As a pediatrician here in Pendleton County, I had the great honor and joy of caring for our children and their young families for 35 years. The health and well-being of these children, many of whom are now adults, is still dear to me and of great concern.
We all know that momentous change is occurring in Washington. A serious question we need to be asking ourselves is How will Pendleton County be affected? The farming community has already been affected by cuts in local personnel and suspended grants, as have forestry and, soon, education. Of significance to everyone will be what happens with Medicaid.
The planned DOGE cuts in the federal budget to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security will affect all of us. Medicaid funding is the basis for healthcare in our region. A third of the citizens in our congressional district (WV District 1) are enrolled in Medicaid, per the WV Center on Budget and Policy. Without question, Pendleton Manor Nursing Home, Pendleton Community Care, the Rescue Squad, and Grant Memorial Hospital in Petersburg will be heavily affected. How will this in turn affect you? your parents? your children? your grandparents? your friends? Think of where and how you and yours will find the healthcare you rely on. Think of our seniors, middle-aged families, and families with young children and babies.
Think of the jobs at these locations, the number of families affected when those healthcare jobs are lost. Think of the domino effect for local businesses – grocery store, pharmacy, gas stations, restaurants, tourism. And all that’s just local. The ripple effect runs outward throughout West Virginia and Virginia. What will our families do?
I urge everyone to get informed and to speak up. Contact information for Senator Capito, Senator Justice, and Representative Carol Miller is available online. Call them. Let them know we are depending on them to protect the future of Pendleton County, our children, our families, and our elders, by preserving Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security. Access to healthcare has been the life’s work of so many of us who love Pendleton County and its people; we will all need to work together to safeguard it.
Sincerely,
Dr J King Seegar
Franklin WV
