On Vashon, we care for our own when it comes to health | Editorial
Published 1:49 pm Tuesday, March 24, 2015
This week marks five years since President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law, setting the stage for universal health care in this country. Today, the virtues and successes of the act are still hotly debated. In a commentary on this page, the King County executive and a federal health official argue that it has played out well in King County, where 200,000 people have signed up for health insurance or Medicaid as a result.
How coincidental that also highlighted this week is a successful grassroots effort that has altered the wider health care scene on Vashon. Since 1974, Granny’s Attic has provided $4 million to local health care needs, mostly to the clinic at Sunrise Ridge, but in recent years to an array of health-related programs and projects.
Health care on Vashon has been the subject of much discussion and hand wringing. We’ve lost physicians in recent years, limiting patients’ options and putting pressure on remaining providers. Specialists are off-island and difficult for some to access. Our aging population means health care needs will likely only increase. And we face the same struggles as any community where a portion of families can’t afford health care or don’t have insurance.
While the Affordable Care Act has worked to make insurance accessible and affordable, Granny’s Attic has worked to see that living on an island doesn’t equate to compromising one’s access to care. In recent years it’s funded the dental van, which provides free dental work for adults and children, and vouchers for low-income islanders to get medical care. It has given several times to Vashon Community Care, helping assure that anyone who needs to can live at the center. This time around, Granny’s also funded a new program that will make it easier for seniors to get to doctors in Seattle and Tacoma. It also funded needed upgrades to the helipad, where patients with urgent needs are picked up to be flown to the hospital. It’s done all this and much more not by raising taxes or asking for donations, but by running a popular thrift store.
Funneling money to a variety of programs thoughtfully considered by its members has proven a good choice for Granny’s. The clinic now has greater resources as part of the Franciscan system, and there’s no lack of need among local nonprofits committed to helping islanders. While many more islanders now have insurance under the Affordable Care Act, Vashon residents still face plenty of health-related challenges, and Granny’s is making strides in helping address them. Unlike Obamacare, that’s something that’s not up for debate.
