August 28, 2002
Donald Hodge Wilson. That name may not mean a whole lot to you but he will soon become the poster child of what's wrong with TennCare.
On August 22 nd , Mr. Wilson was cited for consuming an adult beverage outside, in plain sight of a Nashville police officer. A quick background check by the arresting officer turned up some interesting information on Mr. Wilson. It seems that he was a wanted man from Michigan with an outstanding warrant for prison escape. He violated his parole by skipping town. Metro was asked to hold the suspect for extradition.
Before we extradite this man, there's some unfinished business in Nashville. It also seems that Mr. Wilson is a wanted man here, as well. He failed to appear in court for a previous citation.
In his possession at the time of arrest were three forms of identification: a Michigan driver's license, a Social Security card and, you guessed it, a TennCare card. You see, Mr. Wilson managed to get on TennCare after his arrest warrant from Michigan was issued and after his arrest warrant in Nashville. It begs the question: How in the world does a man like Wilson get on TennCare? Was there no background check? It took the officer all of four minutes to find out all about Mr. Wilson's seedy past. Why couldn't the folks at TennCare do the same?
Besides his obvious criminal record, there was something else striking about Mr. Wilson. He seemed to be in perfect health. At the risk of being politically incorrect, Mr. Wilson was not some homeless person down on his luck in search of help. To my knowledge, he has no history of mental illness. He's what used to be known as a vagrant, a drifter, a bum. He's certainly not the type of person that the hard-working, tax-paying citizens of this state should be subsidizing. Yet, there he was. A wanted criminal, a fugitive from justice, a TennCare recipient.
Of course, not everyone on TennCare is a bum like Mr. Wilson. That's not the point. The point is there are countless people in our state in dire need of the services that TennCare provides. It's an insult to them to have people like Wilson sharing the rolls. TennCare should be reserved for those who cannot help themselves, not those who won't help themselves. It's this kind of propping up by government that dissuades people like Donald Wilson from actually working. If you're in relatively good health and able to work, you should not be allowed to steal from the government in this manner.
Mr. Wilson had taken full advantage of his TennCare benefits. Just a few months prior to his arrest he was driven to Vanderbilt at taxpayer expense for a so-called sprained ankle. Fell off a bar stool, no doubt. With no co-pay he was provided treatment and medication. That's better service than most of us who pay for our own insurance.
Donald Wilson's case is far from isolated. The Nashville police officers I've talked to tell stories of other bums they cite for criminal trespass whom also sport TennCare cards. One, in fact, had three! Why? Because he didn't like his doctor so, in his words, he “fired him” by reapplying to TennCare and getting another number and another doctor.
It's time we weeded out the Donald Hodge Wilsons of the world and get them off TennCare. It's time we separate the needy from the greedy. Until then, the endless cry for more of our tax dollars will fall on deaf ears. And rightfully so.