Op-Ed submitted to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune on April 1, 2024
Edited on April 9, 2024
Sarasota County Public Hospital Board candidates are promoting "medical freedom." However, this could lead to right-wing extremist control and privatization of Sarasota Memorial Hospital (SMH). To prevent this, experienced healthcare professionals running as Democrats, have pledged to maintain SMH's public status and uphold its top-tier care.
A slate advocating for "medical freedom" has recently announced its candidacy for the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board. This leads to the genuine possibility that right-wing extremists focused on privatizing Sarasota Memorial Hospital (SMH) could take majority control of our public hospital board.
Every Sarasota County resident who believes that SMH is a high-quality hospital has a critical decision to make in the upcoming election: You can continue to watch right-wing extremism take over the local Republican Party and ruin our excellent hospital or save SMH by electing experienced medical health professionals running as Democrats.
Now more than ever, we need leaders like Dr. George Davis, John Lutz, and Alan Sprintz, champions of Sarasota's hospital system. Their unwavering commitment to SMH as a public institution dedicated to top-notch medical care, free from political interference or misguided ideologies, is precisely what our community deserves.
Dr. George Davis, running for At Large Seat 3, practiced family medicine in New York State for 37 years and became a specialist in palliative care and medical ethics. A resident of Venice for the past seven years, he is a Harvard College graduate, received his medical degree from Columbia University, and earned an additional master's in bioethics from Union University.
Similarly, John Lutz, running for At Large Seat 2, has over 40 years of proven leadership experience in hospital administration, health systems, physician practice, consulting, and managed care. A resident of Englewood, he holds degrees in chemistry from the State University of New York-Oneonta and a master's in public health and hospital administration from Yale.
Alan Sprintz, a long-time Sarasota resident, is also an experienced health administrator. He's a graduate of George Washington University and Pennsylvania State University and has 30 years of experience in hospital operations.
The solution is to offer voters high-quality Democratic candidates who will maintain the integrity of our hospital system.
Let's confront the harsh realities of past elections. In 2022, no Democrats pursued the Hospital Board office; instead, SMH's safeguarding was in the hands of the local Republican Party and a universal primary election system. August primary turnout historically suffers from low participation rates, leaving crucial decisions to a fraction of our community. Non-party affiliated voters (NPAs) often abstain from voting, inadvertently silencing their essential perspectives.
Surprisingly, the Republican Party opted to stay on the sidelines in 2022, creating a leadership vacuum that allowed right-wing extremism to flourish. We must avoid repeating past mistakes, where well-intentioned efforts fell short due to flawed processes and missed opportunities. The solution is to offer voters high-quality Democratic candidates who will maintain the integrity of our hospital system.
Sarasota Memorial Hospital is one of the world's best, according to Newsweek's ranking of 2,400 hospitals. It's one of 412 hospitals in the US and 18 in Florida to make the list, and the only one in Southwest Florida.
Retired Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn, the man behind the "medical freedom" slate, made a recent, not-so-veiled threat to privatize SMH and put everything this community has built at risk. However, this may be more than just an extremist proposition. SMH also faced threats of privatization under then-Governor, now Sen. Rick Scott, in 2011. This proposal is a topic in the mainstream GOP, which may explain the refusal of local Republican Party leadership to shut it down. Privatization often results in higher expenses, substandard care, and reduced accountability and transparency.
Privatization often results in higher expenses, substandard care, and reduced accountability and transparency.
Dr. George Davis, John Lutz, and Alan Sprintz aren't just Democratic candidates; they represent our aspirations for a healthier, brighter future for Sarasota. Let's seize this opportunity to protect what matters most—our access to exceptional healthcare at Sarasota Memorial Hospital.
Please check out www.SaveYourHospital.com, mobilize your neighbors, and ensure Sarasota's healthcare legacy remains strong and resilient for future generations. The time to support Democratic candidates is now!
By Daniel Kuether, Chair, Sarasota County Democratic Party
