Campaign looking out for consumers

The Campaign to Make Health Care Work is right to challenge the Department of Health’s approval of Providence Everett Medical Center’s $500 million expansion. It’s the responsibility of the DOH to ask tough questions about how this expansion will affect the affordability and accessibility to quality health care. There is no doubt the hospital needs expanding, but are the prices of health care going to escalate because of the expansion? Of course they are. So by how much, and who decides how those cost increases are calculated? Providence Health and Services, a company that made $350 million in profit last year and gets tax breaks galore, can afford to limit how much it raises prices for medical services. That is what The Campaign to Make Healthcare Work is looking for. They are simply looking for the DOH to do the job they are supposed to do, look out for the interest of the consumer, the taxpayer and the community.

Providence claims the delay in the process will make the project even more expensive. That is hypocritical, when they are also appealing the DOH’s decision because they didn’t get approved for as many beds as they originally proposed. So which is it? A delay looking for cost containments for the community will increase the cost of the project, but a delay requested by the righteous company is in our interest. I’m confused by that logic. I think it’s time the DOH and Providence start being more accountable.

Kathy Young

Everett