A State-Funded Sanitarium for Washington
Dr. J. A. Ghent prepares to bring a bill before the legislature to provide state care for indigent tuberculosis patients.
When the legislature at Olympia convenes, one of the first official acts of Dr. J. A. Ghent, a new member of that body, will be to introduce a bill asking for an appropriation of $150,000 with which to purchase a site and erect a building for a tuberculosis sanitarium. Dr. Ghent arrived in Portland yesterday and stated, 'If the bill passes, the institution will be known as the Washington Tuberculosis Sanitarium, and we hope to care for and cure as many indigent tuberculosis patients as we can.'
“We hope to care for and cure as many indigent tuberculosis patients as we can.”
In 1909, tuberculosis—often called 'the white plague'—was a leading cause of death and a major civic health crisis. Today, the challenge of managing public health and providing care for indigent populations remains a central, often contentious, debate in Tacoma and Washington State governance.
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