Bessie Wetaell
U of
j
Ue«3,>apar L i b r a r y
9/4 J j
Health district votes to enter new agreement
with Boardman physician
Eugene, OR
VOL. 121
1
NO. 18
12 Pages
Wednesday, M ay1,2002
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
ALL N EW S A ND A D V ER T ISE M E N T DEADLINE:
the district had one card, which
not only made it difficult for
authorized employees to use the
card, but authorized employees
were sometimes not aware that
the card had reached its credit
limit. From now on the district will
h av e o ne c re d it card for
purchases with a $ 10,000 limit,
one for staff travel with a $5,000
lim it and o ne fo r the
administrator, also with a $5,000
limit
The board also debated
changing the district's accounting
system. Board member Ed Glenn
wanted to have expenses and
revenues separated for each
facility, for example. Pioneer
M em orial H ospital, Pioneer
M emorial Clinic. Boardman
Ambulance, Irrigon Ambulance,
Irrigon Clinic, etc. Administrator
Victor Vander Does added that
he a lre a d y re v ie w s each
department regularly. “ I know
where you’re losing money and
w here you’re making money,” he
said. Vander Does further said
that Pioneer Memorial Hospital’s
recent designation as a Critical
Access facility would change the
district’s financial situation in
numerous ways that have not yet
been determined. He recently
atten d ed a C ritical A ccess
conference in Washington, D.C.,
at no cost to the district, w hich
he said was extremely helpful. He
added that the d istrict was
already at a “ base level o f
staffing.” “I can’t cut anywhere,”
he said . “ E v e ry th in g ’s so
intertwined that if I take one out.
it affects the other areas.” The
The M orrow County
Health District voted unanimously
Monday night against extending
the district's current contract with
Boardman physician Dr. Robert
Boss. The contract expires Sept.
1,2003. The board, however, said
they would like to enter into a new
agreement with Dr. Boss and the
physician’s assistant he employs
and would consider purchase of
the Boss’ clinic building, land and
equipment. The board indicated
that their preference would be to
hire Dr. Boss as an employee,
much like the contracts the district
has with the district’s physicians
in south Morrow County, and
invited him to respond with a
proposal at his earliest
convenience.
In other business at the
meeting, accounting/business
office department head Nicole
M ahoney rep o rted that the
district ended M arch w ith a
$7,638 profit. The district had a
$50,819 lost for February and a
$217,615 loss for the year.
Mahoney also reported
that the district is changing the
clinic billing system which will
make it easier for patrons. She
said that once the system is
operational, clinic billing will be
done in-house and patients will
receive one bill from the district
w hich w ould include clinic
charges as w ell as hospital
charges. C urrently p atients
receive separate bills for clinic
and hospital charges.
At the meeting, he board
authorized a change in the
district’s credit cards. Previously
board, also at the advice of their
accountant, instead voted four to
one, with Glenn voting no, to
retain the current system with a
review of each facility’s revenues
and expenses at the end o f the
year.
The board also agreed to use
remaining USDA loan funds to
improve the Irrigon Clinic,
including paving the parking lot,
putting in a new sidewalk and
updating signage and equipment,
and then perhaps improving the
front entrance to Pioneer
Memorial Hospital with a portico
and other im provem ents.
Mahoney said that the district
looked into using the remaining
funds to pay off the USDA loan,
but will not be permitted to do so.
USDA said that the district has
to spend the money, Mahoney
said. The district is also looking
at replacing district vehicles,
which are all at least 10 years old.
If the cars are replaced with
newer models, the district expects
to save money on gasoline and
repairs.
The board unanimously
approved the 2002-2003 budget
with resources and expenditures
o f $6,341,056. The budget
adopted for 2001-2002 was
$7,077,588. Out of the 2002-03
budget, collectible taxes are
estimated at $629,565.
Vander Does reported
that the assisted living center
construction is on track and is
expected to open by August 1.
The district will provide
administrative services for the
center.
Heppner hosts Centennial students
MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M.
Deficit forces five-week closure for public health department
The M orrow County
Health Department, faced with an
almost $20,000 deficit, will be
closed for the month of June in
order to balance to balance the
budget before the end of the
departm ent’s fiscal year. All
department employees, except for
the director, Laura McElligott, will
be laid off for five weeks and no
»immunization or other clinics will
be held during that time period.
» The employees have agreed to not
•ask for vacation pay during that
period. Their insurance benefits,
however, will continue to be paid
and the employees may apply for
unemployment benefits after the
first week. Morrow County Judge
Terry Tallm an said that he
anticipated that regular hours and
programs would resume in July.
According to Tallman,
the deficit was the result o f
several factors. He said that the
health departm ent initially
received indications from the state
and local government that the
department would receive around
$72,000 in reimbursements for
state-funded programs, but that
figure was whittled to around
$67,000 and then to around
$ 16,000, partially due to legislative
cuts. The health department is
reimbursed for state and federal
programs after the programs are
im plem ented, much like the
school district is reimbursed from
the state school fund and hospital
and clinics are reimbursed for
Medicare and Medicaid. Another
factor, he said was a mix-up in
ordering vaccines. Tallman said
that the health departm ent
ordinarily also orders vaccine for
the M orrow County Health
District, which operates Pioneer
M em orial H ospital, Pioneer
Memorial Clinic and the Irrigon
Clinic, but this year the district
ordered its own vaccine because
it wanted its vaccine earlier,
unbeknow nst to the health
department. McElligott ordered
the vaccine for both entities which
resulted in $600-$700 in additional
costs. Additionally, “Many people
chose to get flu vaccines from
Costco or Sentry sub-contractors,
rather than wait for ours and
many people never ended up
getting vaccines,” said McElligott.
The result was that the
departm ent spent more on
vaccines than was needed.
Tallman said that
McElligott implemented cost
cutting m easures, but the
department will still remain about
$19,900 in the red for the fiscal
year. Tallman said that McElligott
has remained within the budget in
previous years and the department
had around a $7.000 surplus at the
end of the last fiscal year. He said,
however, that monies left over at
the end o f the year cannot be
returned to the departments. This
year, he said, because o f a tight
county budget, he had the health
Gazette-Times hires new editor
Sarah Coller
The Heppner Gazette-
Times has a new editor. Sarah
Coller, a native of Heppner. began
working for the paper on April 15.
Coller is the daughter of
Christy Virgil of Lexington and
Wayne Bourrie of Baker City.
She was born in Heppner and
attended grade school there
through the first grade. She then
moved to Hermiston, and then to
Baker City, where she graduated
high school in 1997. Coller
attended college at Eastern
Oregon University in La Grande
for three years before taking a job
teaching kindergarten at Baker
Valley Christian Assembly in
Baker City.
Sarah and her husband.
Jamie, have two children, Lynzic,
2; and Michael. 5 months. Jamie
is employed at the Red Lion Hotel
in Pendleton as the banquet
manager. The Coller family now
lives in Heppner.
“I'm very excited to be
here,” says Coller, “it's great to
be in my hometown again working
at a job that 1 love.”
department hold to last year’s
budget.
Tallman said that while
he understands M cE lligott's
desire
to
help
people,
“expenditures cannot exceed
revenues and when that happens,
w e’ve got to take drastic
measures. I want to meet people's
health care needs, but at the same
time, I don’t think government can
be all things to all people.” “It was
really hard for Laura,” added
Tallman. “She was under a lot of
pressure. She thought she could
get us into the black, but as time
went on it just became worse and
worse. I’m very sorry it turned
out this way.” McElligott says that
the closure will leave some of the
most vulnerable people without
services and adds that she is
“saddened” that the county will
not chip in financially to relieve
the deficit, especially when the
health department had a $7,000
surplus of funds last year.
The M orrow County
Health Department assists at-risk
families starting during pregnancy
through “ Healthy Start” and
“Nurse Family Partnership" and
at-risk babies through the “Babies
First” program, all home visitation
programs, in addition to providing
immunization and blood pressure
clinics, family planning services,
com m unicable
disease
investigations
and
case
m anagem ent and tobacco
prevention.
Health
departm ent
employees were given several
options, but, after meeting with
Tallman
and
a
union
representative, chose the plan
which would shut down the
departm ent for a five-w eek
period. Another plan would have
resulted in retaining the current
full-time employees at half time
and laying o ff the part-tim e
employee. The department has
nine employees (6.8 full-time
equivalent), including the director,
registered nurses, office staff and
translators.
Saturday night
card party
Due to the request of
those who enjoy the Saturday
night card parties at the IOOF
hall in Lexington. Holy Rcbckah
Lodge will host another card
party on May 4 at 7:30 p.m.
The public is invited.
Refreshments will be provided
and prizes awarded.
Heppner High School rodeo participants show Centennial students how to tie goats
By Merlyn Robinson
It was a w eeklong
lifestyle change for 30 o f
Gresham’s Centennial Middle
Students who were hosted by
Heppner families during the last
week o f April. M eanw hile,
H eppner’s eighth graders
experienced metro activities while
staying with Gresham families.
For over 20 years, this annual
exchange has helped to give
students a better understanding of
the people who live and work in
vastly different areas of the state.
The trade works both ways-urban
bustle and neon lights versus
w ide-open spaces and hands-on
agriculture experiences.
G resham students had a
woodsy experience when hosted
by the Forest Service. After
learning about forest service
management practices they were
treated to an outdoor hot dog roast
at Anson Wright Park. Another
tour featured farming operations
at w here they exam ined
“monstrous” machinery needed to
grow wheat on thousands of
acres.
Some Gresham students
didn't seem to appreciate the
smell of burning hair and the sight
of calves being castrated at the
Anderson and Rietmann cattle
ranch, as they learned about
necessary livestock practices.
Following that experience they
were taken to the Morrow County
BMCC and Walla Walla Community College show Centennial
kids how to rope.
Ashley Ward. Meghan Bailey and
Fairgrounds in Heppner. The
Madison Bailey gave a fast-
Morrow County Livestock
paced demo on barrel racing and
Growers hosted a hamburger pole bending. Centennial students
barbecue after which they were not only had a hands-on
treated
to rodeo
event
opportunity with live horses, they
demonstrations.
also participated in stick horse
Showing o ff their steer
barrel racing. Others took lessons
wrestling, calf roping and team
in roping on the ground while live
roping cowboy skills to an
goats were used to perfect the art
appreciative audience were the
of goat tying.
following college athletes: Ryan
A tour of processing plants
Matteson. Heppner and Blake
and dairy farms in the north end
West, Union, both Walla Walla
of Morrow County accentuated
Community College rodeo team
the county’s major role in food
members; and Travis Carnine,
production, from the field to the
Condon, Duke W illiams,
table-providing food for thought to
Redmond, and Levi Day,
urban students.
Redmond, of the Blue Mountain
(Editor's note: impressions of
Community College rodeo team.
Centennial and Heppner students
Heppner High School rodeo
participating will appear in
participants Lacey Matteson,
subsequent issues of the G-T.)
Cenex Land O'Lakes 500 BAG 1 6 - 1 6 - 16 - 1.5
LAWN 6E GARDEN PLANT FOOD
Regular Price $ 8.25
Sale Price $ 6 .9 9
5a/e price good through May 4th
Morrow County Grain Growers
Lexington 989-8221
•
1-800-452-7396
i . farm nuipmew. m t aw «W ute at **» ikq net
I