Addressing Spokane City Council

https://council.concernedcompanions.com/clown

 

You can see for yourself everything I’m reviewing here at https://council.concernedcompanions.com/clown, again that’s council.concernedcompanions.com/clown

In the August 28, 2023 meeting, I highlighted the poor and shortsighted decision to fund health clinics in our schools, near vulnerable and sometimes very confused kids who are incapable of the whole-of-life context required to make life-changing decisions. 

Here are some excerpts of that conversation. You can find all of this with pictures at council.concernedcompanions.com/clown.  I have obscured specific Council members and suggest you review the Council recording to determine what is and what is not lies for yourself:  https://my.spokanecity.org/citycouncil/meetings/2023/08/28/legislative-meeting/

 

One Council member, who abstained from voting, vehemently tried to discredit what I had to say.

Couldn’t be a government funded thing, without violating its own rules; in this case, specifically the requirement to reclaim unused space:

UPDATE 12SEP2023:  I contacted North Central High School today and I was informed that not only are there no “surplus” classrooms, but also they don’t have enough free space for their current administrative needs

And then comes the “don’t believe your lying eyes” false witness; in this case framing my claims as “myths”:

 

After falsely maligning my claims as “myths”, the Council member spreads false misinformation and disinformation, first saying parental consent is required,

 

kids can’t just “walk in”,

UPDATE 3SEP2023: below is a scan from the “Dirt” section of the 9/3/2023 edition of the Spokesman Review, where the capital project director at SPS specifically describes them as “walk-in clinics”

https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0ecf115-71eb-4487-a168-b7cf692933d2_817x803.png

 

and then malinformation by making the true claim that “all minor consent laws” are being followed, when the reality is those laws specifically prevent the clinic from informing the parents and preclude parental consent.

 

disgustingly, targeting “low income kids” is considered a high-point by this Council member,

 

who is “very supportive of this.”

 

Do you think ANY of the Council objected?  Sadly, not one nay vote…

 

After this Council member portrayed me as a spreader of myths, when I knew the opposite was true, I reached out to the Council member for clarification.  I was directed to a person at CHAS, who provided this web URL:  https://chas.org/for-patients/minor-confidentiality/#minor-consent

I encourage anyone to go to this URL yourself to make your own determination if the smears the Council member made towards me are true or if the logarhea the Council member dumped on us all is misinformation, malinformation, and disinformation:

  • “laws that permit minors (children under the age of 18) to consent or agree to certain types of healthcare services”

  • “CHAS Health deactivates all portal accounts and text reminders for parents and guardians”

Which services are included:

  • Birth control services

  • Prenatal care

  • Sexually transmitted diseases and infections

  • Outpatient substance abuse treatment

  • Behavioral health

In the “what does this mean to you as a parent” section:

“if your child consents to one of the above services on their own to comply with state law, CHAS Health will not be able to share information with you regarding those visits”

But don’t worry about not being able to pay the bills, because

“Parents will still be able to access billing information regarding your minor child”

And the coup-de-gras:

“Turning off access to portal accounts and text reminders applies to all patients ages 12 through 17 and does not mean that your child has received healthcare services without your knowledge.”

Get that?  Withholding from you the knowledge that your child is receiving services does not mean that you child has received healthcare services without your knowledge!  I’d laugh if this isn’t the same kind of falsehoods that come out of many of our politicians’ mouths just about every time they open them.

And in the “what does this mean for me” section for students:

“CHAS Health will not share your healthcare information with anyone else unless you give CHAS Health permission”

 

SUMMARY:

So you tell me - if someone is telling you your concerns about health clinics in schools are “myths” and that “parental consent is required” and that “kids can’t just walk in”, would you consider those false statements even worse if that person was someone in a position of power, who also worked at one of the schools in which a clinic will soon be opened, is an staunch advocate for the funding, and so obviously knows what he or she said is false?  What motive would you ascribe to that person if he or she were especially eager to exclude low-income kids from parental guidance related to some of life’s most consequential moments for a confused teenager?  Do the words “systemic injustice” come to mind?  What about the word “groomer”?

 

https://council.concernedcompanions.com/clown