Posted by: thepinetree on 11/01/2012 09:51 AM
Updated by: thepinetree on 11/01/2012 09:51 AM
Expires: 01/01/2017 12:00 AM
:
Op Ed on Hospital Lease Negotiations ~By Jerry Lucas
Murphys, CA....Dear Editor: The upcoming vote on the Mark Twain St Joseph hospital’s lease mentioned in The Calaveras Enterprise Oct 5th article “Voters will get a voice in future hospital lease“ will bring a positive opportunity for the community to have a say in the quality of medical and customer service the hospital delivers....
The Mark Twain St Joseph’s Healthcare Corporation (the Corporation) leases the hospital from the Mark Twain Health Care District (the District). That lease expires in 2019 and, by law, a new lease must be approved by public vote in a general or special election. The district has decided to make the lease renegotiation process public. This process will give us a forum to learn more about the relationship between the District and the Corporation. and to express our views about how we want that relationship to work.
In the September meeting of the District Board of Directors, a hospital administrator, said that the District is basically a landlord. Actually the District is both a landlord and a half owner of the hospital’s net assets. The Articles of Incorporation of the Corporation states that upon dissolution of the Corporation, 50% of its net assets would go to the District. This complex structure creates conflicting expectations. As part owner, the District wants more say in how well the hospital is serving the community, and the Corporation sees the District as just a landlord and landlords typically don’t have much of a say in how their renter runs his business. However, there is a third party with expectations, us. As customers of the hospital and financers of the District, we also have a say. Now we will have a forum where we can be a part of the discussion.
In this planned process we property tax payers can say how much control we want our representatives, the District, to have in the quality of medical and customer service we receive at Mark Twain Hospital. My aim is to keep a financially viable hospital in our community. I want the community to have a say in how well it is run. I would like to see billing services returned to San Andreas. I want the hospital to purchase supplies locally as much as possible. I would like measures for medical and customer services made public. I urge all interested citizens to get involved in the open process the District plans.
Jerry Lucas Murphys CA
|