Frank Urges ‘Hard Conversations’ About Hospital
A local citizen called for anyone who knows about mismanagement at St. Mark’s Medical Center to speak up.
Deborah Frank of La Grange made the comment at the Commissioners Court meeting last Thursday, April 13.
“We have come to a point where we need to have hard conversations,” Frank said during the meeting’s public comment period. “The truth needs to come out. Those who have knowledge irregularities or mismanagement with the hospital situation need to come forward. I know it’s not easy to speak out on these things. We’re a relatively small community and you may be concerned about what
others think of you.
“However, would you rather stay silent and let these organizations waste what little money they have left, or even worse, convince the County to spend tax dollars in a futile attempt to save the hospital?” she asked. “Or would you prefer to be known as someone who had the courage to clean up the mess they made and pave the way for quality healthcare services with honest business practices in our county?”
It was the second meeting in a row that Frank addressed the Commissioners about St. Mark’s transition to a Rural Emergency Hospital (REH). In the article about the Commissioners Court meeting two weeks ago, the Record identified Frank as the Chair of the Fayette County Republican Party. At the meeting last week, Frank clarified that she was speaking as a private citizen and not on behalf of the Fayette County Republican Party.
Fayette County Commissioners Court does not have any control over the hospital. However, the County awarded St. Mark’s Medical Center $500,000 in American Rescue Plan (ARP) money in October 2021. On March 9 of this year, the Fayette County Commissioners Court met with leaders from St. Mark’s and its management company, Community Hospital Corporation (CHC). The meeting was officially about St. Mark’s use of the $500,000 in ARP funding. The discussion quickly turned to the overall financial problems that forced St. Mark’s to seek the REH designation.
The designation provides the hospital with a boost in Medicare reimbursements along with a roughly $272,000 monthly payment. However, the changes prohibit the hospital from performing inpatient services. St. Mark’s leaders acknowledged that the new revenue still won’t be enough to cover the hospital’s mortgage payments when they spoke to Commissioners last month. St. Mark’s owes approximately $13 million on its mortgage.
At that March 9 meeting, St. Mark’s CEO Mark Kimball reported that the hospital had purchased one piece of equipment with the ARP money, a C-Arm machine that cost $135,000. Kimball said the rest of the ARP money remained unspent in a restricted fund.
At the Commissioners Court meeting two weeks ago, Frank presented a list of questions she intended to ask of St. Mark’s and CHC. One of those questions involved the C-Arm machine. She asked who the vendor was. Last Thursday, Frank presented the answers she received from the hospital. St. Mark’s said they purchased Siemens Corporation was the vendor of the CArm machine.
According to the Siemens website, the company’s CArm machines are designed to provide real-time imaging for surgeons to use in the operating room.
St. Mark’s decided to eliminate surgical services under the new REH designation. As a result, the $135,000 C-Arm machine no longer serves its intended purpose. At the meeting on March 9, Kimball said the hospital has not sold the C-Arm machine. The Record attempted to reach Kimball on this week to ask him if the hospital still has the machine and how it is being used. He has not yet responded.
In other action at the County Commissioners Court meeting Thursday, April 13:
• Approved the 2022-2024 Contract and Agreement for Secure Short Term and Long-Term Residential Services for Juvenile Offenders with Rockdale Youth Academy, (approved at Juvenile Board Meeting March 15, 2023);
• Authorized the following class requests: Crystal Landry and Sandra Mendel, Deputy County Clerks, to attend the Texas Association of Counties Probate Academy May 10 – May 12, 2023 in Lubbock; Constable Roger Wunderlich, Constable Billy Roensch and Constable Robert Chambers to attend the 20 hour Civil Process Program May 7-10, 2023 in Galveston; Cindy Havelka, County Auditor, to attend the 2023 County Administrative Training on July 17, 2023 held in Galveston, Texas;
• Authorized an internship for Justice Peace Precinct 1;