Lindsay still benefiting from hospital district

Small towns like Lindsay long ago saw their small hospitals close. Health care is rarely offered in small towns in California. In the past 30 years, several small hospitals, including Lindsay’s, have seen their doors shut and residents forced to seek health care elsewhere.

However, while Lindsay no longer has its hospital, it still has its hospital district and that district is doing good things in the community, all to the overall betterment of the health of Lindsay residents.

Even though the hospital closed, the Lindsay Hospital District did not dissolve. The benefit of that is the district continues to receive a portion of the property tax collected in the district boundaries and the district board has wisely used that money to work with the city to develop the Lindsay Wellness Center.

The district has done other things with the approximate $500,000 in income it gets every year. The district is assisting the Lindsay Unified School District in helping to pay for a licensed vocational nurse in the schools and in providing office space to medical providers.

There are other projects in the city that have benefitted from the district.

It is important to note the district is able to do this without costing residents a dime. The property tax collected would be the same even if there was not a hospital district. However, the money that now stays in the community would simply go to the state of California. Basically, by having the hospital district, another $500,000 is available to help the community.

The district is managed by the Lindsay Hospital Board of Directors, much like the Sierra View Hospital District, although the Lindsay directors do not need to manage a multi-million dollar health care facility, just ensure the money they have been entrusted with is used wisely and for the benefit of all. They appear to be succeeding.

Lindsay residents should be proud of their hospital board, but at the same time be sure to offer their input.