Peterson Editorial

This editorial appeared in today's Jamestown Sun. Was written by a friend of mine who also is fighting the unjust system here in North Dakota.

Peace,

Mark


It’s unfortunate Boatman is leaving North Dakota

Gyle Peterson Fargo

It will be a sad day on May 15 when North Dakota will lose one of its citizens. The person I’m referring to is a man of courage, strength, compassion and intelligence. A man who stands up against injustices and fights for human rights for himself and others. But he will not be missed by the state of North Dakota, because he is virtually being exiled by the state.

Mark Boatman, a 30-year-old ventilator-dependent individual with muscular dystrophy who was forced into a nursing home in Jamestown three years ago, is moving to Montana because his own state cannot provide the care he needs, at less of a cost, than what he is being imprisoned at within a nursing home. Where is the justice and humanity in that?

Because of North Dakota’s inadequacies in taking care of its ventilator-dependent citizens, and its "lack of funding" (funny how there’s never a lack of funding when it comes to the Long Term Care Association), Boatman feels that in order for him to live a half-way normal life, in a noninstitutionalized setting, he has to move away from his friends, relatives and parents.

In October, the state of North Dakota and Medicaid will supposedly have a waiver that will provide care for Boatman outside of the nursing home, but he doesn’t feel he can trust either North Dakota or Medicaid to do this. I hope he’s wrong because, being in a similar condition and having my insurance money run out soon, I’ll be next, only I’ll be exiled into a nursing home.

Citizens of North Dakota can help by calling, writing or e-mailing state legislators to provide more funding to in-home services.