Board of Commissioners puts bond back on ballot for August primary

Ocean Beach Hospital and Medical Clinics (OBHMC) asked voters in April to consider a bond to improve access to local health care. The measure required a 60 percent supermajority per state law, and it failed by just five votes (59.93 percent).

Almost 60 percent of voters saw the benefit of increasing access to health care for rural residents. That is why the hospital’s Board of Commissioners approved a resolution to place the measure back on the ballot for the August 1, 2023, primary election.

“It’s clear our community sees the value in ensuring rural residents have access to quality health care through such projects as the development of an Urgent Care Clinic and making sure patient bathrooms are wheelchair accessible,” OBHMC Board Chair Nancy Gorshe said. “We are thankful to everyone who came out to vote in April and, with the community’s continued support, look forward to a successful outcome in August.”

Many people in the community still must travel long distances to get the basic and specialty care they need. If approved by voters in August, the bond will fund improvements to increase the quality of and access to health-care services here at home.

The bond will fund:

· A nonprofit Urgent Care Clinic;

· Expansion of the Ilwaco Clinic, the Wellness and Rehabilitation Center, nurses’ station, and pharmacy;

· Renovating patient bathrooms;

· Adding a procedure room to provide gynecological exams and pap smears at the Ocean Park Clinic;

· Acquiring or adding space for specialty services such as orthopedics, dermatology, podiatry, urology, behavioral health, and diabetes care;

· Upgrading medical equipment;

· Improving delivery of in-home nursing care services.

The bond is projected to cost $0.17 per $1,000 of assessed property value. The cost would be $5.67 per month or $68 per year for the owner of a $400,000 home. This rate is less than half of what voters approved in the last bond, which was paid off in 2021.

Find more information about the bond at http://www.oceanbeachhospital.com.