Tulare Recount Confirms Original Vote, Down To The Single Vote

Sherrie Bell and Parmod Kumar at a September 2016 TLHCD Board Meeting. Tony Maldonado/Valley Voice

The recount of Tulare’s July 11 recall election has finished, Tulare County Registrar of Voters Michelle Baldwin has confirmed.

The result? Not a single vote’s changed, Baldwin said.

Those that came out to vote in Dr. Parmod Kumar’s district on July 11 voted overwhelmingly to recall him and elect Senovia Gutierrez as his replacement. Those results still stand, and a recertification of the vote isn’t necessary, Baldwin confirmed.

A recertification would not have occurred even if the recount that vote numbers had shifted. Baldwin stated that a recertification would only occur if the recount caused the election’s result to be changed.

Officials with the office previously estimated the cost of the recount to be $2,630, an amount that Kumar’s supporters failed to pay Monday.

The recount effort — started by Kumar last week — had no bearing on Senovia Gutierrez’ certification as Kumar’s replacement, Baldwin told the Voice earlier in the week.

“Once we certify the election, that stands true,” Michelle Baldwin, the Tulare County Registrar of Voters said, “unless we do the recount and it proves we were in error.”

“The results of the recount confirmed our Certified Statement of Vote with 836 yes votes and 195 no votes. Senovia Gutierrez received 680 votes and Jesse Salcido received 190 votes,” the registrar’s office stated in a press release.

Officials from the office also thanked the Lions Pride organization for serving on the tally board.

In Depth: Tulare Regional Medical Center

24 thoughts on “Tulare Recount Confirms Original Vote, Down To The Single Vote

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  1. Great news
    That makes the board meeting at the city council chambers a legal meeting if theteevet was any doubt.
    Nothing Bennie and Kumar can do. Kumar that is what you get for turning on the City hospital district.

  2. My paycheck has again be delayed and I don’t know when I will be getting paid.
    We have no dialysis doctors, we will have no ICU doctor, our anesthesiologiy group is leaving because the number of surgeries are down (because the surgeons are leaving), employees not getting paid, vendors not getting paid….
    For god sake, what kind of management is this?
    My recommendation is to avoid TRMC unless you are coming in for the most routine of problems, otherwise you are putting your life at risk.

      • I can’t give exact details, I don’t want to lose my job.
        However, my main message is that currently TRMC is a dangerous place to be for patients with serious or critical medical issues.

        • You need to contact the state labor board. There are serious consequences for payroll violations. Furthermore you are protected from retribution by HCCA. All the employees should file a complaint.

        • Then why do you still work there if it is so dangerous. If you are so unhappy find another job somewhere else instead of trying to drag TRMC into the ground with your rumors and lies.

    • Paychecks are not going to be delayed. People need to get their
      Information straight before they start spreading rumors.

  3. I would like the board members to ask Benzeevi the following questions:

    Did the hospital at some point this year stop offering inpatient dialysis. If so when, and why? How come we lost the ability to take care of these very fragile and delicate patients?

    Does the hospital have a urologist? If not,why not?

    Are we losing our ICU specialist Dr Rashid? If so, then who is replacing him and who is going to take care of our ICU patients meanwhile?

    Why are the surgical cases decreasing? Why are the general surgeons leaving? Why are the anesthesiologists leaving?

    Is it true that you have been late in paying some of the clinical people as well as the vendors? If so, why? HCCA had given us the impression that the hospital is financially thriving.

    You have been managing the hospital for more than 3 years, when can we expect the tower to be finished?

    If the board is not getting satisfactory answers to the above questions, then the final question would be, why the hell are we paying you, Mr Benzeevi, 25,000 $ a day?

  4. As we move forward as employees at TRMC, we hope that HCCA is removed, the Board and the people of Tulare can work TOGETHER to solve the problems of TRMC.

    I can say that Dr. Rashid is doing what he needs to do for his family by leaving. When you dont get paid for months at a time, that is a big problem.

    Other MDs, including ER doctors, and other providers also not gettibg paid for months at a time is continuing even today.

    The excuse for all our vendors not getting paid coming from Benzeevi mouth at a meeting last week was because he wanted to make sure employees were getting paid before vendors. Really? I know that Benzeevi check from TLHCD to you for “managing” TRMC didnt bounce. Alan Germany, I know Benzeevi check to you didnt bounce. And Im sure other Top Management checks didnt bounce. This tells me that there must be a separate account for these people.

    I agree with TRMC Employee, I would be real concerned about coming for services. ER doctors are doing their beat battling through not getting paid, but still do their job with what they have. Staff is still doing wht they should do even though our pay continues to be sketchy.

    For thise who support Dr Kumar, ask him why these things are happening? Asking Benzeevi is of no use. He skirts around the tough questiins. Asking Germany will just give you vague answers. Do you know why this happens? Because they dont want to say anything to furthrr incriminate themselves.

    If you are knowing or complicite in the commision of a crime, then you are just as guilty.

    Stop trating us employees like we are not educated. We are smart enough to know miney coming in ahould be paying bills and employees. Telling everyone the same song and dance about how we are profiting when we are broke is not sold to any one anymore.

    I will tell you the media knows about whats going on. A big atory will be on news soon. And when I can rally the troops, I want to be their spokesman telling the truth about whats happening on the inside of TRMC.

    To the Board, if you want a real Administrator to get morale up and surround that Administrator with people that understand healthcare, I will accept that job at a much lower rate than what you are paying HCCA.

    Hang in there my fellow employees, it will be fixed.

    • Finally.. thanks to each of you for speaking out. Protect yourselves cause you will indeed lose your job if they find you out.

  5. Rumors are flying around like flies on rotten meat. People get your facts straight before you speak as for everyone else, remember not everything you hear or read is the truth. Get the FACTS! Paychecks is will not be delayed.

  6. Excuse me “Lostchild”. TRMC’s Payroll manager was quoted that paper checks were issued instead of direct deposit and then they were delayed. That was just a few weeks ago. If HCCA cared about its’ employees, they would be paid first, then the management. This is just another smokescreen fake account and it’s getting very old! Enough already. Somebody put a padlock on that admin building and get those people out of there.

    • A few weeks ago paychecks were delayed. How does that apply to now? Today? If TRMCEMPLOYEE is so unhappy working there, why do they continue. I hope that individual is not a nurse working with patients. I would not want a individual that is so angry caring for me or my loved ones. That would make that individual dangerous. As for the paychecks. I know individuals that work at TULARE and they are my source for accurate information.

      • Lost Child,

        We are current employees.

        Again this week, we are getting a paper check insted of direct deposit. It is ridiculous because HCCA can not meet a Tueaday deadline to depoait money. Bottom line, HCCA is living payperiod to payperiod. No hospital is run this way anywhere at least in US.

        We enjoy working at TRMC and we will still come to work because we believe that patients come first. But at some, we as employees deserve to be treated as you would want to be treated as an employee, and we need to do what is in the best interest of our families.

        Unless your on the inside, you dont see or hear what we hear. The meetings we attend have the very Dr Benzeevi freely admitting fault for not putting the proper funds into the account to pay all employees. Benzeevi was the one who told all he wanted to pay employees before vendors. How did he get so far behind? Poor management wnd leadership.

        Lost Child, I am not one to play politics, however, we have our facts straight from the very people who are management. There is not only smoke, there is fire.

        Please ask Benzeevi and others in his establishment why we cant pay our vendors in a timely manner, why we cant meet a deadline to direct deposit, and where is this so called profit he keeps talking about? He will provide no answers, I can asssure you of this.

        Thank you.

  7. TRMC employee you are a fake and phony! Dialysis doctors? They are called nephrologist and they come in as a specialty again get your facts straight! I don’t believe you are medically inclined or work for TRMC because you can tell you don’t know your facts or well versed!

  8. TRMC Employees! You speak the truth. I left my full time job, but stayed per diem. I attended that employee forum. Hope this new board fixes things.

  9. Lostchild must be HCCA high level executive. Only they can be so cruel & callus to suggest that if people are not getting their paychecks, they should find another job.
    Ya, that is so easy and makes it right.

  10. Nephrologist may still be coming to consult. That is not same as inpatient dialysis service.

    Inpatient Dialysis requires more than that – a machine, a doctor and a dialysis tech to do it. Contract was with Fresno nephrology group. Like all others, they were not paid and they left.

    At this time, a patient who needs dialysis while inpatient will have to be referred out.

  11. Let’s get on with the business of getting our hospital back and out of the hands of HCCA/Benzeevi. Torrez and Wilbourn if you are not interested helping to achieve that goal then resign your seats on the Board.

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