OCR Text |
Show Pros oeud caois Ene The more involved I get, the more I f something is wrong with the sale of j'topital, but I can't put my finger Dan Coney told members of the Chamber of Commerce during g Tuesday noon meeting this week. fjiey, representing a citizen group ast the sale of the Uintah County ipjtal to Hospital Corporation of .-erica (HCA), said he was in favor of siijg the hospital to a private cor-::ilion cor-::ilion in order to not lose local iwl of the hospital and "give away liable property." Here is no reason why we can't get i benefit from growth of the pilal," Coney said. Hesaid that HCA isn't planning to put tVSbed facility until the occupancy Esquire it in another ten years. 'litre is no reason we cannot do the at thing in 10 years," Coney said. Be said he "really gets shook up" ihen people mention quality care initiating in-itiating that before HCA took over the 'ministration of the hospital, there 'is m "quality care." A week ago Coney, organized a meeting at the Golden Age Center in which over 200 people on both sides of the issue attended. At that meeting, Dr. James Allen said, "I have to work in that hospital, you may own it, but 1 am the one who has to make it go and I am responsible for the patients' well being and saving their lives." A letter signed by seven of eight doctors at the hospital was read at the meeting by Dr. Paul Stringham. "We feel that this (sale of the hospital) is the best and only means by which the advancement of health care delivered in our hospital will occur," reads the letter Coney said that county commissioners com-missioners told him that owmers of $50,000 homes pay $24 a year to support the hospital. Sixteen dollars to recover the bond and $8 to pay for care of indigent in-digent and those who will not pay their bills. Coney added that the commissioners said with the coming of the Moon Lake Power Plant taxes would be $9 million instead of $7 million last year. He suggested that because of that, taxpayers tax-payers should pay less for the hospital. Allen said he could understand the desire to keep ownership of the hospital. He also said that turning the old hospital into a convalescent center presents obstacles that are paramount especially the proximity of the elderly to the sickness in the hosiptal. This week Roland Merkley said there are two reasons why the commissioners com-missioners can't convert the old hospital into a convalescent center. He said that because both facilities would share the same kitchen, they would lose Medicaid money, and it would hamper the expansion of either the convalescent con-valescent center and the hospital. Merkley said that several private firms have offered the county to build and operate a convalescent center. He also said that the sale of the hospital wouldn't be final until the state approved ap-proved a public hearing on the sale. |