Remember the $152 million that our county commissioners authorized the county hospital to spend for new outpatient facilities and partial remodeling of our county hospital?
Changing plans
Now that the county hospital has the money, they want to change how and where they spend it.
The February 25, 2014 minutes of their board of managers meeting shows the hospital chief executive explaining to his board that the money needs to be “reprioritized”. From the minutes:
Mr. Valenti noted that after discussions with the design team they had come up with the following:
1) To implement what was discussed, however it would not be advisable because is not the integrations that everyone wants.
2) To reprioritize the $152M similar to how they have reprioritized the Annex and the Central plant based on patient needs. He added that within the next 45 to 60 days management must take the $152M and reprioritize. They need to slim down the ancilliaries, keep pharmacy robust, expand office visits, may decrease the footprint and look at contingencies to look towards an enterprise solution.
Translation
Now that we have the money let’s figure out how to spend it. Forget what we told the commissioners.
Reprioritize
I’ve got another idea. Since everyone is supposed to have health care coverage now why don’t we reprioritize and shut down the county hospital?
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
Why don’t we get rid of Valenti? How is this not fraud? I a person fails to pay their taxes, it is tax fraud. If an entity and the individuals leading it collect a tax under one pretense and very quickly thereafter admit that is now how they plan to spend it, that is at the best deception (bait and switch) and more likely fraud. If it’s not fraud and they no longer plan to use it for the original purpose, then return the money to the taxpayers. If the commissioners do not return the money, it tells me they were and are complicit.
LikeLike
To Brutus:
Your suggestion to shut down the County Hospital makes one ask “and do what in in its place?….
Where do all the not-covered by Obamacare citizens go for healthcare?
LikeLike
I thought that everyone would be covered.
My mistake.
Brutus
LikeLike