Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 154, No. 22
INSIDE
Wednesday, June 3, 2020
$1.00
Estimated 500 attend ‘Black Lives Matter’ march in Kennett Square By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
For a little more than one hour on Monday morning, the twin virtues of Community and NonViolence melded together in a peaceful kaleidoscope of black, white and brown Medic 94 revamps proto- faces who marched cols amid pandemic...1B through part of the Kennett Square Borough in perfect solidarity. A “Black Lives Matter” march, placed on the borough calendar just a few days prior to June 1, drew an estimated 500 protestors to the corner of State and Union streets at 8 a.m., many of whom arrived dressed entirely in black and carrying signs that
By Frank Lobb
Photos by Richard L. Gaw
Oxford Mayor and Police Chief release statement regarding death of George Floyd By Betsy Brewer Brantner Contributing Writer
At the June 1 Oxford Borough Council meeting, Mayor Phil Harris and Police Chief Samuel Iacono released a joint statement New admissions oppor- regarding the death of tunities at Lincoln George Floyd. University...5B “As we bore witness to the abhorrent events related to the arrest and subsequent death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week, we want to express our sup-
INDEX
Opinion.......................7A Obituaries...........2B & 3B Classifieds..................4B
port to Mr. Floyd’s family, loved ones and friends. We acknowledge the pain, cruelty and inhumanity displayed by the officers involved in this incident and condemn those actions in the strongest of terms. We recognize the pain and sadness this incident has inflicted and understand that this serves as another example of bias and systemic inequities that exist within our great society. The Minneapolis officers involved in this incident
need to be held accountable for their actions or inactions in this incident.” Harris continued, saying, “Here in the Oxford Police Department, we are continuing our promise, as sworn in our Oath and codified within our Mission Statement.” The entire statement can be viewed on the Oxford Borough website and Facebook page and on the police department’s Facebook page as well. This council meeting took
place via Zoom as the borough continued to comply with statewide restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic. Entering into that yellow phase is bringing some semblance of normalcy back to life in the borough. Council listened as John McGlothlin, the owner of the Saw Mill Grill and Octoraro Hotel, sought permission from the borough to set up 15 tables outside the Octoraro in the Continued on Page 2A
United Way of Southern Chester County pledges to stand beside partner agencies during coronavirus crisis
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The United Way of Southern Chester County will be delivering more than $1 million in total community program funding during the current campaign, but requests for help still exceed what it can meet
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By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer On May 18, La Comunidad Hispana reached out to the United Way of Southern Chester County (UWSCC) with a very important request. With southern Chester County still in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, La Comunidad Hispana
was seeking funding to help establish a mobile testing unit for workers of the area’s mushroom farms. UWSCC had already established an emergency COVID-19 Response Fund to provide a rapid response to those in need during the coronavirus outbreak. Within 24 hours of receiving the May 18 request from La Comunidad Hispana,
UWSCC officials authorized using $25,000 from the COVID-19 Response Fund for the mobile testing unit. Another $25,000 was secured from UWSCC’s sister organization, the United Way of Chester County. UWSCC also contacted the American Mushroom Institute, which contributed $25,000 to the effort. It took less than one day for the
organization to fund a vital community health initiative that cost approximately $75,000. According to Carrie Freeman, the CEO of UWSCC, the organization was uniquely qualified to provide a rapid response when La Comunidad Hispana or any other local organization comes up Continued on Page 4A
Sharing her ‘imperfect recovery’
Student’s journey through illness becomes source of hope for others By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer The journey of West Chester resident Maria Hromcenco – one that saw her battle her way through a debilitating anorexia and has now become her shared story of resilience and determination for others -- began with a pizza. In the Spring of 2019, the 14-year-old was vacationing with her parents Tatiana and Alexander and younger brother in Disney World in Orlando. As she recently shared with the readers of
What You Need to Know About Health Insurance Coverage even when your plan says no
As a show of solidarity with the estimated 500 protestors who attended the ‘Black Lives Matter’ march in Kennett Square on June 1, Kennett Square Police Chief William T. Holdsworth, second from right, knelt on one knee at the intersection of State and Union streets, joining Corporal Kenneth Rongaus, Patrol Officer J.D. Continued on Page 3A Boyer and the department’s Chaplain, Annalie Korengel.
Local business reopens ...6B
Part 7 in a series
her blog – imperfect-recovery.com – Maria had taken the first steps to what would become a year-long spiral of self-consciousness, social anxiety, poor self-image and an obsessive and punishing sense of guilt. “I started thinking about the calories listed on menus for the first time in my life; I even remember crying to my mom about feeling guilty for having had pizza,” Maria wrote. “This was not normal teenage behavior, but I didn’t think much of it. When we got back home, Continued on Page 2A
Photo courtesy of Maria Hromcenco
Maria Hromcenco, far right, with her family.
In our last article, we explained your healthcare plan’s essentially unlimited right to deny coverage and payment for the care your doctor says you need. However, we also pointed out that the contracts (provider agreements) that give your plan that authority are equally explicit in requiring providers to render denied care free of charge so long as it’s been prescribed as necessary healthcare by your doctor. That’s right, the provider has to provide it, but they can’t bill you for it. Now I know this right to free healthcare has to come as a shock because it’s the furthest thing from what the healthcare insurance industry and their in-network providers would have us believe. But buckle up, because there is an even greater shock coming. Because your plan’s power to deny coverage is based on an ability to contractually bar providers from billing anyone for the care your plan rejects, your plan is simply assuming its providers will find a way to avoid supplying free healthcare. That's not a bad assumption since none of us know to even ask for free care. However, if you 1.) understand the availability of this free care and 2.) know that the laws of every state require a licensed provider to supply care whenever there is an offer to pay for it, you can readily turn the tables on your plan. You can simply demand your right to pay for the denied care under state law and then sign anything they put in front of you promising to pay. However, after receiving the care and getting billed for it, you simply return the bill marked “This is an unenforceable debt, don’t bother me again.” And, it’s over. Simply put, an in-network provider can’t legally bill you when they have earlier surrendered the right to bill you by signing their Provider Agreement— much as one can’t sell a house twice. The beauty of this approach is that you are doing nothing more than collecting the coverage you were promised and enforcing the terms of your plan’s Provider Agreement, i.e., a single agreement that applies to essentially all forms of health insurance “plans,” regardless of their acronym. This leads us directly into the next article. Frank Lobb, a local resident and business owner, is the author of “How to Refuse Your Hospital Bill.” More information about this topic is available at his website at www.killabill. com, and Mr. Lobb can be contacted at lobbsanalyticalworks@gmail.com.