Letter to the Editor: In support of David Miramant

Tue, 08/02/2016 - 3:15pm

I am writing as a resident North Haven Island and a member of the island's Select Board. I am also one of the many islanders who uses the North Haven Medical Clinic for primary care. In each of these capacities, I was very glad to have Sen. David Miramant step in last winter with a bill (LD 1468) to correct what was becoming an intractable issue for our island clinic and its patients. Indeed all islands served by the Maine State Ferry Service were impacted by the abrupt ending of a "good neighbor policy," whereby a ferry crew member would gladly accept a small cooler of diagnostic samples from the clinic for transport across the bay on its way to the Pen Bay Medical Center Lab.

This sensible, long term (over 20 years) solution had been key to our clinic being able to provide timely diagnostic care to its patients, without requiring the patients themselves to take the ferry, go in person to Pen Bay Medical Center and spend the better part of a day to achieve this simple, but often critical, medical task.

The MSFS bureaucracy, centered in Augusta as a part of Department of Transportation, made the precipitous decision to terminate this "good neighbor" transport in April 2105, claiming (falsely, it turns out) that the samples were infectious. This, again, was after over 20 years of successful informal transport with crew members. The clinic has been forced to hire someone to accompany a cooler to the mainland and back, a costly endeavor, which doesn't allow for blood draws every day of the week as had been previously possible . The MSFS donates one round-trip passenger ticket per week.

Months of good faith negotiations on our part ensued, for naught. Progress seemed to be made, but then again the answer from Augusta was 'No'... 'No' to the sensible crew transport, 'No' even to medical lockboxes on the ferries to securely carry the samples.

Enter Sen. Miramant, who was successful in winning unanimous support for LD 1468 (which will require medical lockboxes on the ferries) from the Transportation Committee as well as strong, bipartisan support in the House of Representatives. In spite of this, Gov. Paul LePage vetoed the bill, calling the measure an "unnecessary mandate."

Fortunately, Sen. Miramant knew how important this is to island communities and worked diligently with Democrats, Republicans and Independents to successfully overturn the governor's veto, winning the necessary two-thirds majority of the House and Senate. Without Sen. Miramant's initiative and skillful support we would still be without a solution. LD 1468 also requires the Maine DOT to develop safety and operations recommendations, including appropriate staffing levels, minimum required training and standardized emergency protocols. We look forward to all these being fully implemented.

As senator for Senate District 12, Dave Miramant represents many of Knox County's islanders, including North Haven, Vinalhaven, Matinicus, Criehaven and Isle au Haut, as well as mainland constituents in Appleton, Camden, Cushing, Friendship, Hope, Muscle Ridge Islands Township, Owls Head, Rockland, Rockport, South Thomaston, St. George, Thomaston, Union and Warren.

I intend to support Sen. Miramant in his re-election bid this Nov. 8. His steady, pragmatic and effective leadership is just what we need to keep in Augusta.

Jon Emerson lives on North Haven, and is chairman of the North Haven Select Board