CONFERENCE ON RURAL AMERICA’S HEALTHCARE CRISIS

 

February date TBD 8:30 – 4:30 (subject to change)

 

Both virtual and in person

 

Vashon Island

“If we end up with more patients and fewer providers, the crisis will first hit home in rural America. People will be standing in line or won’t get care at all, and those who can pay for insurance will pay more for less. I worry about the collapse of healthcare. We need a vision for rural healthcare, to roll up our sleeves, and work for that vision.”

– Marie Osborn ARNP, Idaho’s first Nurse Practitioner, history’s first state-licensed NP

 

  • Welcome
  • Pledge of Allegiance
  • Invocation
  • Reading of the “Declaration on Rural Healthcare“

 

  • Keynote speaker:  Patty Murray (invited) – Past and Future of Rural Healthcare:  a call to action and the ethical duty of healthcare providers to act 

 

  • Panel 1: Impacts of Medicaid Cuts on Rural Communities
    moderator:  Wendy Noble ARNP, Commissioner, Vashon Health Care District

Toni Lawson, Idaho Hospital Association
—–  Orcas Island Public Hospital District, Administrator
—–  ARNP, Omak

    • describe the cuts and OBBBA’s work requirements
    • when do the changes start?
    • who is most impacted?  what demographics and where?
    • what are the impacts on rural America if rural hospitals and clinics close?
    • what’s our vision, and how do we get there?

 

  • Panel 2:  Responding to Rural Disasters:  will FEMA come?
    moderator Rick Wallace – Co-founder, VashonBePrepared, Vashon Emergency Operations Center Manager (retired)

Stephen Morris MD, MPH, Associate Professor, UW Dept of Emergency Medicine, Emergency Medicine physician at UW and Harborview

    • What did we learn about the federal response from Katrina, central Texas, storm cleanups in North Carolina and Puget Sound (bomb cyclone)?
    • What can we expect from the federal government in preparing for, and responding to a major disaster such as “the big one” earthquake?
    • Describe the role and importance of volunteers (CERT, NEROs, MRCs, others)
    • Given the crippling of FEMA and other federal agencies, what actions must state, county, and city governments now take?
  • Lunch (provided for those who attend at the Penny Farcy Building)

 

  • Panel 3:  Ensuring Vaccine Access in Rural America
    Moderator: Jim Bristow MD, Co-coordinator, Vashon Medical Reserve Corps

—– Helen Chu MD, MPH

    • Describe the changes implemented by RFK Jr and how this impacts the nation’s vaccine programs (development and access).
    • What did we learn from COVID and the recent measles outbreaks in Texas and elsewhere?
    • What epidemics and pandemics are on the horizon?  Are we prepared?
    • What are the risks of weakening the nation’s vaccination programs, including on anticipated morbidity and mortality?
    • Given the cuts and politicization of our federal institutions with loss of scientific integrity, what needs to be done? What’s the path forward to keep it together?
  • Panel 4: Mental Health Care in a Time of Fear and Distrust
    moderators:
    Rebecca Chavez PsyD, Vashon Healthcare District Commission
    Barry Grosskopf MD, Vashon Medical Reserve Corps
    • In a time of radical changes at the federal level and rising autocracy, what are the mental health consequences especially for rural America?
    • What did we learn from COVID, the mental health impacts and response?
    • What is the current status of mental health care and programs — and how will that change under Trump and the Republican Congress?
    • What is our vision, and how do we get there?

 

 

  • Close:  second reading of the Declaration on Rural Healthcare, and its issuance from Vashon Island.

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