an example of the ugliness, insensitive and a curel third world mentality of some of it's citizens. Another reason we are leaving Las Vegas. I wonder how many opposing residents even voted? They'll vote for the same politician that helped create this social havoic.
Absolutely insane! I'm willing to wager that the "elderly neighbor" mentioned in this story is on medicare with supplemental Senior Dimensions and pays next to nothing for this. These neighbors need to get a grip. The uninsured are not just the transients and homeless anymore. Look at the economy!
I am White and diabetic, that said, I too have no health insurance due to my husband being laid off.I am too young for medicare and my job does not offer health insurance. This clinic would be a God send for me.
Because I don't health insurance I go without regular check-ups resulting in trips to the hospital for more serious problems. This cost more to the community than if I had a clinic to go to. If the people in this community want to pay more in taxes, because that is how my health care is covered, then that is fine with me.
I pray they never have to go without health care. but they need to walk a mile in my shoes before they call me a lowlife!
The article by Marshall Allen this morning is extraordinarily biased and inflammatory. We live in District G and are opposed to the clinic being placed in Paradise Park, but this has nothing to do with prejudice and mean spirit. Clark County has precious little park land, particularly in the more established areas like District G. People have many needs and these include recreation. Our limited park and recreation space should be committed to recreational opportunities, not commercial-zoned operations. There are many vacant storefronts in shopping centers nearby that would be great for a clinic. The county should help the clinic develop an arrangement in a commercially zoned spaced and keep the park for recreation. So this is not NIMBY, it is not lack of compassion, it is not prejudice...this is about preserving the precious little park and recreation opportunities this town has. Mr. Allen has spun an ugly story of this and presented a highly biased point of view by exploiting and highlighting his unnamed elderly man. I was at the church meeting and in the hour I was there, I saw no clinic opponents being ugly, rude, cursing or hinting at racism. Indeed, the only ones that could be identified as opponents were the kids and moms shown on the photo on page 3, and they were subdued and polite, merely standing with their sign. In the opening large-type paragraph of his article, Mr. Marshall ridicules those of us concerned about Paradise Park by saying "Theirs, as if it were a private park." Those of us who live nearby do consider Paradise Park as ours because we are citizens of the county. It is our park (the "our" being all citizens of Clark County) and we care about it as a recreational resource, not as though it were a private asset. We've lived in District G for 18 years and have always found ourselves aligned with the Sun's point of view. We'll now have to read their news articles with a more critical eye, realizing that biased opinion pieces are included in the news section.
In my opinion, that is a crappy neighborhood anyway and if you don't want to live near lowlifes, what are you doing in Las Vegas to begin with? The strip clubs, gambling smoking, ...., and you draw the line at not wanting to be around people that don't have health insurance? hahaha!
I've never met Florence Jameson, but I've been trying to get on her list as a patient for years. She certainly doesn't need extra money from opening another clinic. Maybe it's hard for some people to understand when doctors want to do good things for a community.
There has been a Children's Dental Clinic in the park for over 4 years now. Has an increase in crime, decrease in property values, or any other negative effect been documented in that time? If so the residents have an honest concern. If there have been no such changes their arguments are simply opinions and personal bias.
As far as bias in the article goes, there are a lot of quotes in it, so these things WERE said. Maybe they were taken out of context, but I doubt it.
I was at the meeting the entire time, and can honestly say most people were completely for the this project. Those who were opposed always said things like "I think this is a great idea, just not in my neighborhood."
It is really quite depressing that in a country founded by immigrants and "the melting pot of the world" we still think it is OK to judge one another by socioeconomic status.
"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,"
JUST NOT IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD.
There is most definitely a need for a free clinic. But, a clinic in a family Park just doesn't fit somehow..
As some have stated prior, why not use one of the many empty buildings? Much of that property is or will soon be government owned anyhow..
People that go to doctors offices, clinics and hospitals can be ill and contagious (that's usually when I go), so this just somehow doesn't seem very sanitary to me IMHO... People have picnics in parks.. I wouldn't want a clinic in a restaurant, or in the back of Micky D's..
I know this isn't in the above area, but I saw on a TV program that the cancer unit at UMC has closed and is sitting vacant. Why not put a place like that to good use? After all, it is our county hospital.
I am thinking they want it on it on govenment propery... If so,another option would be to put it in Harry Reid's new, up and coming City Hall.. We all know how much compassion HE has for the less fortunate and the homeless..
I just feel there are other options that might be explored... first the dental office, then a clinic, after that, what? Maybe no park left at all?
Connie Gilmore - Florence Jameson and this program are great. I hope you will reconsider your opposition. Respectfully, Laura McBride
No surprise this article took isolated comments and focused solely on those, as stories with this SPIN sell more papers than those which objectively report valid points. Clearly this was written in a manner to polarize the issues raised by homeowners, again no surprise with this particular project considering VIM has hired a paid lobbyist to help make their case.
I have been to EVERY meeting held on this issue, and at each meeting the message delivered has been consistent: The objections are with the proposed location NOT the quality of the project or with the underlying need for projects of this nature. Residential areas, especially in older established communities which were not master planned with appropriate residential to commercial buffer zones, need extra protection as opposed to exploitation to ensure long term residential sustainability. The PARK is the only remaining buffer zone into this neighborhood located off Tropicana and McLeod.
Parks by their nature are for recreational purposes not for satellite medical services. The building in question is inside the park. The residents have only been advocating that the clinic locate this operation in an alternative location outside the park boundaries to help protect the integrity of the residential area. This is not much to ask, and if other non-profits can find ways to be successful in our community without needing to do so in public parks, the question is fair ask this non profit as well. Issues surrounding PARKS always have a tendency to produce fervor, warranted or not. It is unfortunate that a small segment of people at the meeting chose to express their opinions in less than polite words, however to use those examples to paint a picture of the entire community and those in attendance at the meeting is irresponsible reporting. The Have- Have Not Spin on this story is an attempt to steer the discussion off course by cleverly skirting the concerns raised by homeowners. This area is host to diverse cultures living together and the attempted racial undertones in the article do nothing but attempt to muddy the wates.
It is the diverse homeowners of this area who ultimately will be most impacted by any decision to move forward with the project long after the debate on this is over and forgotten by others. Let their VOICES be heard fairly on this project and keep the SPIN out of the discussion.
No surprise this article took isolated comments and focused solely on those, as stories with this SPIN sell more papers than those which objectively report valid points. Clearly this was written in a manner to polarize the issues raised by homeowners, again no surprise with this particular project considering VIM has hired a paid lobbyist to help make their case.
I have been to EVERY meeting held on this issue, and at each meeting the message delivered has been consistent: The objections are with the proposed location NOT the quality of the project or with the underlying need for projects of this nature. Residential areas, especially in older established communities which were not master planned with appropriate residential to commercial buffer zones, need extra protection as opposed to exploitation to ensure long term residential sustainability. The PARK is the only remaining buffer zone into this neighborhood located off Tropicana and McLeod.
Parks by their nature are for recreational purposes not for satellite medical services. The building in question is inside the park. The residents have only been advocating that the clinic locate this operation in an alternative location outside the park boundaries to help protect the integrity of the residential area. This is not much to ask, and if other non-profits can find ways to be successful in our community without needing to do so in public parks, the question is fair ask this non profit as well. Issues surrounding PARKS always have a tendency to produce fervor, warranted or not. It is unfortunate that a small segment of people at the meeting chose to express their opinions in less than polite words, however to use those examples to paint a picture of the entire community and those in attendance at the meeting is irresponsible reporting. The Have- Have Not Spin on this story is an attempt to steer the discussion off course by cleverly skirting the concerns raised by homeowners. This area is host to diverse cultures living together and the attempted racial undertones in the article do nothing but attempt to muddy the waters.
It is the diverse homeowners of this area who ultimately will be most impacted by any decision to move forward with the project long after the debate on this is over and forgotten by others. Let their VOICES be heard fairly on this project and keep the SPIN out of the discussion.
I am one of the uninsured in Las Vegas. I cannot afford insurance, and I feel that a free clinic for health care would be a great idea. I am a 37 year old single mom and I pay rent in a decent neighborhood. I am not a "low life". I am disabled and cannot get my medicare for another year. The Welfare system denied me healthcare insurance but approved my 2 daughters. These people that oppose the clinic in the park need to step back and take a look at the situation and think for a minute what if they were amongst the uninsured, how would the feel being called trash??? I am not trash, and I am not a "lowlife"
The community should thank god Dr. Jameson is willing to put her energy and money and reputation to give to this community. If the Clark County Commissioners cave in to a mean spirited group of people they should be ashamed of themselves. Show some leadership for pete's sake.
A clinic like this should be located closer to its clients. Since, by definition, they won't own cars, and since getting there from the center of poverty in this valley -- vegas/north las vegas border -- by our bus system would take about 3 hours, the Paradise Park location makes no sense.
The real problem is not so much the location, but the fact that, so far, this would be the only such clinic. Having one at Paradise Park wouldn't be a problem if the truly needy areas were also served. Once the real poverty areas have been served, we could look at Paradise Park for, say, clinic number 3 or 4. Paradise Park is a very bad location for clinic #1, which may end up being the only such clinic in our lifetimes.
Another problem is that we have so few parks. The City of Las Vegas has already destroyed or closed two of the finest - Circle Park and the one that now sits under the Sawyer State Building - primarily because the open public space was being used by those who need it the most. (More murders occur at Caesars Palace, NYNY, etc., than at our public parks, and they attract more "low-lifes" than any other type of gathering place, but we don't shut THEM down.)
This community lacks a lot of things. Including more parks. Displacing public park space for free clinics, or free clinics for public parks, or art districts for more casinos, doesn't get us where we need to go.
The park location for the first, and likely only, free clinic is not in the best interests of the medical needs of this community.
"Since, by definition, they won't own cars"
I think you may be confused. This is a clinic for those without insurance, not those without cars. Many people drive cars every day, and also don't have insurance. Hope this helps.
Many of those who lack cars, or are less fortunate financially, qualify for medicaid. These are not the target population. In fact one of the proposed restrictions for clients is that they dcan't qualify for federal aid. Talk about SPIN. Get the facts.
Despicable that these people could be so insensitive to those who have had a rash of bad luck. I had insurance until I got laid off and had to take a job that offers no health insurance, and doesn't pay me enough to pay the $200+ a month premium. The last thing on my mind right now is to go and "trash" someones precious neighborhood (and we all know Trop and Eastern is no Beverly Hills).
I hope those people never have to endure the need for basic care; actually I HOPE some day they are the ones sitting in the waiting room of a free clinic, then maybe they will understand that s*** happens and not only to the "low lifes".
I have seen the building that they say is "in the park". You can access the front entrance to the building from Harrison Dr. without having to step one foot in the park. Plus there's already a dental clinic for low income kids in one side of the building. Seems to me like it makes perfect sense. These crazy neighbors are doing a great disservice to our community, I hope it rests well on their consciences. Just shameful.
The reason the clinic operators want to use the park site is because rent would be $1 per year (i.e. free). I agree that a park is not the best place for a clinic. I agree with UMC. If we could get another donated building, I'm all for it. You can put it in the house next door to mine for all I care.
I've been a dealer at a casino downtown for 2 years. I am still extra board and have 25 people ahead of me before I get full time and insurance. My husband is a cab driver and because he is technically a private employee basically "renting" the cab each day, he would have to pay for private insurance. We are employed and working 40-60 hours per week, yet we are not offered affordable insurance. It isn't fair, but its the way it is. A free (or next to free) clinic would be a miracle in our eyes.
The quotes made me think that the people living in that neighborhood are stuck up and don't realize that their neighborhood does not contain the cream of the crop of our society. But then Linda made a point that does not sound like someone that looks down on others and I see what she is saying. I guess that I wouldn't want a clinic in my neighborhood because of the germs and I would just be thinking that living next to a clinic with a park that my kids play would make me run around with disinfectant wipes. We probably all are guilty of moving to the other side of the waiting room in a doctors office when someone is hacking away with a cold that we don't want to catch. So, maybe if there were more people with Linda that could bring up the problems without insulting people that don't have insurance, people would have more sympathy and agree that it is a better idea to keep it away from a residential neighborhood.
countrygirl, in my opinion you are not classy if you are complaining about being denied welfare and are a single mom. in my opinion, give up on the "I'm a single mom feel sympathy for me". I'm all for a free clinic, especially to help kids, but I won't pretend that people that are here illegally or that single parents in las vegas are classy.
"nevadaappleslices"
In my opinion YOU are a classless FLAMER.
gmag, my hubby and I are honored to pay taxes to support single mommies and it is too bad that they feel that we don't give them enough freebies.
The only stipulation that should be placed is that the clinic is for US CITIZENS and LEGAL RESIDENTS ONLY!! We can't afford to make the mistake they do in LA where their clinics are absolutely over-run with illegals bleeding the health care dry while Americans are turned away at the door.
I wish I could agree with steve7952 that "this is an example of the ugliness, insensitive and a curel third world mentality of some of it's citizens." In my travels through the third world rarely did I observe this sort of meanness as displayed by some of the members of this first world community of Las Vegas.
The building is definitely in the park, it is the old recreation center. It is located between the tennis courts and the pool.
I am stunned to see that so many people consider my part of town to be so bad. And I am confused as to why that assessment is important; apparently if our neighborhood was nicer then our concerns would be more valid?
This is a wonderfully integrated and middle class (I thought!) area. My block has whites, blacks, hispancis, and asians; young, old; and votes strongly democratic. I am concerned about having park land for my area. But now I see many of these bloggers wishing that I will lose my job, lose my insurance, and become homeless, hoping I will be sitting in a free clinic someday. They label clinic opponents as mean spirited, but I most assuredly do not wish them nor anyone to be punished to prove my point.
The issue is a complex one and a good article could have been written about how difficult it is to balance things that many people agree on: parks and access to affordable health care. Instead, by playing up a fringe point of view and ascribing it to an entire neighborhood, this article has caused righteous indication by protectors of the indigant, inflamed them against their county brethren, and probably caused concern and fear on the part of the uninsured. This does not help anyone involved other than Mr. Allen who can enjoy the attention his article has attracted.
Nothing like the noise of the ignorant and disapproving herd.
Bless you, Dr. Jameson.
A "free" clinic will absolutely bring more crime to the area. It's sad that everyone is so PC these days that you can't state an obvious fact. And to the poster with a masters degree and a 27yr work history who has now found himself unemployed and uninsured: in your 27yrs of employment did you ever consider a rainy day fund? I understand that we need a safety net for least fortunate among us, but it's sad that tax payers and home owners get shafted again because someone doesn't have the slightest bit of foresight and has less fiscal discipline than my 8yr old son.
I have lived in my car for a year of my life and I now earn a six figure income. So considering my history, I have a unique perspective and I would like to offer a few tips for the uninsured who wish to better their "luck":
- Get a job (any job)
- Work hard
- Go to school while working (sacrifice sleep if required)
- Study hard
- Spend less than you make
- Build a rainy day fund
- Don't have children before you can afford them
- Have a plan to take care of yourself!
(Government programs will ultimately be a disappointment)
Marshall Allen got what he wanted, people arguing with each other in a mean spirited manner drawing focus away from any real serious postive discussion to find middle ground. Not very green Mr. Allen, this article was a total waste of paper. ( I do get the hard copy, but will most likely drop it after this useless article)
I'd be interested to know if any of that $250,000 in state (read YOUR) funds is going to go towards "taking care" of illegal aliens. I'm assuming those running the clinic won't care, much less ask, about their patients' citizenship status.
If true, that would be unacceptable. Given the budget crisis, it is a total outrage that our money would be going to fund illegal aliens. Why is no one in the legislature taking steps to see that this does not happen?
Finally, the notion that crime will not be a problem should this clinic open at a park is laughable. No, I am not saying all uninsured people are criminals, but once a certain element gets wind of the "free
clinic", I can only imagine some of the characters that will be attracted to the park.
Then again, for those in that neighborhood who proudly vote "democratic", I'm sure they wouldn't
have a problem hanging out with the day laborers that loiter around the Home Depot, so, in that regard, I'm sure they won't have a problem when those same day laborers mill across their homes at the park.
To DS (does that stand for dip sh*t?) who questions my ability to fiscally plan: Did your 401K take a dive of over 70% in value? If you lost your job, would your COBRA premiums be more than your mortgage payments? I'm choosing to pay my mortgage rather than the COBRA premiums out of my "rainy day" fund. Perhaps you haven't looked for a job lately. Because I have a more than decent education, just "any" job isn't going to hire me because they rationalize that as soon as something more fitting with my skills and experience comes along, I'll be gone - and they're mostly right. I'm glad you were able to live in your car (and most probably avail yourself of charity based or tax based community services while you did so - or did you just stink for a year without a shower?) Get off your high horse and look at the reality of the situation. Some decent people are trying to do good in the community and some stuck up wannabe's are drawing back as if being threatened with an AIDS infected sword. You all need to get over yourselves and thank your Creator you don't NEED these services at the moment, and when you DO need them, don't you DARE use them!
Matois, NO, my 401K did not take a 70% hit. If you where invested in 100% stock (which is STUPID) you should have only taken a 40 - 50% hit. Moreover, you should have made about 20 - 25% of that back in the past eight weeks. You must have had your 401 in some extremely risky investments.
Why would your emergency fund not include all monthly expenses? You've had TWENTY SEVEN YEARS to stash a little extra away for a rainy day. Well, sorry if I don't feel bad that the rain is here and YOU weren't prepared. Maybe you didn't need that 52 inch HDTV, 3000 SQ/FT house, SUV, RV, ect... (I'm speaking broadly for most American's who are finding themselves in trouble now).
And no, I did not use any social services when I lived in my car. And I thank God for that experience because nothing is more rewarding than maintaining self respect while slowly pulling yourself up by your own boot straps. Or I guess I could have cried a sad story and TAKEN the fruits of others hard work. But that just wasn't an option because I have to look at myself in the mirror every morning. So sorry if I don't feel bad. While I was working diligently and saving, others where spending, spending, spending. Maybe if people where forced suffer the consequences of THEIR actions, they would learn a lesson and make better decisions in the future. But why would you change your behavior? People like me are here to bail you out because nothing is really your fault. It was all those greedy bankers on Wall Street. Keep telling yourself that, I hope it helps you sleep at night.
Matois, I would like to recommend a movie for you. Check out Cinderella Man with Russell Crow if you have the time. The movie took place during the Great Depression and there are a lot of great lessons to be learned from this fictional story. Crow refused to take advantage of social services until ALL other options where exhausted. And when times got better, he paid his debt to the govt. back in full. Amazing!
msdorkish:
Please, please see if the manufacturer of your husband's medicine will offer for free. I know that a lot of drug manufacturers will supply free of charge as long as necessary. He should NOT go without medicine and call one of the current free clinics so that he can be checked on a regular basis.
Illegal immigration is going to impact health care or visa-versa. Because American taxpayers have been burdened with paying for emergency medical care by law for anybody who slips across the border. Illegal immigrants are going to have a monolithic impact of the distribution of this now privileged health services, on all citizens and legal residents--IF WE STILL HAVE TO PAY FOR ALL THE UNEDUCATED, ILLITERATE THAT CIRCUMVENTS OUR IMMIGRATION LAWS. When our government estimates that 48 million people are uninsured, a good portion is that they are illegal immigrants and families. American can only afford to approve health care for our legal population, otherwise we will have a continuous stream of hospitals and clinics closing or going into bankruptcy, because Federal mandate say we must give emergency care to the uninsured--mainly the millions of illegal aliens squatting here. Our nation has become a irresistible attraction looking for free benefits from Americans.
$Billions a year paying for education, health care, housing, prison cells, that includes a matrix of federal and state benefits. The Emergency room is a misnomer, as they use the hospital-in patient for any minor or major affliction. The taxpayer pays for everything including dialysis to major surgery, whereas the employer pays nothing towards his illegal charge. In recent years even Europe with a single-payer government program, without the financial bleeding of Insurance companies have been severely damaged by illegal labor. Today under President Obama we have but--ONE CHANCE-- for all legal Americans to have Universal health care--and WE MUST DEMAND IT. WE HAVE THE POWER! USE IT! Call your Senator or Representative. DON'T LET THE MEGA INSURANCE COMPANIES PERVERT THIS CHANCE, WITH THEIR PROPAGANDA TV & RADIO ADS. Demand a permanent E-Verify workplace extraction tool, utilizing ATTRITION in the workplace. Learn much more at NUMBERSUSA, JUDICIALWATCH.
As a long-time Las Vegas resident and homeowner near Paradise Park, I am saddened by the tone of Mr. Marshall's article. His opinion of the homeowners in this area is clear---this was a witch-hunt on his part to stir up anger and bitterness over a very simple issue. Please do not buy into his hype and smear campaign.
As you may have noticed, Clark County has very limited park space. The homeowners around Paradise Park do not benefit from being a "master-planned" community. We do the best we can with what we've got. Some of us have jobs, some of us don't. Some of us are educated, some of us aren't. Some of us have health insurance, some of us don't. We are not wealthy people. We are hard-working people who love our park and want it to remain a park for our children, grandchildren and dogs to play in.
I have been to a majority of the meetings regarding the Volunteers in Medicine placing a clinic in the park. Mr. Marshall's biased article of the informational meeting last week did not paint a very clear picture of our neighborhood.
I, and a majority of the homeowners here, are not against helping those who don't have insurance. We are not racists or bigots. Please---we have many nationalities here. We have many single people, as well as families. We have old and young.
We are not being discriminatory against cultures or the poor. My family and I have had times throughout the years with and without health insurance. I know what it's like to cut out groceries or not pay bills so that I could take my sick baby to the doctor. I, and most homeowners here, support helping people. We just don't believe a medical clinic belongs in a park. It belongs in a commercially zoned area.
We want Paradise Park to remain a park, not become a Dr's office.
Dr. Jameson's two lobbyists are spinning the story in an inflammatory way to obscure the real issue: A public park is the wrong spot for a free clinic.
Issue #1: Safety. While Dr. Jameson's public position is that her clinic will treat the "working poor," this group says something very different when you ask them one-on-one, which I did at the meeting last week. No source of income will be required to be a patient at her clinic, so long as you live in Nevada and don't qualify for other health care. So they are going to treat the homeless, and they have never privately denied this. Homeless folks need medical care too, and they should be able to get it like everyone else. But when you invite close to 16,000 people a year to enter the park for free medical care, everyone who is in the park is in danger. They are endangered by a few of the clinic's patients who will be very small in numbers, but dangerous nonetheless. While the great majority of people will have no bad motives, or plan to hurt anyone, what about the drug addicts who will sit in the park and wait for their medical appointments? Or the seriously mentally ill who have medical problems and appointments?
What about the pedophiles who will enter the park for care? The clinic is steps away from the swimming pool, which has a see-through fence, and it's close to the playground equipment, which is near the park's unattended restrooms. There are school bus stops on both sides of the park.
Issue #2: Size. The clinic will have 16,000 patients a year. It's too big, both for the park and for the neighborhood. When asked at a meeting last month why not put her clinic near a hospital, Dr. Jameson said "The hospitals don't want us. They are afraid of being overrun." All righty then. So the clinic belongs in the park, in the middle of a neighborhood, so THEY will be overrun?
Issue #3: Notice. How about letting the neighborhood know? Neither Dr. Jameson, nor the County, told the neigborhood about the clinic until last month, although it's apparently been in the works for awhile. There's been no dialogue about parking issues, clinic hours, or security.
Issue #4: Money. Dr. Jameson's group is not a fledgling, start-up, not-for-profit that can't rub two nickles together and needs a County-owned building to survive. The group has collected substantial monies, and it apparently has some generous supporters. It's ready to spend $420,000 to rehab the building. Why not buy their own place? Go up the street from my house. Go around my corner to Tropicana. But save the park. There's a way to get a clinic AND keep the park. But Dr. Jameson won't look anywhere else. There's lots of vacant office space in our neighborhood, and I've been told there are some great deals.Other not-for-profits are paying their rent or have their own buildings. With the means to use two lobbyists, and so much apparent support, why can't this group?
Nice post nearby!
Interesting.... Is Dr. Jameson in cahoots with Harry Reid? We all know how he wants the homeless relocated and away from the area they are in now... away from any business and nowhere near downtown.. Maybe they are hoping if they put the free clinic in the park, they can relocate the homeless there, and out of Reid's face.. Just a thought..
The clinic would benefit the community. People who need care, would not have to go all the way to UMC. The park belong to the people who live in Clark County. It's time we started showing some compassion for one another.
I'm concerned about the part of the story that read that they could lease the property from the City for a dollar a year - WTH??? All we've been hearing about is budget cut this, budget cut that - and now we find out the city has a potential money maker on their hands and is willing to lease it for a buck a year?? How can the City afford to be so magnanimous amongst all this budget cutting talk?? If money is so tight I think the City needs to use what ever revenue generator it has available to do just that - generate revenue - and certainly not at the rate of a dollar a year......... Only when the City has such a surplus that they're literally rolling in dough should they make such a generous offer - until that time they need to be held accountable for the potential revenue they're seemingly willing to throw away.
Wolfdog, you said:
"The clinic would benefit the community. People who need care, would not have to go all the way to UMC. The park belong to the people who live in Clark County. It's time we started showing some compassion for one another."
What people are you talking about? Why would UMC be further away then Paradise Park for the people? No one is against the free clinic, and UMC is centrally located, not so with the park... It would actually save the Foundation more money, because they wouldn't need to do a renovation. That money saved could be spent on even more health care for the needy.. UMC belongs to the people of Clark County as well.. it's our County hospital...
I don't understand how so many of you neighbors can be against a medical clinic like "Volunteers in Medicine" Have any of you out there against this clinic, ever been without medical insurance before? Were you always well off? Did you know that a NON-Profit Dental has been operating in the same building at the park for over 3 years now? Do you know how many people are out of work and lost there medical insurance. You are all so self centered and selfish. Your property is worth less just like the other 100% of homes in Las Vegas, don't you watch the news?
TO JOURNEY THROUGH LIFE FOR ONE'S OWN SAKE IS LITTLE BY LITTLE TO CEASE TO EXIST AT ALL, IN ANY SENSE THAT REALLY MATTERS.
IT IS ONLY WHEN WE JOURNEY FOR THE SAKE OF OTHERS THAT WE COME TRULY ALIVE.
Quote by Frederick Buechner
My parents live in the Tiburon Estates townhouse community near this proposed site. I can say with honesty that the people that are complaining are from these townhouses and they are the most prejudice and nasty people I have ever encountered. My elderly father who is native american and mexican, lives in the complex. He has encountered nothing but prejudice from the homeowners in the complex. One lady in the complex bluntly told my father who was working in his garage with his radio on, that he does not belong there and he is not welcome, that "they are trying to keep their area nice and free from any outside trash". My father was absoultely stunned and is in the process of filing a formal complaint and moving to a nicer community that does not judge on the color of one's skin or financial situation. An african american family moved in a few doors down and they are already receiving fines and being treated like garbage from the homeowners association and the fellow people that live there. This whole mess is being caused from people that are ignorant, racist, and prejudice. And the brunt of it is coming from Tiburon Estates. They even have signs up on all community mailboxes telling their residents to show up at meetings and object to this clinic. Go take a look for yourself. Dont let these prejudice people hurt others who need the help so desperately. Stand up for what is right.
for those that want to pretend this is not a racist attack look at the comments above. Illegal rants and complaints about Harry Reid? Stay on topic people.I am 37 year working woman than is uninsured.My friend Michael Troy DIED, that is correct DIED, because he was sick and uninsured in Nevada. You can read his story on www.savemichaeltroy.com. A clinic like this could have saved his life. This my hometown neighborhood and my hometown park. My mother and brother still live in the area and my 74 mother walks under the old growth trees everyday. We cannot pretend that being uninsured is something that cannot happen to you or your family. It is naive and arrogant. I would happy to have this clinic in the park my mother visits every day. I still enjoy church there on special sundays. I am sure the soccer players, BBQers and children playing on the swings will be just fine if they even notice. Your property values wont be affected since we are in a recession people and the old rules do not apply.Be a good Christian and support this clinic that is trying to help those in need.See you at the clinic, I will save you a seat.