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More on Knoxville as a “Third World Emergency Room”
Posted By katie allison granju
Terry Morrow reports that the recent 60 Minutes feature on Knoxville-based Remote Area Medical has led to a sizable boost in their coffers.
But Randy Neal says it’s shameful that 60 Minutes had to do this story at all:
This is a national disgrace. Dr. Kim describes the scene at the RAM event as a “Third World emergency room.” In Knoxville, Tennessee. In the United States of America.
Watch the 60 Minutes report. Read the articles. If you have an ounce of human compassion it will break your heart. If you care at all about social justice you will be outraged that we are allowing this to happen in America.
In the 60 Minutes report, Joanne Ford was hoping to get in to the clinic. When asked what she would do if she couldn’t, she said “I don’t know. I have a lot of friends and I have a lot of church support. I was very active in my church and I have a lot of friends in church. I just hate to ask. I’ve worked all my life. I hate to ask.”
I hate to ask.
Well, I hate to ask, but if you think this is a disgrace please do a couple of things.
First, go over to Remote Area Medical’s website and make a donation. Then write a check to Dr. Kim’s Free Medical Clinic or the Interfaith Clinic or one of the other local organizations helping the needy and the working poor who are uninsured and can’t afford basic health care.
Second, when politicians ask for your vote, ask if they are committed to fixing America’s broken health care system so that every man, woman, and child in America has health insurance they can afford or that is provided for them if they can’t.
Read up on HR676 and ask your Senators and Representative why this hasn’t been brought up for a vote or at least debated. Ask them if they think it’s a good idea, and if not why not. Ask them what their better idea is, and don’t accept more empty rhetoric about “market based” solutions and tax credits for employer-provided insurance as the answer. Tell them to watch the 60 Minutes report and get back to you on how that’s working out for the poor and the working class people of America.
Mar 14th, 2008
Question: Does anybody besides me remember back in the early 90s when some group planned a “3d world in America” tour and one of the stops was scheduled in Knoxville in order to highlight the lack of basic life necessities for the average person in the Appalachians? I remember that there was a huge amount of community outrage back then over this area being labeled “3d world” but apparently not enough to change anything. If you think I’m wrong, remember that we are more than ten years beyond that incident and that label is still with us.
Just something to think about.