As the county takes a closer look at OCH Regional Medical Center, physicians, hospital employees and residents will get a chance to give feedback on an October report that recommended Oktibbeha County supervisors pursue transaction proposals for the hospital.
Supervisors and consulting firm representatives will host a public hearing over the future of OCH on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m., in the Oktibbeha County Chancery Courthouse. The follow up meeting was scheduled by supervisors to let the public weigh in on the report. The public hearing is the first step required by state law in pursuing the possible transaction of the county-owned facility, according to board-hired consultant Fredrick Woodrell.
The county is set to pay the consulting firm Stroudwater over $8,000 to appear for its follow up presentation on Tuesday, after the board paid the firm around $50,000 for the firm's services in conducting the hospital assessment.
District 3 Supervisor Marvell Howard voted against bringing Stroudwater back for an additional meeting. The board has taken no further action on the report following the October presentation.
The report said supervisors should ask OCH to make systemic improvements to give the hospital a competitive edge in the proposal process. The report also recommends the county not pursue service-line agreements or joint operating agreements, since both could hurt the hospital's future potential.
At Tuesday's hearing, hospital trustees will be able to make a 10-minute presentation and allow for questions from those at the public forum. Last week, OCH administrative staff confirmed trustees were unaware of being granted time to speak, but would prepare a presentation to present the hospital's perspective.
Ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, OCH trustees came out unanimously against selling or leasing the hospital, and trustees voted to keep OCH a county-owned facility.
Hospital trustees are appointed by the county, and the seven member board represents each supervisor's respective district, with two members appointed at-large. Trustees serve five-year terms.
"The support of our hospital's board members speaks of the importance in maintaing the hospital's local ownership," said OCH Chief Executive Officer Richard Hilton following the vote. "OCH continually works to advance healthcare services in our community, as well as having a good financial performance."
Trustees issued a news release Nov. 23 stating the board would continue to support the medical staff's efforts to oppose the sale or lease of OCH. Over half of the hospital's medical staff recently signed a letter against the sale or lease of the hospital, and physicians asked the board to halt the assessment process.
"The Medical Staff believes that ownership by a private corporate entity may lead to a tendency toward less flexibility and independence of medical practice, profit-driven reductions in services and employment, and even a reduction in access to healthcare services for those lacking adequate insurance coverage," the resolution said.
Stroudwater contested that a competitive process would ensure all options were explored, while finding "a successful lessee or acquirer that is best equipped to meet OCH's and the community's needs," the report added.
Comparable transactions place the sale or lease of the hospital around $583,929 per bed, with OCH being a 98-bed facility, totaling just over $60 million for a hypothetical agreement. In 2013, Capella Healthcare approached a previous board with an offer to discuss a 50-year lease proposal for OCH—but no action was taken.
OCH trustees have continually contested the report, saying the report misrepresented OCH's debt service obligation ratios, overnight stay statistics, along with ambulatory procedure numbers.
To view the report, visit oktibbehacountyms.org/?q=node/694.