We welcome letters to the Editor, a chance for members of the community to comment on issues of concern to them. All letters must be original, not duplications of letters addressed to public officials or written by others. The views and opinions expressed are those of the letter writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of this publication, its publishers, Editor, or staff.
To the Editor:
On Sept. 9 the Finance & Insurance Committee [Lincoln County Board] was notified that North Central Health Care (NCHC) would be requesting an additional $1.2 million in the fiscal year 2023 to cover losses at Pine Crest Nursing Home. Due to the grace of God, this will not be needed, as Medicaid increases will cover this, but it does not solve the larger issues faced by Pine Crest.
A County Ad Hoc Committee was formed to address Pine Crest issues, but has adapted the statement “the administration and management of Pine Crest is solely at the discretion of NCHC” from Cate Wylie, who represents the County Board with NCHC, as a core principle. Pine Crest will fail if Lincoln County fails to work as a FULL partner with NCHC. This requires that Lincoln County provides strong guidance and input on the operation, and NCHC provides input on capital improvements and maintenance.
Neither party utilizes its greatest resource–staff of Pine Crest. Ten to 15 staff attend the Ad Hoc meetings, but no one asks their input on how to improve Pine Crest operations.
TOGETHER, the County and NCHC need to approach the staff (current and past) for solutions. I don’t feel positive that Pine Crest will exist in two years. The buildings need major investments of cash, staffing is short, and the two major parties don’t seem to work as “FULL PARTNERS.”
– Kevin Stevenson
Merrill, Wis.
Letters To The Editor Policy:
*Letters must be 250 words or less. (There will be no exceptions to this. Any letter longer than 250 words will not be printed.)
*The writer must include their full name, complete address, and a phone number where he/she can be easily reached for verification. Phone numbers and street addresses will not be published, but will be used for verification purposes, if necessary. Letters must be signed and the name, city, and state will be printed.
*Letters may be edited for style, grammar, and length. Form letters or those we determine to be libelous or slanderous will not be accepted. Any letter deemed derogatory, inflammatory, or involving vulgar language will not be published. We reserve all rights to reject material submitted to this publication.
*Letters will be published on a “first come, first served” basis. Any letters which we are unable to publish in the printed newspaper may be run online at www.merrillfotonews.com and/or may be printed in the paper at a later date.
*In fairness to all, and due to space constraints, there is a limit of two letters per year from an individual writer. Additional letters may be submitted to our Paid Letters to the Editor column and will require payment in full prior to publication at the same rate as Political Letters to the Editor (see policy below).
Political Letters To The Editor Policy:
All letters submitted as an endorsement for a political candidate, referendum, or political agenda will carry the same guidelines as above; however, they will be charged $40.00 per letter of up to 250 words in length. Longer political letters will be accepted but will be charged $10.00 per additional 50 words. All political letters must be prepaid prior to printing. Letters to the Editor will not be accepted from candidates running for election or representatives of an organization endorsing their own referendum, as these are clearly advertisements and not opinion letters; those submissions will be referred to our Advertising Department to be run as paid ads.