Wednesday, 24 April 2024

News

In commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the founding of Lake County this year, Lake County News is publishing a series of historical stories about the county, its people and places. This week's story, about the 1937 deaths of a sheriff's deputy and another man, was written by Lake County Museum staffer Camisha Knowlton. Knowlton used as her source material an eyewitness account by Bill Tremper and a 1962 newspaper article.


It was early October of 1937.


Harvey Knauer and his wife, Bertha, were eating at Mervin Millsap’s hamburger place across the street from the Big Oak Café in Lower Lake.


John “Bert” Thompson came inside the café swearing and cursing. Millsap asked Thompson to stop or get out, and Thompson replied that there was no one there who could put him out.


Millsap grabbed Thompson to put him out and with help from Knauer, pushed Thompson out the door. From outside, Thompson yelled, “I’ll get you both for this!”


After the Knauers finished their dinner, Bertha went to visit her mother-in-law. Harvey Knauer went to the Big Oak Café to play some pool with James L. Cassidy. Ken Lee and Bill Tremper followed and sat on an old counter to watch the game.


Thompson came in a little while later carrying a .22 caliber high-powered rifle. He went to the opposite side of the pool table and said to Knauer, “I’ve got you now. I’m going to shoot you.”


Knauer looked up, still bent over to shoot the next ball when Thompson fired, hitting Harvey just below his eye and near his nose. Knauer then fell on the pool table.


Cassidy started for the door but Thompson called him back, holding the gun on him and Knauer, but Cassidy made his escape out the back door.


Tremper and Lee took off running just as Roy Adams walked up heading towards the bar. Lee warned him, “Don’t go in there, Harvey just got shot.”


Thompson then came out of the bar pushing Knauer in front of him and ordered Adams and Knauer to sit on the curb and wait.


Just then, Mr. Alta Crawford and Roy Gardner drove up. Adams and Knauer yelled for them to get the sheriff and as they sped up, Thompson fired at the car, hitting it twice and hitting some gas pumps at Millsap’s place.


While Thompson was firing, Adams made his escape and Knauer hid in the bushes near the Millsap place. Thompson then started up the street toward the Wheeler Café.


Meanwhile, Deputy Sheriff Harry Snowbelt was playing cards at the Wheeler Café with Mrs. Wheeler, Jim Cunningham and Walter Walker.


Thompson walked into the café and while Walker was trying to talk to him and get him to relinquish his rifle, Deputy Snowbelt, being off duty, ran down to Millsap’s place for a gun.


After retrieving a gun, Snowbelt ran back to the Wheeler Café and ordered Thompson to put his gun down on the piano and his hands up.


Instead of obeying, Thompson raised his rifle and fired, striking Snowbelt in the heart. At the same time, Snowbelt fired twice, hitting Thompson in the arm and in the heart.


Both men were dead within seconds.


Knauer was rushed to San Francisco with the bullet still lodged in his neck. He recovered and lived to the age of 80.


Coroner H. M. Jones called an inquest and the jury returned the following verdicts: Deputy Snowbelt died from a gunshot to his heart as a result of a shot fired by Thompson and the death was found to be homicide.


Thompson died from a gunshot to the heart as a result of being shot by Snowbelt while in the performance of his duties as deputy sheriff. The death was a justifiable homicide.


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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A multiagency gang enforcement sweep conducted last month resulted in five arrests and the seizure of controlled substances and weapons.


Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office said the Lake County Gang Task Force conducted the operation beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday, July 23, and continuing until 2 a.m. the following day in Lakeport, Kelseyville, Nice, Lucerne and the city of Clearlake.


Agencies contributing to the operation included the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, the Lakeport Police Department, the Clearlake Police Department, the Lake County Probation Department and the U.S. Marshals Service, Bauman said.


Throughout the day and into the night, the task force targeted approximately 30 validated gang members and conducted approximately 20 probation and parole searches. Bauman said a total of five arrests were made and an additional gang member who was not located at his home faces criminal charges for violating the terms of his probation.


Among those taken into custody were Berret J. Brown, 26, of Clearlake, arrested for being under the influence of a controlled substance and violation of his parole; Julio Antonio Castellanos, 19, of Kelseyville, arrested for violating his probation after being found in possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia; 42-year-old Doffus Lomack Gallon of Clearlake, arrested for violating his parole and possession of a controlled substance for sales after a sheriff’s narcotics detection K-9 alerted to cocaine packaged for sales concealed behind a dresser in his home.


Also arrested was 26-year-old John Roy Hogsett of Kelseyville for being a felon in possession of a firearm and violation of his probation; 20-year-old Richard Allen Hakala of Clearlake, who is not a validated gang member, but was arrested for possession of dangerous weapons after being contacted on the street by the Task Force, Bauman said.


He said 18-year-old Jose Guadalupe Aguilar of Lakeport was not located at his home during a probation search, but faces charges of violating his probation for having gang indicia in his room.


There are an estimated 200 validated gang members residing in Lake County, according to Bauman.


Anyone seeking information about the Lake County Gang Task Force or wishing to provide information about suspected gang activity is encouraged to call the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 707-262-4200.


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NORTH COAST, Calif. – A fire burning northeast of Covelo wasn't fully contained on Saturday as projected, but fire officials said it moved closer to full containment.


The Pass Fire, burning off of Hams Pass Road in the Hulls Mountain area began Aug. 3 and has so far burned 644 acres, according to Cal Fire.


On Saturday the fire reached 90-percent containment, and is expected to be fully contained on Sunday, Cal Fire reported.


Approximately 540 personnel, 24 fire engines (17 from Cal Fire), 24 fire crews (16 from Cal Fire), two dozers and five water tenders were on scene Saturday, Cal Fire said.


Cal Fire has held a unified command with the US Forest Service, and intends to transition the command to the Forest Service on Sunday.


Along with Cal Fire and the Forest Service, cooperating agencies include Brooktrails Fire Department, Covelo Fire Department, Laytonville Fire Department, Little Lake Fire Department, Redwood Valley/Calpella Fire Department, Ukiah Valley Fire Protection District and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.


So far, the fire has cost $2.1 million to fight, according to Cal Fire. The cause remains under investigation.


E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – A fire burning northeast of Covelo is nearing full containment, which is estimated to take place on Saturday.


The Pass Fire began on Wednesday along Hams Pass Road in the Hulls Mountain Area northeast of Covelo.


On Friday Cal Fire said the fire was holding at 644 acres with 80 percent containment.


Cal Fire said 756 firefighting personnel were on scene Friday, with 37 engines, 30 of which were from Cal Fire, and 28 fire crews, of which 21 were Cal Fire's. There also was one dozer and eight water tenders.


Firefighting costs to date total $1.5 million.


Cooperating agencies include Cal Fire, Brooktrails Fire Department, Covelo Fire Department, Laytonville Fire Department, Little Lake Fire Department, Redwood Valley/Calpella Fire Department, Ukiah Valley Fire Protection District, US Forest Service and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Mendocino National Forest was taking part in the unified command.


Cal Fire said the fire's cause remains under investigation.


E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – On Thursday state officials reduced the estimates of the size of a Mendocino County fire burning near Covelo.


The Pass Fire, which broke out just after noon on Wednesday, had previously been estimated at 800 acres, but Cal Fire said on Thursday that the blaze was 644 acres.


The fire is located on Hams Road Pass in the Hulls Mountain area northeast of Covelo, Cal Fire said.


Firefighters continued the work of constructing and improving containment lines, and improved and held fire lines and put out hot spots, with Cal Fire reporting that the blaze was 45-percent contained as of Thursday evening. It is expected to be fully contained on Saturday.


On Thursday the number of personnel on the fire totaled 921, more than double the number of the previous day, according to Cal Fire's reports.


One injury was reported, according to the Thursday report.


Approximately 52 engines, 33 fire crews, one air tanker, three helicopters, six dozers and seven water tenders also were on scene, according to Cal Fire.


Cooperating agencies include Cal Fire, Brooktrails Fire Department, Covelo Fire Department, Laytonville Fire Department, Little Lake Fire Department, Redwood Valley/Calpella Fire Department, Ukiah Valley Fire Protection District, US Forest Service and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Mendocino National Forest was taking part in the unified command.


Cal Fire reported that costs to fight the fire so far total $ 867,000.


No structures are threatened, and the fire's cause is under investigation, Cal Fire said.


E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews.

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An image combining orbital imagery with 3-D modeling shows flows that appear in spring and summer on a slope inside Mars' Newton crater. Sequences of observations recording the seasonal changes at this site and a few others with similar flows might be evidence of salty liquid water active on Mars today. Evidence for that possible interpretation is presented in a report by McEwen et al. in the Aug. 5, 2011, edition of Science. This image has been reprojected to show a view of a slope as it would be seen from a helicopter inside the crater, with a synthetic Mars-like sky. The source observation was made May 30, 2011, by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Color has been enhanced. The season was summer at the location, 41.6 degrees south latitude, 202.3 degrees east longitude. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona.



 

 

Observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have revealed possible flowing water during the warmest months on Mars.


Dark, finger-like features appear and extend down some Martian slopes during late spring through summer, fade in winter, and return during the next spring.


Repeated observations have tracked the seasonal changes in these recurring features on several steep slopes in the middle latitudes of Mars' southern hemisphere.


“The best explanation for these observations so far is the flow of briny water,” said Alfred McEwen of the University of Arizona, Tucson.


McEwen is the principal investigator for the orbiter's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) and lead author of a report about the recurring flows published in last Thursday's edition of the journal Science.


Some aspects of the observations still puzzle researchers, but flows of liquid brine fit the features' characteristics better than alternate hypotheses.


Saltiness lowers the freezing temperature of water. Sites with active flows get warm enough, even in the shallow subsurface, to sustain liquid water that is about as salty as Earth's oceans, while pure water would freeze at the observed temperatures.


“These dark lineations are different from other types of features on Martian slopes,” said Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project Scientist Richard Zurek of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. “Repeated observations show they extend ever farther downhill with time during the warm season.”


The features imaged are only about 0.5 to 5 yards or meters wide, with lengths up to hundreds of yards. The width is much narrower than previously reported gullies on Martian slopes.


However, some of those locations display more than 1,000 individual flows. Also, while gullies are abundant on cold, pole-facing slopes, these dark flows are on warmer, equator-facing slopes.


The images show flows lengthen and darken on rocky equator-facing slopes from late spring to early fall. The seasonality, latitude distribution and brightness changes suggest a volatile material is involved, but there is no direct detection of one.


The settings are too warm for carbon-dioxide frost and, at some sites, too cold for pure water. This suggests the action of brines, which have lower freezing points.


Salt deposits over much of Mars indicate brines were abundant in Mars' past. These recent observations suggest brines still may form near the surface today in limited times and places.


When researchers checked flow-marked slopes with the orbiter's Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM), no sign of water appeared. The features may quickly dry on the surface or could be shallow subsurface flows.


“The flows are not dark because of being wet,” McEwen said. “They are dark for some other reason.”


A flow initiated by briny water could rearrange grains or change surface roughness in a way that darkens the appearance. How the features brighten again when temperatures drop is harder to explain.


“It's a mystery now, but I think it's a solvable mystery with further observations and laboratory experiments,” McEwen said.


These results are the closest scientists have come to finding evidence of liquid water on the planet's surface today.


Frozen water, however has been detected near the surface in many middle to high-latitude regions.


Fresh-looking gullies suggest slope movements in geologically recent times, perhaps aided by water. Purported droplets of brine also appeared on struts of the Phoenix Mars Lander.


If further study of the recurring dark flows supports evidence of brines, these could be the first known Martian locations with liquid water.


“NASA's Mars Exploration Program keeps bringing us closer to determining whether the Red Planet could harbor life in some form,” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said, “and it reaffirms Mars as an important future destination for human exploration."


For more information about the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, visit www.nasa.gov/mro and http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/.


Dr. Tony Phillips works for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.


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This map of Mars shows relative locations of three types of findings related to salt or frozen water. Coloring of the map is coded to concentrations of shallow subsurface water ice found by the Gamma Ray Spectrometer - Neutron Spectrometer on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter. Blue, at high latitudes north and south, indicates higher concentrations of water ice (deduced from detection of hydrogen); orange designates lowest concentrations. The white squares in the northern hemisphere mark locations of small fresh impact craters that exposed water ice close to the surface and validated the neutron spectrometer data. The red squares mark locations of putative deposits of chloride based on observations by the Thermal Emission Imaging System on Mars Odyssey. Such salt deposits could have resulted from evaporation of salty water. The blue squares mark locations of a type of feature reported in August 2011 based on sequences of observations by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/UA/LANL/MSSS.

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An Atlas V rocket launches with the Juno spacecraft payload from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Friday, August 5, 2011. Image credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls.



NASA's solar-powered Juno spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 9:25 a.m. PDT (12:25 p.m. EDT) Friday to begin a five-year journey to Jupiter.


Juno's detailed study of the largest planet in our solar system will help reveal Jupiter's origin and evolution.


As the archetype of giant gas planets, Jupiter can help scientists understand the origin of our solar system and learn more about planetary systems around other stars.


“Today, with the launch of the Juno spacecraft, NASA began a journey to yet another new frontier,” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. “The future of exploration includes cutting-edge science like this to help us better understand our solar system and an ever-increasing array of challenging destinations.”


After Juno's launch aboard an Atlas V rocket, mission controllers received communication from the spacecraft indicating it has achieved its proper orientation, and that its massive solar arrays – the biggest on any NASA deep-space probe – have deployed and are generating power.


“We are on our way, and early indications show we are on our planned trajectory,” said Jan Chodas, Juno project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. “We will know more about Juno's status in a couple hours after its radios are energized and the signal is acquired by the Deep Space Network antennas at Canberra.”


Juno will cover the distance from Earth to the moon (about 250,000 miles or 402,336 kilometers) in less than one day's time. It will take another five years and 1,740 million miles (2,800 million kilometers) to complete the journey to Jupiter.


The spacecraft will orbit the planet's poles 33 times and use its collection of eight science instruments to probe beneath the gas giant's obscuring cloud cover to learn more about its origins, structure, atmosphere and magnetosphere, and look for a potential solid planetary core.


With four large moons and many smaller moons, Jupiter forms its own miniature solar system. Its composition resembles that of a star, and if it had been about 80 times more massive, the planet could have become a star instead.


“Jupiter is the Rosetta Stone of our solar system,” said Scott Bolton, Juno's principal investigator from the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. “It is by far the oldest planet, contains more material than all the other planets, asteroids and comets combined, and carries deep inside it the story of not only the solar system but of us. Juno is going there as our emissary – to interpret what Jupiter has to say.”


Juno's name comes from Greek and Roman mythology. The god Jupiter drew a veil of clouds around himself to hide his mischief, and his wife, the goddess Juno, was able to peer through the clouds and reveal Jupiter's true nature.


The NASA Deep Space Network – or DSN – is an international network of antennas that supports interplanetary spacecraft missions and radio and radar astronomy observations for the exploration of the solar system and the universe. The network also supports selected Earth-orbiting missions.


JPL manages the Juno mission for the principal investigator, Scott Bolton, of Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio.


The Juno mission is part of the New Frontiers Program managed at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the spacecraft. Launch management for the mission is the responsibility of NASA's Launch Services Program at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.


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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The scorching summer sun can turn an automobile into a deadly oven-on-wheels for young ones, pets and adults alike.


The California Highway Patrol (CHP) warns the public about the dangers of leaving children, loved ones or pets unattended inside a vehicle while parked in the hot, summer sun.


“It takes mere minutes for the temperature inside of a vehicle to become deadly, even in the shade,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “Never leave children, pets or anyone unable to care for themselves in the car, even with the windows rolled down.”


Leaving an unattended child in a car is illegal, so if you see one, call 911 immediately. It can mean a matter of life or death.


The national, nonprofit organization 4 R Kids Sake designated August as “Purple Ribbon Month,” to raise awareness and educate the public about the dangers of leaving a child unattended in a vehicle.


In recognition of “Purple Ribbon Month,” CHP officers will attach a purple ribbon to the antenna of their patrol cars as a gentle reminder to not leave children in the vehicle.


This action is part of a campaign to remember 6-month-old Kaitlyn Russell who died Aug. 15, 2000, when she was left alone in her babysitter’s car for about two hours.


“Kaitlyn’s Law” states that anyone who leaves a child 6 years or younger inside a vehicle without the supervision of someone at least 12 years old can be fined $100.


“It takes very little effort to take a child or loved one with you,” said Commissioner Farrow. “It is not worth it to leave them in the car, even for a few moments.”


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The nationwide employment picture showed a minor improvement in July, but the head of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday that long-term unemployment numbers are at record highs.


The Bureau of Labor Statistics' new report showed that the US unemployment rate dipped slightly, dropping from 9.2 percent in June to 9.1 percent in July, with nonfarm jobs rising by 117,000 last month.


As far as economic recovery goes, that number of jobs added in July “is still treading water,” according to Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Dr. Keith Hall in testimony he gave to the Joint Economic Committee in Washington, DC on Friday.


The Bureau of Labor Statistics report said the number of unemployed people in the country was 13.9 million, which – along with the unemployment rate – “has shown little definitive movement.”


The labor force totaled 153.2 million people in July, the agency said.


The bureau said there were 6.2 million long-term unemployed Americans – or those jobless for 27 weeks or more – in July, accounting for 44.4 percent of the overall unemployment number.


During Hall's testimony on Friday, Joint Economic Committee Chair Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) asked Hall for historical context on the number of long-term unemployed.


“We're at easily record levels,” said Hall.


The number of long-term unemployed particularly concerning, Hall explained, because research has shown that the longer someone is unemployed, the longer it takes to help them find work.


He said the median number of weeks of unemployment also has doubled from five to 10 during the current recession.


“These numbers are clearly very concerning,” he said, and added that, in level and percent, “and almost any way you look at it,” they are at historic levels.


Hall told the committee that about 130,000 jobs need to be added to the economy every month just to absorb population growth, so it's important to look at the number of jobs added above 130,000 in order to assess the recovery.


In a review of major worker groups, unemployment was lowest for Asians (7.7 percent), but trended higher for whites (8.1 percent), Hispanics (11.3 percent) and black Americans (15.9 percent).


Unemployment for adult men was 9 percent, 7.9 percent for adult women and 25 percent for teenagers, the report said.


The July employment report showed that job gains occurred in health care, retail trade, manufacturing and mining, while government job numbers continued to drop, with a loss of 37,000 jobs.


The report showed that private sector job numbers in construction, transportation and warehousing, information, financial activities, and leisure and hospitality changed little over the month.


Main areas of job growth in July included health care, which added 31,000 jobs; retail trade, 26,000 jobs; and there were 24,000 jobs added in manufacturing – primarily in durable goods.


Persons unemployed for less than five weeks declined by 387,000 in July. People working part-time for economic reasons remained mostly unchanged at 8.4 million, while there were 2.8 million people marginally attached to the labor force, little changed from a year earlier, the agency said.


The Friday report also noted that among those marginally attached to the labor force, there were 1.1 million discouraged workers – those not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them – in July, about the same as a year earlier.


E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews.

A new report released earlier this week says that rural Americans experience more chronic health conditions such as diabetes and heart disease than urban and suburban residents, have greater difficulties accessing high-quality care, and from 2014 millions more of them will likely participate in Medicaid and government-subsidized insurance.


At the same time, more use of technology, such as broadband access that would increase telehealth solutions, can help ease strain on the system and further promote healthier outcomes in rural communities, according to the paper released by the UnitedHealth Center for Health Reform & Modernization.


The paper, titled “Modernizing Rural Health Care: Coverage, Quality and Innovation,” explores how health reform implementation, particularly health insurance expansion, will increase the need for innovative care models and points to technology and a stronger role for rural primary care as promising solutions.


It also reports the results of a new Harris Interactive survey of 2,000 patients and more than 1,000 primary physicians in rural and urban areas.


“The next few years will be times of considerable stress on rural health care, but also times of great opportunity, since across the country there are already impressive examples of high-quality care, tailored to the distinctive needs of the local community,” said Simon Stevens, UnitedHealth Group executive vice president and chairman of the UnitedHealth Center for Health Reform & Modernization.


“The challenge for all involved in rural America now is to build on that track record of innovation and self-reliance, so as to ensure that all Americans – wherever they live – can live their lives to the healthiest and fullest extent possible,” Stevens added.


The new report includes new findings on coverage, access and quality, as well as detailed suggestions for improvement.


Rural coverage


The report contains new projections showing that around five million rural residents may join Medicaid and other insurance plans as a result of the planned 2014 coverage expansions – which would represent a higher percentage increase than in urban areas.


Already almost one-third of people in rural areas depend on Medicare and Medicaid, compared with one-quarter in urban areas.


Rural access


Coverage is not the same as access to high-quality care. More than half of rural primary care doctors report that patients they refer to specialty care have to travel an average of about 60 miles. Furthermore, the 2014 coverage expansions will place increased pressure on rural care delivery.


The good news for rural areas is that a higher proportion of rural primary care physicians surveyed said they were currently accepting new Medicaid patients (84 percent vs. 65 percent of urban primary care physicians).


And looking forward to 2014, 59 percent of rural primary care doctor respondents plan on accepting new Medicaid patients, compared with only 44 percent of their urban counterparts.


However, the report also finds that around 11 million rural residents currently live in areas where primary care supply is relatively low but where the increase in the insured population will be high relative to other counties.


Partly as a result, almost half of rural primary care physician respondents expect a primary care shortage over the next few years (compared with 37 percent of urban primary care doctors).


Rural care quality


The report finds that both rural consumers and rural primary care physicians rate the quality of local care lower than do their urban and suburban counterparts.


While nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of urban and suburban residents assess the quality of their local health care as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good,’ only half of rural residents do so (49 percent).


Nearly a quarter (24 percent) of rural residents say their local care is only ‘fair’ or ‘poor,’ compared to 12 percent of urban and suburban residents who believe that.


New data in the report also pinpoint the need to improve health screening and preventive care in rural areas.


Practical solutions


Given these challenges, there is an urgent need to deploy at scale innovative new rural care models. The working paper identifies a range of options, drawing on successful private and public examples in particular parts of the country.


The report goes on to call for: new incentives and reimbursement models for rural primary care physicians; a bigger role for the 24,000 rural nurse practitioners and physicians assistants; greater provider collaboration across rural areas and with urban health care systems; innovative models using mobile health clinics; faster rural uptake of electronic health records; well-designed market incentives for rural areas; and greater engagement by rural consumers in improving their health.


The paper offers several concrete steps to promote greater use of rural telemedicine and telehealth:


  • expanding rural broadband connectivity to enable growth of telemedicine adoption;

  • improving and aligning reimbursement approaches across payers to encourage greater use of telemedicine across rural settings;

  • improving availability of telemedicine technologies to consumers; and

  • reducing regulatory barriers to use of telemedicine technologies and health professionals.


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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Registrar of Voters Office reported this week that Aug. 12 is the end of the filing period for several vacancies on local school, fire and special districts boards.


Registrar of Voters Diane Fridley said that the filing period ends at 5 p.m. Aug. 12 in order for candidates to be on the ballot for the Nov. 8 General District Election.


The following vacancies will be up for election this November.


EDUCATION


  • Mendocino-Lake Community College District: Trustee Area No. 1, one vacancy, file in Mendocino County; Trustee Area No. 3, one vacancy, file in Mendocino County; Trustee Area No. 4, one vacancy, file in Mendocino County; Trustee Area No. 7, one vacancy, file in Lake County.

  • Kelseyville Unified School District: Three vacancies.

  • Lake County Board of Education: Trustee Area No. 1, one vacancy; Trustee Area No. 2, one vacancy.

  • Lakeport Unified School District: Three vacancies.

  • Lucerne Elementary School District: One vacancy.

  • Upper Lake Union Elementary School District: Two vacancies.

  • Upper Lake Union High School District: Two vacancies.


SPECIAL AND FIRE DISTRICTS


  • Kelseyville Fire Protection District: Two vacancies.

  • Lake County Fire Protection District: Three vacancies.

  • South Lake County Fire Protection District: Three full terms, one two-year unexpired term.

  • Anderson Springs Community Services District: Two vacancies.

  • Butler-Keys Community Services District: Three vacancies.

  • Hidden Valley Lake Community Services District: Three vacancies.

  • Adams Springs Water District: Two vacancies.

  • Buckingham Park Water District: Two full terms, two two-year unexpired terms.

  • Callayomi County Water District: Two vacancies.

  • Clearlake Oaks County Water District: Three vacancies.

  • Cobb Area County Water District: Two vacancies.

  • Konocti County Water District: Two vacancies.

  • Scotts Valley Water Conservation District: Division I, one vacancy; Division III, one vacancy.

  • Upper Lake County Water District: Three vacancies.

  • Villa Blue Estates Water District: Three vacancies, two-year terms.


For more information contact the Lake County Registrar of Voters Office, 707-263-2372.


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Upcoming Calendar

25Apr
04.25.2024 1:30 pm - 7:30 pm
FireScape Mendocino workshop
27Apr
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27Apr
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Prescription Drug Take Back Day
27Apr
04.27.2024 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Inaugural Team Trivia Challenge
4May
05.04.2024 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Park Study Club afternoon tea
5May
05.05.2024
Cinco de Mayo
6May
05.06.2024 11:00 am - 4:00 pm
Senior Summit
12May
05.12.2024
Mother's Day
27May
05.27.2024
Memorial Day

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