www.LBAMSpray.com

After the aerial spraying in Santa Cruz took place in November, LBAMspray.info posted some information on our website informing people where they could go to seek medical attention if they felt that they had been affected by the spraying. We included the following simple statement: "Medicruz plan is available for some. Emeline St Clinic in Building D."

Poki Stewart Namkung, M.D., M.P.H., Health Officer of Santa Cruz County, emailed us and requested that we remove that statement. The request itself did not bother us as much as the blatant false information that she gave to us in her one-sentence email on November 14th at 2:28AM. She clearly stated, "Medi-Cruz is not available at the Emeline Clinic." That sentence gives us great reason for concern considering that it is either a deliberate lie or an attempt to mislead us so that we would remove the useful information that we had posted. She then later admitted that Medi-Cruz is actually available at the Emeline Clinic. Since she is the Health Officer for all of Santa Cruz County, we have a great concern about her providing the public and medical providers with accurate information regarding the aerial spray issue.

Here are our emails to each other:

Tuesday, November 13, 2007 6:53 PM (txt file)
"Second request. [lbamspray.com note: We have no record of a first request] Please remove the statement that Medi-Cruz is available for LBAM assessment at the Emeline Clinic. This is not true."
-Poki Stewart Namkung, MD, MPH

Wednesday, November 14, 2007 2:28 AM (txt file)
"Medi-Cruz is not available at the Emeline Clinic."
-Poki Stewart Namkung, MD, MPH

Wednesday, November 14, 2007 11:49 AM (txt file)
"We appreciate your concern. However, we have always thought that the Emeline Clinic has always accepted Medi-Cruz. Have they recently changed their policies? Are you saying that they don't accept Medi-Cruz at all... or just in cases that may be related to the aerial spray program? What would you suggest for people to do and where should they go if they believe that they are having a negative reaction to the spray program? How about for low income people? Thank you for contacting us."
-lbamspray.info

Wednesday, November 14, 2007 12:35 PM (txt file)
"The bulk of our pts. at Emeline are M-Cal and M-Cruz. M-Cruz is very limited coverage and of limited duration. The process of qualifying for M-Cruz pretty much obviates anyone coming to our clinics and gaining coverage for an assessment. Anyone who is not already covered by M-Cruz, M-Cal, M-Care would have to be private pay on a sliding scale. What you have on your website about Emeline is misleading."
-Poki Stewart Namkung, MD, MPH

Wednesday, November 14, 2007 1:19 PM (txt file)
"From the information that you have just provided, we believe that stating "Medi-Cruz plan is available for some" is neither misleading nor incorrect, as you have previously claimed. Also, we have personally called the Emeline Clinic and verified all aspects of our information. Yes, they do accept Medi-Cruz, if you meet the standard requirements. And yes, they will see you for any issue, including if you believe that you have an illness that may be related to the aerial spray program.

We are concerned that, as the County Health Officer, you are either vaguely unaware of what is accepted at the Emeline Clinic, or are, yourself, providing misleading information. Are you telling the public that they shouldn't seek medical help at Emeline Clinic if they believe that they have an illness that may be related to the spray? Are you informing the County's doctors to not treat patients that believe that they have an illness that may be related to the spray?"
- lbamspray.info

Wednesday, November 14, 2007 5:03 PM (txt file)
"It would be accurate to state that if you have Medi-Cruz coverage, you are welcome to be evaluated at the county clinics. That is different from what you have stated on your website. Giving people the expectation that they will seen under the Medi-Cruz plan is misleading unless you specify that you need to have already been approved. My objection with your statement on the website has nothing to do with restricting or denying medical care. Your statement implies that you can be approved and be seen and that is not the case. And of course if you have M-Cruz coverage, you will receive quality care. Our clinics are staffed by dedicated providers that would be appalled by your implications that any health officer could order or influence them to not see their patients for whatever reason."
-Poki Stewart Namkung, MD, MPH

We do not believe that the statement on our website ("Medicruz plan is available for some") was misleading. But what is very misleading is for the Health Officer of Santa Cruz County to say that the Emeline Clinic (a county-operated clinic) does NOT accept Medi-Cruz when that is not true at all. We have concern with the tone of Poki Stewart Namkung's first several emails to us and her wanting us to remove helpful information from our website. That is why we have made our correspondence with her available here.