Sec. of Health condemns state lawmakers during meeting with area groups

Published 12:00 am Monday, May 21, 2018

BATON ROUGE — Louisiana’s top doctor believes it is time for state lawmakers to quit pretending, and balance the budget by July 1.

“It is play pretend over there, pretend this and pretend that. I don’t get to deal with pretend, I take my job seriously,” said Secretary of the Department of Health Dr. Rebecca Gee on Wednesday.

Gee was speaking to members of the Louisiana Primary Care Association, the non-profit organization whose members are employees and board members of Federal Qualified Health Centers.

The LPCA membership gathered in Baton Rouge Wednesday to take part in empowerment sessions and to lobby state lawmakers.

Gee accused members of the legislature, primarily the House of Representatives, of pretending the state has more money in its coffers than actually exists.

“They said we used ‘scare tactics’ by sending out letters to families who have loved ones in nursing homes, but what are we supposed to do when they say they’re not raising any money and there are going to be no new taxes?” Gee said. “Should we wait until the week before July 1 and tell them, you can’t stay here anymore?

“I really believe if this governor was a Republican, the budget would have been balanced, and the state would see its largest tax savings ever,” she added.

Locally, Iberia Comprehensive and Teche Action Clinic, are members of the LPCA. They are the area’s two FQHC’s that depend on federal funds for core operations.

If state lawmakers make huge cuts into Mental Health Programs however, those cuts could cost both community health centers millions.

Iberia Comprehensive operates its main campus on Jefferson Terrace Blvd in New Iberia, and has seven satellite clinics in Abbeville, St. Martinville, and Lafayette.

Roderick Campbell, chief executive officer of the Iberia Comp, said his programs could lose close to $3 million.

“What concerns me is that if they make the cuts, what are they going to do for these people. Where will they go?”

Teche Action Clinic operates its main campus on Weber Street in Franklin, and has 12 other sites, including a school based clinic at West St Mary High/B. Edward Boudreaux Middle School.

William Brent, chief financial officer, said mental health cuts could cost his clinics $1 to $1.5 million. Teche was the state’s first community health center, its main campus opened in Franklin in 1974.

Gee asked the LPCA members if they are tired of the juxtaposition the legislature has caused.

“Tell them you are fed up. Tell them you’re watching how they vote. Take it upon yourself to voice your concerns to your local newspaper and other media. Tell them to quit playing in the sandbox and start dealing with real problems,” she said.

Sen. Bret Allain, R-Franklin, who represents a portion of Iberia and all of St. Mary Parish and is a member of the Senate Finance Committee, said Gee has testified in the Senate several times this year about her budget. He said the Department of Health consumes $14 billion of a $29 billion state budget, thus, almost half of the money the state spends is on health.

In regards to tackling the fiscal cliff, the senator believes the Senate Finance Committee has pretty well defined the budget hole that needs to be filled.

“We actually passed a resolution that gave the house several revenue options to fill the budget hole, with half a penny being one of the solutions. I think if we present to the people that we want to go from a current 5 percent sales tax to a 4.5 percent tax in the future, most will think that idea is a win, and I would support that proposition.

“In short, we do need to raise some revenue to plug the hole we have defined, because if we don’t, state government will not be able to function at the level that our people expect it to,” Allain said.

Rep. Sam Jones, D-Franklin, who represents St. Mary and a portion of St. Martin, said, “that’s all the governor is asking for.”

Jones, who is a close friend and former seatmate of Gov. John Bel Edwards, said the half penny will fill the current needs, saving taxpayers at least $400 million a year.

“The Senate, well they’re the grown-ups. The House, well we’re the bad kids, and some of us are animals,” Jones said.