Letters to the editor for Friday, Nov. 14, 2014

Tough decision for Carson-Tahoe

Recently a couple of letters to the Nevada Appeal have commented on the recent announcement by Carson Tahoe Hospital that it will no longer conduct sexual assault examinations due to the burdensome costs associated and a limited budget. Both writers bemoaned the term “handful” of cases that have been processed, with one writer quoting a number of 77 cases that he knew about.

I don’t know where that writer got that figure since a check of the Carson City Sheriff’s Office website crime statistics shows that there was one case of forcible rape in 2012; five cases in 2013 and three cases to date as of Sept., 2014. To be fair, there were reported sex offenses of 58 in 2012; 48 in 2013 and 51 up to Sept., 2014. The report does not break down how many of those cases required an examination, but it would be fair to say not all of them.

Instead of bashing Carson Tahoe Hospital for making a business decision to eliminate a procedure, why not lobby our city government to budget for a certain amount of expected examinations or even for the State of Nevada to budget that cost? Perhaps the two writers would be willing to donate money to a fund for that purpose or start up a fund drive?

In this time of rising health care costs, hospitals must make decisions based on actual community needs and their budget. What services would the writers eliminate to keep sexual assault examinations?

David Knighton

Carson City