AVHD FAISL VALLEY RESIDENTS.

Byline: JAMES C. LEDFORD Palmdale Mayor

For over 50 years, the Antelope Valley Healthcare District has had the duty to provide health care services to the citizens of this valley, including those citizens living in Palmdale.

However, AVHD has failed them.

Ten years ago, the city of Palmdale took the initiative to bring a hospital to Palmdale. The city of Palmdale has repeatedly offered AVHD support similar to that provided to Universal Health Services to build a hospital in Palmdale. AVHD is not interested.

AVHD has taken a series of actions to undermine, and prevent the opening of, Palmdale Regional Medical Center. AVHD's schemes have included a propaganda campaign against UHS, the promise of a new Palmdale hospital and a botched attempt to take the UHS hospital site by eminent domain. AVHD has even hired a political consultant to ``build public support for ... the (district's) recommendations related to the proposed new private hospital in Palmdale.''

AVHD's latest smokescreen is outlined in Dr. Manning's Medi-Cal manifesto.

He is demanding UHS do what AVHD was created to do -- ``provide full health care service for all members of our community.'' Such a demand takes passing the buck to a whole new level. Because of mismanagement, selective and discriminatory expenditure of funds and poor planning, AVHD is evidently incapable of providing this service.

Dr. Manning suggests the citizens were ``misled'' regarding the nature of the agreement between the city and UHS.

Ridiculous. The agreement with UHS was the result of several public meetings. AVHD board members and administrators attended those meetings and had no objections to the project.

Dr. Manning admits all hospitals are required to treat patients in an emergency situation, regardless of their ability to pay.

AVHD aired a commercial last year suggesting that emergency patients would not be welcome at UHS's hospital. AVHD aired this commercial 1,953 times, but has never publicly retracted this blatant misinformation.

AVHD has solicited your support through mailers, commercials and newspaper ads for a proposed hospital to be built in Palmdale. The clear implication is that AVHD has a plan to build a hospital in Palmdale. However, AVHD has recently admitted it does not have any such plans.

It is amazing to read Dr. Manning's words: A new hospital in Palmdale is ``a threat to Antelope Valley Hospital and our entire region's health care system.'' A 250-bed state-of-the-art hospital with 35 emergency room beds is a ``threat'' to your health! Think about that the next time you are sitting in the AV Hospital emergency room, still waiting after five or six hours to be treated.

We have a great hospital coming that will serve all of the Antelope Valley's citizens. Suppressing competition and spending all AVHD's resources in Lancaster on a continuing public misinformation campaign is simply unacceptable.