Assemblyman Adam Gray supports UC Med Center campus for Fresno; not sure of what to do for Modesto.

I attended a meeting of the Latino Democrats of Stanislaus County on Thursday, September 26, 2019. I got a chance to talk to Assemblyman Adam Gray, (D). Gray was saying that he is working on establishing a U.C. Med Center extension of UCSF Medical Center in Fresno to provide UC medical services to the Valley. I asked him why he is not working on establishing it in Modesto since it is closer to the Bay Area and it is in the center of the Valley and of California. He stated that he is seeking to establish it in Fresno because the infrastructure for such a campus already exists in Fresno. 

100 miles from Modesto

I pointed out that the UC Med Center in Fresno still would be 100 miles from Modesto as is the one in San Francisco (actually we are only 90 miles from San Francisco, 100 miles from Fresno). He nodded his head, "Yes." He did not offer any suggestions about this dichotomy, but did acknowledge that this is a problem: Although the UC Med Center in Fresno would provide UC professional quality services to the Valley, it would do little or nothing for Modesto. Modestans would have a choice of driving 90 miles west to UCSF in San Francisco or 100 miles south to UCSF Fresno. As I recently discovered on a trip to Fresno during commute hours, Fresno also has commute issues and metered lanes and traffic jams, just like the Bay Area does.

 

What to do for Modesto

I then asked him what he plans to do for Modesto itself because it always ends up being the "lost stepchild" when it comes to services and special, innovative facilities, such as a UC Med Center. He then asked me to tell him if I have any ideas for Modesto. He did indicate that he had been instrumental in securing the ACE Train for Valley commuters to the Bay Area. Assemblyman Gray is to be commended for his efforts towards this end. 

Modesto the medical mecca

As I see it, Modesto can be quite a spectacular medical mecca for Central California. Modesto already has the Valley Children's Center which opened just a few months ago. It also has a state of the art Kaiser Hospital, Memorial Hospital with a Cancer Center, Doctors Hospital with a Cardiac Center, a Veterans' Clinic, a Same Day Surgical Center, and a new Alzheimer's Hospital. 

With all of those things going for it already, it seems to me that Modesto is the perfect site for a UC Med Center campus. It is in the center of both California and the Valley and is close to the Bay Area. Fresno may have the infrastructure for a UC Med Center campus; but Modesto has the town, the proximity and the ambiance to be a medical mecca that includes a UC Med Center. 

As Sacramento sees it

The fact remains that no matter how much Modesto has going for it, and no matter how much we aspire to build a great future for Modesto, Modesto's future depends largely on how Sacramento envisions it. That is why we must talk with our local Valley Assembly members like Adam Gray and Heath Flora. Let them know what you're thinking. They can't represent you if you don't let them know how you feel about the issues. Assemblyman Gray can be contacted at: (209) 726-5465. Heath Flora can be contacted at: (209)-599-2112. Go Modesto!