A task force charged with directing the future management of Allen County Regional Hospital started with a history lesson. And from that lesson, task force members learned theres a lot they need to know before they can move forward.
The task force formed last month to decide whether to to stay with the hospitals current management company, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), or pursue other options. The group met for the first time Wednesday and asked Alan Weber, attorney for the board of trustees, for a timeline that included a history of HCAs relationship with the hospital as well as the deadlines as imposed under the current contract.
Webers presentation led to a realization among members that theyll likely want to seek presentations from other health care management firms to see how HCAs services compare. But theyll need to know a lot more about the current contract and services before they can do that.
Are we getting what we need? Are we getting what we want? Are we looking at a relationship that benefits us and lets us be the best hospital we can be? asked Patty Boyd, chairman of the board of trustees who also served on the task force that agreed to the initial contract in 2013. Those are things to start building on.
We are going to have other people come in and bid, Weber summarized. Our focus needs to be on what are we getting and how to construct (bid specifications) to get a proper bid.
IN 2005, HCA bought Health Midwest, which previously managed Allen County Hospital. HCA leased the hospital from 2006 to 2010. Then voters approved a sales tax plan to build a new hospital, owned by the county and paid for with municipal bonds that dont allow the hospital to be owned or leased by a for-profit entity. The county established a board of trustees to oversee the hospital.
When the new hospital opened in 2013, HCA came aboard as a management company. HCA pays the salaries for three top administrative positions: CEO Tony Thompson, Chief Financial Officer Larry Peterson and Chief Nursing Officer Patty McGuffin. HCA also negotiates numerous contracts on the hospitals behalf, helps with the credentialing of medical staff and other services.
The original 2013 management contract called for ACRH to pay HCA $350,000 per year with annual increases based on the medical consumer price index. But Weber and other task force members said they arent sure exactly how much the hospital pays HCA now, because theyve added a variety of a la carte services since then.
A goal of the task force is to research and compile a list of all services HCA provides and associated costs.
THE CONTRACT
with HCA gave local officials two chances to end the arrangement. After five years, the contract could be ended or renewed for two years, then renewed again for five years.
The contract took effect July 1, 2013; it expires June 30.
But the renewal period started in the fourth year (last year). Board of trustees members said they werent ready to make a change at that time, so they renewed the agreement for two years. That buys time before the next opportunity to review opens July 1, 2019, and closes Dec. 27, 2019.
If the board switches to a new management company, it would take over July 1, 2020.
The board wants to make its decision well before that time. Thompson and Weber said it will take significant time to transfer all the contracts HCA manages if the board decides to make a change. Weber said that process would take at least a year to a year and a half.
The task force said they would like to make a final recommendation to the board of trustees by September. For the next step, Thompson, Weber and hospital staff will research the current HCA contract and services, and see if those things are in line with the hospitals strategic plan. That information is expected by the next task force meeting at 11:30 a.m. June 20.
