Category Archives: 2019

2019, BOCC

SHOCK: Hospital District REQUIRED to Provide EMS Service to Wetmore!

by George Gramlich,
News, Analysis and Commentary

Contrary to what we have been told repeatedly by the West Custer County Hospital District Board (the “District”) and District Management for around the last decade, the District is required, by contract with the Custer County Board of County Commissioners, to provide emergency ambulance services to ALL of Custer County, regardless of whether the area is in the District’s taxing area or not. This surprising fact somehow has not been disclosed to the public by the District and directly contradicts multiple District Management statements that the District has no responsibility for areas
outside of their taxing district. Continue reading SHOCK: Hospital District REQUIRED to Provide EMS Service to Wetmore! →

2019, BOCC

BOCC Workshop with Hospital District on Ambulance Coverage

Monday’s Workshop Clarifies and Distills;
2nd Ambulance Problem Remains

by Jackie (Muddy) Bubis

After three-plus hours of talk and discussion amongst the Commissioners and the Hospital District Board, the people in the eastern portion of Custer County are still relegated to a big maybe on whether they will get an ambulance if they need one.
The meeting began with hospital district chairman Tobin reading several options for EMS for the Wetmore area residents – mostly relying on the county and the commissioners to foot the bill – up to $40K per month.
BOCC Chairman Tom Flower tried unsuccessfully to get the answer to the simple question: who’s responsibility it is to make sure EMS coverage is available for these residents. At one point, the commissioners had to remind Tobin that this issue is no laughing matter.
Two citizens’ input at the end of the meeting really summed the issues up well. One citizen of the hospital district asked if he has a car accident out of the bounds of the hospital district and there is no second crew, will he get the service he is paying taxes for. When the answer was no, he responded that, in that eventuality, the clinic would then be getting a call from his attorney.
The other citizen observation came when the comment was made that, even if you’re in the district, if the first crew is out, the likelihood is that there will not be a second crew to answer your call. The finding from this citizen was that this shows that the ambulance service is incapable of covering even their own district – a job they are being paid to do.
The OEM also commented that the first question that must be established is who is responsible for handling this issue – and Mr. Flower’s question came full circle. “Only one entity can make the decision,” she stated. In the end, three things are on the to-do list:
1) The BOCC will schedule another meeting with the people of Wetmore to find out what the people in the area want to do – because the entire hospital district board didn’t come to the last one.
2) Clinic administrator Lisa Drew is meeting with AMR tomorrow (Tuesday) and will let her board and the BOCC know what came of that meeting.
3) The clinic will come up with a call for service fee for the Wetmore area people, what board member Weisenbach called “Uber for medical.”
How soon any of that will happen is anyone’s guess. But if a call for chest pain comes in tonight in no-man’s land – even if it’s for a taxpayer in the district – and if a second crew is not available – that person is on his own.

2019, BOCC

Wetmore: Dial 911 for EMS NO ONE COMES

Custer County Board of Commissioners (BOCC)
Afternoon Workshop
—July 17, 2019
WETMORE, Colo.
by Jackie Bubis
A s you have read in the Sentinel, the people in Wetmore are no longer covered by emergency medical care. For years the people below McKenzie Junction have been served by the Florence Fire Department. But that is no more, due to a lack of personnel.
The West Custer County Hospital District also does not, technically, service this area. At numerous meetings, Director Lisa Drew has attempted to lay this issue in the laps of the county commissioners, who have been wrestling with the issue. The new policy handed down from the hospital district is this: if a 911 call comes in from out of the “district”, then it is dispatch’s job to tone out a second ambulance crew. Until that second ambulance crew is at the ambulance quarters, the on-call crew will not respond. Continue reading Wetmore: Dial 911 for EMS NO ONE COMES →

2019, BOCC

No EMS Response to Wetmore Emergency

Custer County
Commissioners (BOCC)
A.M. Meeting
by Jackie (Muddy) Bubis
-July 17, 2019
WETMORE, Colo.
As you have read in the Sentinel, the people in Wetmore are no longer covered by emergency medical care. For years the people below McKenzie Junction have been served by the Florence Fire Department. But that is no more, due to a lack of personnel.
The West Custer County Hospital District also does not, technically, service this area. At numerous meetings, Director Lisa Drew has attempted to lay this issue in the laps of the the county commissioners, who have been wrestling with the issue.
The new policy handed down from the hospital district is this: if a 911 call comes in from out of the
“district”, then it is dispatch’s job to tone out a second ambulance crew. Until that second ambulance crew is available, the on-call crew stationed in Westcliffe, will not respond.
Imagine for a moment the poor dispatcher trying to handle emergencies is now tasked with scrounging up a second ambulance crew. Imagine it no longer. In the early hours of July 5th, an extreme emergency happened to a person driving down the mountain. At the junction in Wetmore, the driver pulled over for the passenger to be sick. What happened then was the
unthinkable.
The passenger had a significant medical emergency right there in the middle of the road. EMS was toned. Dispatched toned the second crew. No one answered. Finally, Flight for Life was called. Ordinarily, the Fire Department lands the helicopter. In this case, a lone fireman from
Wetmore did the best he could and the helicopter landed and loaded up the unfortunate patient. All the while the ambulance crew up the mountain went back to sleep.
The County Commissioners will further address the issue at a workshop this afternoon at the Wetmore Community Center. More to come on this issue.

Ms Drew responded to this article on 7/25/19. Response HERE

2019

Custerites Fed Up – Sign the Petition at the Sentinel

 

Recall Polis Petition holders have been volunteering to sit outside the
Sentinel at the corner of 6th and Main on weekends, for those voters who want to sign but can’t make it during business hours which are Monday through Thursday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m. to noon. The response has been incredible. Above: Ann Barthrop, Peggi Collins, Bill Parker, Joe Cascarelli and Dennis Shaydak. Sentinel Photo

by George Gramlich
The statewide petition to place Colorado’s Governor Jared
Polis on the ballot to be recalled is available to be signed at the
Sangre de Cristo Sentinel at 601 Main Street in Westcliffe, CO. (Other valid petition gatherers are also circulating in the County.) Continue reading Custerites Fed Up – Sign the Petition at the Sentinel →

2019

Colorado’s 2019 Legislative Record -Kevin Lundberg

House of Representatives, Colorado State Capitol Building, Denver, Colorado, USA 2007 – Photograph by Greg O’Beirne – Own work, Creative Commons
An analysis of significant legislation passed into law by the 72nd General Assembly

by Kevin Lundberg

Kevin is a former Colorado State Senator and the Executive Director of the Republican Study Committee of Colorado

“After 120 days, 598 bills, 32 billion dollars, and who knows how many votes and amendments, the session finally ended. It will take months and years to unravel all the fundamental changes that have been wrought on the people of this state.

Political veterans are shaking their heads in disbelief. No one has ever seen so much damage done to our economy, our schools, parental authority, and specific industries (like oil and gas, electric utilities, the rental industry, etc.), and commonly accepted cultural values (like identifying people as men and women in schools, on drivers licenses and birth certificates).”

Never have I been so much at a loss for words in trying to describe these huge changes in state policies. Here is a brief description of the colossal changes the Governor and this year’s legislature are forcing on the people of Colorado.”

Kevin goes into great detail on each bill. This is the definitive Go To for the 2019 Session. We recommend concerned citizens save it for a reference.

To download the 38 page report  in a pdf, go here. 

 

2019

Recall Kickoff -Full House

by Fred Hernandez and staff

Once again on the Liberty Rocks platform at Tony’s Mountain Pizza on Thursday June 27th, Dan Bubis began the meeting by introducing the Liberty Rocks format and purpose and his wife, Jackie, gave a second edition of “Can One Man Make a Difference”. The Liberty Rocks presenter for the evening was Mr. Tom Good, an energetic leader of the Recallpolis.com group that seeks to rectify whatever went wrong in the last gubernatorial election.

Continue reading Recall Kickoff -Full House →

2019

Postmaster Installed

by George Gramlich
Cindy Crosby, the interim Postmaster at the Westcliffe/Silver Cliff United States Post Office branch, was officially installed as Postmaster last Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Post Office in Westcliffe, CO.
American Legion Post # 170’s OIC, Ted Ballard, and Betsy Woodbury presented the colors followed by Pastor Hal Crossley of the Custer County Chaplains who gave the invocation.
Daryl A. Trujillo, the USPS Human Resources Manager for Colorado and Wyoming, did the swearing in.
A nice crowd viewed the ceremony and Postmaster
Crosby gave a warm speech at the end thanking everybody for attending. Welcome aboard Cindy.

2019, BOCC

June 28 BOCC: Roads, Hospital District, Moratorium on Subdivisions

Board of County
Commissioners (BOCC)
—June 28, 2019
WESTCLIFFE, Colo.

by Jackie (Muddy) Bubis
The meeting started at 9 a.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance and Roll Call. Introductions of the public
followed.
Commissioner items:
All three commissioners listed meetings they attended. Commissioner Printz reported that there are two private initiatives in Silver Cliff that have gotten approval to build attainable housing.
Commissioner Canda reported that Road & Bridge is prepping Hermit Road for chip seal. He also gave kuddos to the community Vacation Bible School that just finished up. Continue reading June 28 BOCC: Roads, Hospital District, Moratorium on Subdivisions →