’s
August 19, 2016 edition
The Pulse
Your regular check up on SCKMC activities Share your thoughts, story ideas, and comments by e-mail to claytonp@sckrmc.org.
Sales Tax Allowed After a back and forth week of uncertainty, a final decision from the Kansas Department of Revenue was made on Tuesday to allow a one-percent sales tax for SCKMC’s bond repayment. The decision was based upon a ruling from Judge Jim Pringle who determined the current half-cent sales tax should be considered a general purpose tax and therefor not conflicting with the State regulations limiting cities to no more than a one-percent special purpose sales tax rate. The ruling comes at the request of City Attorney Tamara Niles and SCKMC legal counsel Otis Morrow who learned of the conflicting status on August 10th. “There’s no statute or case law that defines what’s a general sales tax versus what’s a special sales tax. In 2008, the attorney general issued an opinion that said it all depends on how specific you are in defining (the tax’s usage),” Niles said. With the new sales tax set to take effect on October 1st, many question how the one-percent was able to get within weeks of implementation with the conflict in state statute going unnoticed. “How this was not caught during (discussions with hospital representatives) as being in conflict with the state statute on special sales taxes, I cannot definitively say. As the chief administrative officer for the City of Arkansas City, I am ultimately responsible for all work product and actions that occur by and within the City, and I cannot blame the oversight or find fault on any one individual or entity. A significant number of individuals overlooked it, and I apologize for not catching it,” said City Manager Nick Hernandez in a memo to the City Commission. The one-half cent sales tax provides roughly $800,000 annually towards the hospital’s debt service and has to this point been used primarily for repayment of the construction bond. The new one-percent special sales tax, once in effect, will only be able to be used for bond repayment, and is estimated to provide $1.6 million towards the $1.9 million annual payment. “I’m grateful that Judge Pringle and the attorneys were able resolve this issue. It has a great impact on this facility and our employees,” said Holly Harper, SCKMC’s Chief Financial Officer.
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One Week Before Landrush With dozens of runners pre-registered the SCKMC Landrush is almost ready for some “fun in the mud”. The 5K, 12-obstacle event will take place next Saturday, August 27th, at Patterson Park in Ark City. The race begins with a staggered start limiting groups to no more than 25 at one time. The first group will leave promptly at 9:00 a.m. directly following a flag ceremony by the American Legion Riders and a performance by the ACHS Jazz Band. “The smaller group size allows us to limit the likelihood of bottlenecks at the obstacles, particularly those that are limited to only one or two participants at a time such as the climbing walls,” said Clayton Pappan, SCKMC’s Director of Marketing and member of the Landrush planning committee. All participants, regardless of heat, are eligible for prizes. The top overall male and female will receive a prize package valued at approxiamelty $400 which includes a Pulsar watch courtesy of Schmidt Jewelers, a membership to Anytime Fitness, and a Best Western gift card courtesy of the Patterson Park Inn. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top male and female runners in the following age groups: 15-25; 26-39; 40-54; 55+. Trophies will be provided to the fastest boy and girl to complete the Kids 2K, a six-obstacle version of the Landrush for children ages 8 – 14. In addition, random prize drawings will be held throughout the day for participants. For those waiting for their heat or who are just out to observe the activities, their will be food and vendor booths, games and a bouncy house. For more information or to register online visit: http://www.sckrmc.org/sckmc-landrush.
The Pharm Forum with Homer Mah, D.Ph. Traveling to foreign countries may lead to medicine mix-ups and legal issues. Drug names can create confusion because the same brand name can be used for different ingredients or they can sound alike. In Italy, Flomax is an NSAID morniflumate, or nonsteroidal antiinflammatory pain killer, while in the United States Flomax is used to treat male urinary symptoms associated with an enlarged prostate. There are many other precautions you should take when bringing medications outside of the U.S.: • Generic names can also create mix-ups. Albuterol is generic for salbutamol in Canada and Europe. • Regulations can differ in foreign countries. Travelers can be arrested for brining pseudoephedrine into Mexico. • Make sure you bring a sufficient supply of properly labeled meds when traveling internationally.