Ingman on San Juan County healthcare access

||| FROM KATHERINE BRYANT INGMAN, CANDIDATE FOR SAN JUAN COUNTY COUNCIL |||

San Juan County faces real access to healthcare challenges. We’re rural and remote. Our population is aging, and Medicare reimbursement brings in less revenue than private or marketplace insurance. This puts financial pressure on local providers. Many islanders also need specialty care that falls outside what primary care can offer. This means that if we need to see a specialist, spending a half or full day traveling off island is a must.

The County Council serves on the Board of Health. That means healthcare isn’t separate from the county government. It’s part of the job. As a rural county with a growing older population, we need to make sure quality healthcare is available close to home for our entire community. Much
of that work already happens through the San Juan County Department of Health and Human Services and the San Juan County Health Network Convening. This collaboration must be applicable across all islands. Importantly, it doesn’t rely on direct county funds. It’s supported
through junior taxing districts and grants, and we need to keep building on this.

Increasing access to primary care, physical therapy, and community health is essential. When people who live here use the services available on our islands, it increases revenue for our local healthcare organizations. This helps them stay sustainable. That means advocating at the state
level for further collaboration between agencies and providers, and deepening partnerships between organizations like Sea Mar, Island Health, and Peace Health Hospital in Friday Harbor.

Similar to the menopause bill that was recently signed by Governor Ferguson, many nonprofit, state, and public organizations came together to increase support for people experiencing menopause and to increase workplace accommodations. Community health must be a critical
foundation for everyone in San Juan County. Youth Prevention Coalitions are part of how we sustain that across generations. Investing in prevention isn’t just about individual health. It’s about the long-term community health of San Juan County.

As your councilmember, I’d invest in public and private partnerships to increase our capacity for care and bring specialty providers to the islands monthly for things like a mammogram van and dental care services through DentALL (community health dental vans). I’d work to provide
alternative transportation options, including ridesharing, improve medical priority for ferry access, and encourage community members of all ages to use local clinics and hospitals in San Juan County. We need a diverse payer mix to bring in more revenue and keep these organizations financially healthy. I’d continue to evaluate and plan for Mobile Integrated Health programs (a care delivery model that brings providers to the home) on the three larger islands, provide cultural competency training to all medical and health staff, and increase partnerships with the LGBTQIA+ community for more insightful, informed care. I’d work alongside our Fire and EMS organizations to further collaborative practices and increase capacity for our local hospital districts to fund unique and creative programs outside of primary care.

I’ve served on the board of the Catherine Washburn Medical Association for nine years, and as its president for the last four. We oversee a $4.5 million budget. I coordinated the Lopez Prevention Coalition from 2019 to 2020, and I’m an active member of the San Juan County
Health Network Convening. Healthcare access is at the core of a healthy and resilient community. Through this work, I’ve come to understand the importance of collaboration among healthcare providers, public agencies, and community organizations. I recognize the intersectional connections between healthcare, housing, transportation, and community wellbeing.

That’s the approach I’ll bring to healthcare on the County Council. To learn more, visit katherinebryantingman.com.