stands at the top of the nation in YPLL . Secondly , there was a dramatic increase in YPLL in Grundy County between 2000 and 2009 without a corresponding increase in Tennessee and the USA . We need to understand the reason for this growing surge in Grundy ’ s YPLL . A local epidemic of methamphetamine and other illicit drug use occurred during those years . This is a possible explanation .
How will the change of political administrations in our country affect the Beersheba Clinic ? A few of our patients benefited from the Affordable Care Act . Some were able to get health insurance that did not have it before , nevertheless we think we had a net gain in numbers of patients in spite of the ACA . Given the current political climate , this trend will continue , and there will be an even greater need for free health care in the future . The health care income gap between people who can afford care , and those who can ’ t , is growing as costs rise . The richest people pay the most for health care and have the best outcomes , but they pay the lowest percent of their income for health care . The Rev . Dr . Martin Luther King , Jr . said , “ Of all the forms of discrimination and inequalities , injustice in health is the most shocking and most inhuman .”
Physician Assistants-Certified at the Beersheba Springs Medical Clinic ,
Linda Elrod and Norma Sparks
is diagnosing and treating illness earlier , and we are helping people manage their chronic diseases better .
Annual expenses are around $ 100,000 — the largest expenses are salaries : 65 percent , followed by medicines : 15 percent and labs : 10 percent . In 2015 , 85 percent of income was from donations : 55 percent philanthropic , and nearly 30 percent from patient donations . Dash to the Door , a 5K Fun / Run event , accounted for 15 percent of income . ( DTTD pictures are at www . beershebaclinic . org ).
We have a Board of 17 Directors , 14 are full-time Beersheba area residents . Our bylaws require that the majority board membership come from the community or nearby area .
Of Tennessee ’ s 95 counties , Grundy ranks 95 , both in income and in health outcomes . An important measure of population health is Years of Potential Life Lost ( YPLL ) before age 75 . For example , a death at age 65 accounts for 10 years of potential life lost before age 75 ; a death at age 50 equals 25 years of potential life lost . Figure 1 ( page 14 , top ) illustrates that on this statistic Grundy County is off the chart - above the 99th percentile . 3
Figure 2 ( page 14 , bottom ) illustrates the huge disparity between Grundy County ; the state of Tennessee , and the United States in YPLL , with a surging gap between 2000 and 2009 .
These graphs make two points . The first is that Grundy County
We started the Beersheba Clinic , not because of the lack of available health care , but because of the lack of affordable health care . My friends and neighbors were suffering . I knew this intuitively , but since opening the clinic , I have witnessed their pain firsthand ; it has been a profound experience . A couple of years ago I described this sad reality in testimony for Senator Bernie Sanders at a US Senate hearing entitled , “ Is Poverty a Death Sentence ?” I spoke about people I have known , all of whom failed , or were failing , to get life-saving health care because they couldn ’ t afford it ; for whom poverty is , has been or will be a death sentence , and also those for whom illness is a poverty sentence . You can see this testimony at www . beershebaclinic . org . I closed my testimony with these words , “ Thank you for this opportunity to speak for those without a voice , who have died or will die as a result of our country ’ s unwillingness to acknowledge that health care is a human right and to provide affordable , high quality health care to every resident .”
Not long ago I stepped into an examining room to see a woman with a tooth abscess . The right side of her face was swollen almost to the size of a baseball . She was holding it with her hand . As I looked in her mouth at the abscessed tooth , she said , “ I seen videos about you . I ’ m so glad that somebody cares .” Then she started crying , I put my arm around her and I cried too .
Dr . Adams is a retired pediatric infectious disease specialist .
REFERENCES
1 . Almon , Clopper . ed . Beersheba Springs , a History . Volume II : Families , Homes , Lore and More . Beersheba Springs , TN : Beersheba Springs Historical Society , 2014 .
2 . Accessed at www . lifepointhealth . net / investor-relations / proxy-statements-annual-reports , 6.4.16
3 . YPLL before age 75 , per 100,000 LIVES . 2016 County Health Rankings : www . countyhealthrankings . org
MARCH 2017 15