Sales Tax Is A No-Brainer

In just a few short weeks Cordell’s voters will head to the polls to vote on a new one-cent sales tax to support Cordell Memorial Hospital. As the special election draws closer, the discussion about the proposed tax is ramping up, and is also, as such discussions tend to do, wandering a bit into left field.

There are a number of arguments, both practical and philosophical, floating around about the tax and the hospital, but for me it’s a pretty simple issue that boils down to two things.

First, and overwhelmingly foremost, Cordell Memorial Hospital saves lives. In my short time here I’ve not had the need of the hospital’s medical services, but several people I’ve come to know and care about have. Would those people have survived had they not had access to quality, local care? I don’t know. And I don’t want to have to find out.

I have absolutely no problem adding a penny to every dollar I spend in Cordell to make sure that my family, friends, and neighbors have access to a quality hospital when it’s needed. Nobody should have to suffer in pain or risk complications or even death because it takes too long to get to a hospital. Nobody. Ever.

Secondly, Cordell Memorial Hospital is the beating heart of this community. In addition to the money the hospital pumps directly into Cordell’s economy through jobs and purchases, it also supports a number of ancillary businesses like pharmacies, nursing homes, and care centers.

Hospital staff live in Cordell, they spend money in Cordell’s restaurants, grocery stores, and retail outlets. If the hospital closes, those people will likely be forced to leave Cordell to find work in hospitals in other areas, taking those purchases and tax dollars to other cities and towns.

The data is out there for anyone who cares to look. When rural communities lose their hospitals the impacts are catastrophic. Ancillary businesses close down. Medical professionals move away, which chips away at the tax base, decreases school enrollments, and generally diminishes the economic vitality of the town.

As the city struggles to find ways to attract new business to town, abandoning something as important to the community’s well-being as Cordell Memorial Hospital makes absolutely no sense at all. The availability of, and access to, quality medical care is one of the top considerations of companies when choosing sites for relocation and expansion. Cordell needs to be growing in order to survive and thrive, and that growth just won’t happen without the hospital.

When you head to the polls next month, I urge you to give thought to what Cordell Memorial Hospital means to this community and the people who live here - and then vote yes.

Bob Henline is managing editor of The Cordell Beacon.