Recently, officials at Newton Medical made a decision to charge a $150 upfront deposit charge for patients who do not have a non-emergency condition.

On first blush, this might seem unfair to some who read it.
In our opinion it is not.

We are told in our constitution that we are entitled to certain inalienable rights, at this point being provided free medical care is not one of those guarantees.

Emergency rooms at hospitals were originally set up to quickly diagnose and handle emergency situations for folks who could not see a doctor in time to help their emergency. Emergency care units were not set up to care of folks who displayed everyday ailments and for sure were not set up to handle those type of services for free.

We are fast becoming such an entitled society, that many people feel they are due services that others work hard to earn.

We understand there are people who truly need help with their medical conditions and there are many churches and caring people who are willing to give people a hand up if asked. However, most are not willing to continue such help for anyone that is not willing to help themselves though.

Our local hospital has every right to expect compensation for its services.

All of us would be at a loss if the hospital ceased to exist because it could not pay its people or keep up with the latest technology.