Profits trump care

Sun., Dec. 1, 2013

Let me get this straight. Insurance provider Premera Blue Cross is not going to approve using Providence health care (Sacred Heart Medical Center, Holy Family Hospital and Providence providers) as approved providers because Premera wants to cut costs.

Premera will use only Rockwood Health System (Deaconess and Valley hospitals and Rockwood providers). And yet, Deaconess and Valley hospitals can’t seem to get blood samples for newborns to a lab in a timely manner. This puts newborns at serious risk of not having health problems detected quickly. Plus, staff at Deaconess and Valley have considered striking because short-staffing is dangerous for patient care.

I guess it’s true, the profit line is more important than providing excellent care for the most vulnerable populations.

Carol Fullmer

Spokane

Letters policy

The Spokesman-Review invites original letters on local topics of public interest. Your letter must adhere to the following rules:

No more than 250 words
We reserve the right to reject letters that are not factually correct, racist or are written with malice.
We cannot accept more than one letter a month from the same writer.
With each letter, include your daytime phone number and street address.
The Spokesman-Review retains the nonexclusive right to archive and re-publish any material submitted for publication.

Unfortunately, we don’t have space to publish all letters received, nor are we able to acknowledge their receipt. (Learn more.)

Submit letters using any of the following:

Our online form: Submit your letter here
Mail: Letters to the Editor
The Spokesman-Review
999 W. Riverside Ave.
Spokane, WA 99201
Email: editor@spokesman.com
Fax: (509) 459-3815
Phone: (509) 459-5430