In a 6-3 vote, Knox County Commissioner Evelyn Gill was in the minority of commissioners who voted to continue funding indigent health care in the 2020 Knox County budget.
By Evelyn Gill, Knox County Commissioner
As your Knox County Commissioner, I endeavor to represent all of our citizens and to advocate for the best interests of our community, regardless of income level. I fundamentally believe every person has the right to healthcare, especially in the richest country in the world and in a county that enjoys a budget surplus.
Healthcare is an inherent right that flows from the sanctity of human life and the dignity that belongs to us all. It is more than a privilege; it is an essential safeguard to be your best as an individual, which builds strong families and communities. Our role in government should be to support and advocate for the least among us who cannot provide for themselves.
We should intervene to bridge the gap in healthcare that exists because our free market system has no incentive to satisfy this obligation.
The county budget for the coming fiscal year, proposed by Mayor Jacobs, included a reduction of almost half (43%) of the money the county provided in the previous year to Cherokee Health Systems, whose mission is to provide healthcare for the underserved in Knox County.
Mayor Jacobs has stated that he believes it is up to the community, not the government, to provide this assistance. Well, I believe that if our government is true to the people, for the people, and by the people, then it represents the community and thus carries out the will of the community.
During the County Commission budget vote on Thursday, June 6th, only two other Commissioners, Brad Anders, and Hugh Nystrom joined me in the critical vote to restore the $540,000 back into the indigent care program and offer additional support for Cherokee Health. Sadly, the other eight Commissioner’s voted not to restore the funds.
Despite this unfortunate setback, I will continue to advocate for restoring the needed funding to Cherokee Health Systems. I will keep you posted…
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