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Patients in local hospitals could face new limitations on how physical therapy can be paid for in Southeast Alaska hospitals. Annual caps for the amount of physical therapy have, in past years, been restricted only to hospitals that did not receive the critical care designation from the federal government. However, for the first time this year, Medicare will apply reimbursement caps – the limit is $1,920 – to physical therapy patients receiving physical therapy even at critical access facilities, like the Petersburg and Wrangell medical centers...
Thomas Charles Feller, Sr. died peacefully June 5 at the Alaska Native Medical Center surrounded by family and close friends after recently being diagnosed with cancer. Tom was born on November 9, 1926, in Wrangell to Otto Feller, Sr. and Susie Cooday Feller. Tom was a member of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska. He was Tlingit of the Kik'sadi, Raven/Frog, of the Sun House in Wrangell. As a member of the Alaska Territorial Guard, Tom served his country honorably from 1942 to 1947....
Thomas C. Feller, Sr. passed away June 5, 2014, at Alaska Native Medical Center after a brief illness with cancer. He was born and raised in Wrangell, but has resided in the Sand Point, Alaska area for the past 50 years. He was with family and close friends at the time of his passing. Memorial services will be held in Wrangell and announced later in June....
The borough assembly voted 5-0 Tuesday to pass both the property tax rate and the municipal budget for the fiscal year 2015. At a May 13 budget workshop, officials pledged the mill rate of 12.75 mills will remain unchanged this year. That means that a house assessed at $200,000 would pay a property tax bill of $2,550. Since presenting the budget at a public workshop May 24, officials have received news of $37,219 in additional revenue, composed of a $23,821 shot in the arm from increased revenue sharing and a $13,398 increase from the state...
Summer road projects will result in two Wrangell streets being paved for the first time. Work is currently underway to pave Weber Street, starting at its intersection with Church Street and stretching up into the small subdivision above Reid Street, with completion expected by the end of this week. City officials expect to pave and rework culverts on Cassiar Street from Mission Street to the street's end starting June 15, according to Public Works Director Carl Johnson. A firm completion date hasn't yet been set, though officials expect the...
Eight Wrangell nurses recently completed a course aimed at certifying them to better assist local trauma victims. The training is part of the ongoing hospital push to seek a level IV trauma certification for the Medical Center. Nursing Director Denise McPherson said the hospital is almost two-thirds of the way through the process of obtaining the certification, and the final review in preparation to receive the designation could happen in February 2015. Officials started the drive late last...
The perennial Brian Gilbert Memorial Golf Tournament and accompanying auction took in $49,000 over the weekend. The tournament and awards banquet held Friday and Saturday, is the Wrangell Medical Center Foundation's largest single annual fundraiser. That amount doesn't include expenses, according to Kris Reed, who tracks the fundraiser's figures. Of money raised, 28 sponsors pledged $25,825, or more than half. While the number of sponsors was the largest number ever, their contributions missed b...
The future of the Thomas Bay Power Authority and the commission governing it took center stage at Tuesday’s borough assembly meeting. The heart of the matter focused on the role the Thomas Bay Power Commission will play in future negotiations about the future of the Tyee Lake electric plant. James Stough, the sitting president of the Thomas Bay Power Commission issued the cease-and-decist letter April 4 on TBPA letterhead in his authority as TBPC president without notifying other members of the commission of the letter in advance. He claims t...
Alivia Haggard, 5, Becca Haney, and Roger Williams work together dyeing eggs Saturday at the Wrangell Medical Center. The event was held for Long Term Care residents and their grandchildren and adopted grandchildren in celebration of Easter....
Nondas Haux kisses the hand of husband Ted Haux Satuday at Wrangell Medical Center. Nondas will turn 100 Monday. The two of them have traveled across the country 42 times for missionary work, bringing with them their priceless D'Angelico guitars and singing voices. Nondas was an amazing public speaker, Ted said. The two of them have been married for more than 60 years. Nondas has also authored a book about their travels, titled "In Journeys Oft." A celebration is planned for Monday at 3 p.m. in...
While attendance figures for Saturday's health fair may not be available for some time, organizers said attendance was steady this year. The fair is a perennial draw, in part because of reduced rates offered for things like a health profile and recommended screenings, and in part because of numerous booths representing community activities. Last year's events drew between 500 and 600 adults and children to the fair. A count of returned free entry forms for an annual raffle show at least 300 had...
Health consumers are ready to descend on the Nolan Center this weekend for reduced rates on a health profile and five other screenings. The reduced rates on a health profile, prostate screening, hemoglobin A1C (a type of diabetic screening), vitamin D screenings, and a hepatitis C test are the centerpiece of the annual Health Fair, set for Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon. Officials with Wrangell Medical Center held a preregistration March 21 and 22, but people looking to get a reduced rate on...
Water main breaks at two locations this week kept borough crews busy. The first break caused the closure of St. Michael's Street twice during the week, most recently on Monday afternoon. Another break hit the main supplying water to Wrangell Medical Center and Evergreen Elementary School in front of Senior Housing, said Public Works Director Carl Johnson. In both cases, materials used to construct the mains were responsible, Johnson said. The mains use ductile iron, or iron pipes with a cement...
ct plans for the Wrangell Medical Center’s trauma center. According to the most recent figures provided by the Legislative Finance Division, the governor’s proposed budget would reduce a state contribution to the Alaska Trauma Care Fund from $1 million to nothing. The fund distributes money to hospitals which pursue and obtain various trauma designations as obtained by state statute. Designated Level IV facilities – which the Wrangell Medical Center is presently seeking through a combination of equipment purchases and personnel certi...
The Wrangell Medical Center just got a little warmer. As part of the hospital's ongoing pursuit of a Level IV Trauma Center certification, which officials say could both enhance treatment and open up new avenues of funding, the Hospital Auxiliary recently purchased a fluid warmer. The new warmer – which cost about $4,000 according to a press release – is used to treat patients suffering from hypothermia in the emergency room. The auxiliary contributed $3,500 toward the machine's cost. Off...
The borough assembly voted 5-0 Tuesday to approve a joint letter inviting the Southeast Alaska Power Agency (SEAPA) to submit an offer on Tyee Lake. A widely disseminated informal offer for SEAPA to take over operations at the Wrangell hydroelectric plant has been circulated since early September. The letter, which has already been approved by the Petersburg borough assembly, requests “SEAPA review the attached resolutions and provide a written proposal back to the two communities under what terms SEAPA would accept this transfer.” The request...
The Wrangell Medical Center (WMC) board of directors discussed collaboration at the Feb. 19 board meeting. Specifically, board members and medical center officials discussed the growing number of shared services between Alaska Island Community Services (AICS) and the hospital. While medical collaboration has long been a component of overlapping clinical services at both healthcare institutions – AICS and the WMC share a social worker, for example – recent personnel shifts have led to a growing administrative collaboration. The two institutions...
Rilyn Joy Young was born Jan. 7, 2014 at Rogue Valley Medical Center in Medford, Ore. to Nonay and Cherrith Young. Rilyn weighed 8 lbs 1 oz at birth and was 20 1/2 inches long. Rilyn joins sisters Taylor, 5 and Brynlee, 3. Paternal grandparents are Cherie and Frank Young of Wrangell. Maternal grandparents are Ilene and Brian McCoy of Grants Pass, Ore....
Mary Parker and Ronan Rooney were married on Jan. 18, 2014 at The Seattle Aquarium in Seattle, Wash. The bridegroom is the son of Alice and the late Bob Rooney of Wrangell, Alaska and the bride is the daughter of Douglas and Janice Parker of Lake Oswego, Ore. The bride was given away by her father, Douglas Parker and her matron of honor was her friend Jennifer Schmitt. The best man was Aaron Comstock, a friend of the groom, of Anchorage, Alaska. The newlyweds honeymooned on the island of Oahu,...
A possible hit-and-run sent one man to the hospital late Monday evening, authorities said. A man said to be in his 60s was discovered laying on pavement between the L N M Services gas station and the Elks Lodge about 10 p.m., in a short alley which connects Front Street to parking lots located behind those buildings. Passersby told the Sentinel they'd found the man and called 911, but declined to be identified for the newspaper. Paramedics transported the man to Wrangell Medical Center for...
The borough assembly voted 6-0 Tuesday to purchase a new truck. They also voted 6-0 to hold a public hearing Feb. 11 about potentially turning the high-traffic Brueger Street, which runs in front of City Hall to a high-traffic intersection between Bobs’ IGA grocery store and First Bank near the Nolan Center, into a one-way street. They also tabled an agenda item about the creation of a permanent standing energy committee, following a procedural discussion concerning a letter from TBPA manager Mick Nicholls. Assembly members voted 6-0 to add t...
The Wrangell Medical Center Board of Directors voted 7-0 Jan. 15 to approve the hospital’s 2014 budget. Budget figures project the hospital will take in $9,610,679 gross revenue in the coming fiscal year, while expending $8,763,556 in operating expenses, leaving a positive cash flow of $847,123 at the end of the present fiscal year. This is the second-highest cash flow in seven years, trailing only 2009’s $1,066,371, according to figures provided by hospital Chief Financial Officer Dana Strong. Revenues are projected to increase 4.9 per...
The article “Sentinel looks back on 2013” incorrectly stated who paid a $250,000 settlement ordered by a Wrangell judge. The Wrangell Medical Center’s insurance company paid that amount, not former CEO Noel Rea. The Sentinel regrets the error....
The Chief Shakes House rededication was easily the biggest event of 2013 in Wrangell. However, the year was filled with events and news stories big and small. On the first edition of 2014, the Sentinel pauses to recollect the stories throughout the year. January An electrical fire damaged the fish tank at the Nolan Center, causing it to be removed. A 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck off of Craig Jan. 4, rattling windows and nerves in town. The quake caused no major damage in town, but...
Sentinel writer The hospital board voted 6-0 to renew the contract of CEO Marla Sanger. Sanger has been the Medical Center CEO since Nov. 5, 2012, after the departure of former CEO Noel Rea and a recall election led to a period fraught with political instability for the Wrangell Medical Center Board of Directors. On her first day, Sanger was the Center’s fourth CEO in less than a year. The WMC board terminated Noel Rea in June 2012 after being recalled in a contentious election. Interim CEO Kendall Sawa departed for another job in Washington s...