Following are my thoughts on the recent action by the state Supreme Court to not hear the UW/Valley Medical alliance case:

Finally, the challenge to the alliance between Valley Medical Center and the UW has been settled (Supreme Court denies review of UW-Valley Alliance, Renton Reporter, Nov. 14). This suit shouldn’t have been brought in the first place.

The alliance was recognized as legitimate from the start when we who were members of the President’s Advisory Committee participated in vetting the alliance. I think that we and many of the Valley Medical staff knew that this alliance was a win-win for the folks in Hospital District No. 1: better access and expanded health-care opportunities.

The challenge, I feel, was a thinly disguised plan by the majority of the hospital district board to regain control of Valley Medical in order to dump the CEO.

The alliance didn’t change the major mission of the district to regulate and tax the district, it simply reduced some of the district’s say in the management of Valley Med. The alliance was a compromise that resulted in better and more timely access to expanded care for Valley patients.

Not a bad trade!

So, the district commissioners squandered almost a half million bucks that could have been used to improve the quality and quantity of health care option for all of us. The only people who appear to have profited from this entire charade were those who represented both parties. We who pay taxes are the ultimate losers.

Perhaps the instigators of this folly should reimburse the hospital district and UW Medical for the expenses incurred. I hope residents of the hospital district remember this travesty when we vote for the next board.

Tom Malmoe,
Renton