Stamper named director of Red Cross Islands Chapter

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Mike Stamper, newly appointed executive director of Islands Chapter of the American Red Cross.

image credit: Contributed photo

Guemes Island Fire Chief Mike Stamper has been named executive director of the Islands Chapter of the American Red Cross.

His tenure at the top post local Red Cross chapter began Sept. 30.

Chief of Guemes Island fire department since 2008, Stamper has been a firefighter and emergency medical technician in Skagit County for more than two decades. A former technology coordinator for Anacortes High School, he was also the school's athletic trainer and has been a writer and editor for 37 years, and has had professional administrative position with several small non-profits, a nature center and museum as well.

The Red Cross is a crucial player in emergency response and preparedness in our diverse group of island communities, Stamper said in a press release, and I look forward to meeting the people, businesses and agencies that help keep our communities resilient. I am excited to have the opportunity to bring together my colleagues in the fire service and Red Cross communities in a way that improves emergency response for every person in the Islands Chapter.

The Islands Chapter serves Whidbey, Fidalgo and the San Juan islands, and a small section of La Conner. The chapters main office is in Anacortes, 2900 T Avenue, with a satellite facility on the Seaplane Base in Oak Harbor.

In 2012, The Islands Chapter assisted 29 families affected by home fires and other emergencies, and provided emergency communications and other assistance for over 400 military families through Red Crosss Service to Armed Forces Programs. Both services are provided predominantly by volunteers.

We are delighted to have someone of Mikes wide experience working with us on Red Cross issues of community preparedness and response, volunteer recruitment, and Service to the Armed Forces, said Barbara Atterberry, chairwoman of The Islands Chapter board of directors. I know his talents will greatly benefit the community and our many Red Cross volunteers.

For more about the American Red Cross Islands Chapter, or to volunteer, get training or make a donation, visit, http://www.redcross.org.

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Stamper named director of Red Cross Islands Chapter

REVEALED! Canadian Company Responsible for THEIR Health Care ALSO Responsible for OBAMACARE! – Video

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REVEALED! Canadian Company Responsible for THEIR Health Care ALSO Responsible for OBAMACARE! - Video

KISD health care decision draws ire of teachers

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When it came to picking a health care provider, Killeen Independent School District employee Laura Dunnells did her homework.

I agonized. I researched, said Dunnells, an assistant principal at Cedar Valley Elementary School.

Dunnells was one of 2,900 district employees who cast votes to indicate which provider they would prefer for the current school year. Just more than 1,000 of those employees voted for TRS ActiveCare, a health care program run by the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.

But the school board didnt agree.

Four members of the districts board of trustees Shelley Wells, JoAnn Purser, Ken Ray and Susan Jones voted instead to select another provider, Blue Cross Blue Shield, during a Sept. 26 meeting.

Their decision was met with a strong reaction from employees, who said premiums under ActiveCare would be cheaper. District employees said they will have to pay hundreds of dollars more every month under Blue Cross Blue Shield.

ActiveCare actually allows employees to get insurance through a number of providers under its umbrella, including Blue Cross Blue Shield. Comparisons of similar plans showed that TRS Blue Cross Blue Shield coverage was still a cheaper option.

Broker fees

The vote for Blue Cross Blue Shield also means that a local insurance agency, Killeen-based Bigham Kliewer Chapman & Watts, will likely get thousands of dollars in fees from Blue Cross Blue Shield. The Killeen insurance company has been doing business with the board for the past 10 years.

William Kliewer, a former school board member who ended his time on the board in 2005, is a managing partner with the company. Killeen ISD documents show that another managing partner, Ken Chapman, conducted business with the board on behalf of the company.

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KISD health care decision draws ire of teachers

Health care law creates challenges for local doctors

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Several local doctors with small, private practices have mixed feelings about the Affordable Health Care Act, but most agree it will cause many family doctors to consolidate or leave the field.

Practices like mine wont survive, said Dr. Dave Webster, who has operated the Webster Family Practice Clinic in Killeen since 1999.

Clinics not prepared for the Affordable Health Care Act and even some that are will find themselves consolidating, merging or being bought out, said Chris Strickland, the office coordinator for Lampasas and Copperas Cove Family Medicine Clinics.

While ensuring staff at the Lampasas and Cove clinics are well trained on the Affordable Health Care Act, often referred to as Obamacare, and not going anywhere, most smaller practices are going to feel a financial burden to keep up with regulations required by the federal government.

The Affordable Health Care Act requires stricter guidelines on documenting and reporting how doctors do their jobs, Dr. Karen Harrison said.

She runs Harrison and Harrison Internal Medicine in Copperas Cove with her husband, Dr. Raymond Harrison. They have been preparing for Obamacare, which opened for enrollment Oct. 1. Coverage starts Jan. 1.

You are going to have to report these numbers and you are going to take some time away from patient care so you will have time to do that, or hire someone to do that for you, Harrison said. The mergers will kind of help, because you have a system then to help accomplish whatever we are asked to do.

Some clinics wont be able to take patients with the government insurance because they will not be able to offset lost revenue as people start to find the loopholes in the Affordable Health Care Act, Strickland said.

(Small clinics) dont have the negotiation power to get good prices from that plan, he said.

Power of merging

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Employers push health care savings accounts; consumer groups wary

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As millions of working Americans open their employers health care packets this month, many will be encountering a new option: high-deductible plans linked to health savings accounts that come loaded with tax benefits.

Theyre attracting workers who want lower premiums and a tax-free way to save for retirement. But theyre not for everyone, which is why some consumer groups are alarmed by their growing presence in the health care market.

In the last six years, the number of workers covered by these health savings account plans has quadrupled, from 5percent in 2007 to 20percent this year, according to a 2013 Kaiser Family Foundation survey.

More companies are offering them as a choice, and in some cases, theyre the only choice, said Paul Fronstin, director of health research and education for the Employee Benefit Research Institute in Washington, D.C.

Experts say the reason is simple: Employers are trying to cut expenses after years of inflating health care costs that only recently started to ease. And some are motivated by a looming Cadillac tax under the federal Affordable Care Act, which in 2018 will start penalizing companies offering health plans that are considered too generous.

In return for lower premiums, consumers who sign up for these plans agree to pay much more out of their own pockets before their insurance coverage kicks in. In 2014, the mimimum deductible for a qualifying HSA plan is $1,250 for an individual, and $2,500 for a family. Maximum out-of-pocket costs are $6,350 for a single person and $12,700 for a family.

Other than high deductibles, the most notable feature of the new plans are the so-called health savings accounts, or HSAs, which were authorized by Congress in 2003 as part of a massive Medicare overhaul. Similar to a 401(k), the HSA is a take-it-with-you, tax-free savings account thats used to cover your out-of-pocket medical expenses. To make HSAs especially appealing, the plans offer multiple tax advantages for contributions and withdrawals. The money can even be rolled over for retirement.

Theres clearly an incentive on the part of employers to offer these, said Maribeth Shannon, program director with the California Healthcare Foundation. Some of its financial. Some of its philosophical. There are a lot of employers who feel employees should have a little skin in the game, a little more responsibility for the health care costs they consume.

Its part of sweeping trend toward consumer-driven health care, an approach that government and employers are embracing as a way to tamp down health care costs by encouraging individuals to be more in control of their health care behaviors and choices.

Some companies, for instance, are instituting new wellness programs with beefed-up rewards or even penalties based on whether employees do or dont quit smoking, lose weight or lower their cholesterol. Kaiser Permanente recently announced a wellness program that will pay its workers up to $500 apiece if a majority of employees meet certain health goals. Others, like grocery chain Kroger, pay only a set amount for certain drugs or procedures, encouraging employees to shop around for the best price.

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Health care transforming despite debate

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While then nation seems preoccupied by political warfare over the Affordable Care Act and expansion of Medicaid, the head of Springfield Regional Medical Center says a fundamental transformation is underway in health care that will march on regardless of the debate.

At a Friday panel hosted by the Greater Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, Paul Hiltz described the new approach as primary care on steroids.

Its powered by the notion that getting more people into care sooner will catch health problems earlier and reduce the cost of treating chronic illness in the long run.

Theres a ton of uncertainty right now, and there will be bumps in the road on how its implemented, said Hiltz. But I think most health care systems are beginning to believe that health care transformation is under way.

Dr. James Duffee, founder of the Rocking Horse Community Center, provided a for instance: The case of a woman whose cancer is identified and treated early on a pap smear rather than, through lack of access to care, being discovered in an advanced stage in an emergency room visit.

All the costs and suffering of cervical cancer is eliminated by a simple procedure early on, he said.

In Duffees view, the access to care provided by an expansion of Medicaid would mean that we take people from the emergency departments and move them into a less costly, more efficient point of care.

Duffee said Rocking Horse is frustrated because it added a new building to take care of patients anticipating the expansion that hasnt yet happened.

Were ready. Wed like to take care of these people. Wed like to improve the health of the community, (and) offload the burden on the emergency room, Duffee said. But we need the legislators to do their jobs.

Hiltz echoes Duffee in identifying fundamental question in the industry is: How do we keep people out of high-cost health care?

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Health care transforming despite debate