7 Doctors Back Anti-Hospital Wing Candidate

County supervisor candidate Roger Campbell appears to be winning support among some doctors for his stance against a proposed $51-million outpatient wing at the Ventura County Medical Center.

In his most recent campaign finance statement, Campbell records $9,827 in campaign contributions from Oct. 1 through Dec. 31, $1,000 of that from seven doctors. Campbell confirmed that all seven are practicing physicians at Community Memorial Hospital.

Community Memorial is working to block the new wing at the County Medical Center, saying the new facility would lure away private patients.

Recently, Campbell received $350 in campaign contribution from Michael Bakst, the director of Community Memorial, whose relationship with the current Board of Supervisors has been stormy. Bakst earlier gave $100 to James Monahan, a supervisorial candidate in another district whose campaign manager is a former consultant to Community Memorial.

Campbell’s own campaign manager, Al Limon, is a consultant for the private hospital.

Campbell downplayed the recent contributions as a tiny percentage of his total $51,000 campaign war chest.

“They [the doctors] are not bankrolling me,” he said. “But a few seem to like my position.”

The county and Community Memorial have been battling for years over the proposed public hospital project. Community Memorial, located just two blocks from the county hospital in Ventura, believes the ambulatory clinic is intended to expand county operations in order to compete for private patients.

It has also criticized the project’s $51-million cost as being too pricey for the county, a position Campbell has echoed. Community Memorial lost an earlier lawsuit to derail the project, but praised a Superior Court judge’s recent decision allowing the issue to go before voters in a March 26 referendum.

Campbell’s opponents expressed little surprise at his support from doctors.

“He’s already said how he feels about VCMC,” said candidate Kathy Long, an aide to outgoing Supervisor Maggie Kildee. “That’s where we differ.”

Fellow candidate and Camarillo Mayor Mike Morgan blasted what he saw as Campbell’s rush to take sides on an issue before all the facts are out. “I think he needs to keep himself independent, or at least be construed that way by the public,” he said. “We don’t have all the facts on this issue yet, and I’m sure he doesn’t, either.”