A blessing or a curse?
Tue, 2016-10-11 21:22
News Staff
The Healthcare District
By G. Romero Wendorf
Twenty-seven more days until Nov. 8 when we discover not only who the new president will be but whether or not Hidalgo County property owners will pay homage to a new taxing authority, namely the Hidalgo County Healthcare District.
Political signs, pro and con, dot the landscape.
Those promoting the Healthcare District have their ducks in a row as to why voters should approve its passage, which include:
• Hidalgo County is the 8th most populated county in Texas, and yet it ranks 70th in the number of primary care physicians, and the ones practicing are growing older by the day.
• The county has a critical shortage of specialists, and a healthcare district will attract more to this area.
• A healthcare district will improve medical care for county residents, and will provide better help to the indigent.
• Hidalgo County ranks as one of the highest regions in the country for the prevalence of diabetes, and a healthcare district will help lower that number.