Greenwood Leflore Hospital has notified all of its physicians that their contracts will be terminated as of Dec. 1, but officials with the hospital say this is just a formality in anticipation of leasing the hospital to the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
“It is a contract formality that can facilitate matters that could get fairly complicated,” said Gary Marchand, the Greenwood hospital’s interim CEO.
The 90-day cancellation notices were sent Friday to 34 physicians who either are employees of the hospital or are in private practice but have contracts to serve as medical directors of hospital programs. Two nurse practitioners who are under contract also were sent the notice.
Dr. John F. Lucas III, a nationally recognized vascular surgeon whose opinion on hospital matters is frequently sought, said he and his medical colleagues are taking the action calmly.
“We anticipate becoming a UMMC employee a minute after our contract expires,” he said.
The Greenwood native and third-generation physician said the main uncertainty is what the terms will be of a contract with UMMC, as those negotiations are unlikely to take place until the lease goes through.
“We don’t know what our new contracts will look like,” Lucas said. “If they are like our current ones, we’d be very happy.”
Meanwhile, hospital and government officials are keeping under wraps the proposal submitted by UMMC to take over the operation of the Greenwood hospital.
It is presently uncertain whether that proposal will be made public before the two local governmental bodies that must approve a lease have voted on it.
The proposal would include, among other details, what compensation UMMC would provide for the long-term lease and what service lines it would provide in Greenwood. It would also indicate whether UMMC has agreed to the stipulation to employ for at least 12 months following the closing date of the lease anyone who is on the Greenwood hospital’s payroll and at equal or better terms than the employees presently enjoy.
The Commonwealth, prior to the Greenwood hospital’s receipt of UMMC’s proposal, inquired with hospital officials about receiving a copy of the bid. UMMC was the lone bidder.
Tom Flanagan, the attorney for the hospital board, said the records request should be made to either the Greenwood City Council or the Leflore County Board of Supervisors, since they technically are the entities that advertised for lease proposals. The hospital is jointly owned by the city and the county.
On Tuesday, Don Brock, Greenwood city attorney, declined to provide a copy of the proposal, citing a Mississippi law that exempts certain records “maintained by public hospitals” from the requirements of the state’s Public Records Act. Brock cited in particular the provision in the law that exempts “records directly relating to prospective business decisions of a public hospital.”
A Commonwealth reporter’s request on Tuesday to the Leflore County Board of Supervisors for a copy of the UMMC proposal was also not successful. Efforts to ask Joyce Chiles, the attorney for the county board, whether she agrees with Brock’s interpretation of the law have not been immediately successful.
The exemption, if applicable, does not bar release of the proposal but rather gives authorities the discretion over whether to withhold the document from public access.
The city and county are currently waiting on the recommendation from the hospital board before acting on the lease proposal. Both the city and county would have to approve UMMC’s takeover of the hospital, as would the state College Board, which oversees the state-owned medical institution.
When asked whether UMMC’s proposal would be made public prior to any vote by the City Council, Brock said in an email, “I really can’t speak to the timing of its release at this time.”
On Tuesday, the hospital board met behind closed doors for an hour and 10 minutes to discuss the lease proposal.
The meeting included Elizabeth Hooper, an attorney with the Jackson law firm Wise Carter, which has been advising the hospital on the lease process.
Later Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors, in a 4-1 vote, decided to pay up to $20,000 to an Indianapolis-based consulting firm, Bose Public Affairs Group, to help steer the county through its deliberation.
Marchand has said the lease could be finalized by early December. If it goes past Dec. 1, he said, the hospital will consider extending the contracts of the physicians and nurse practitioners until a final transaction date is determined.
Last week, the financially troubled hospital ordered a second round of layoffs and closed three more outpatient clinics in an effort to preserve enough cash to stay open through the anticipated transfer of management to UMMC.
The Greenwood hospital also announced that its intensive care unit and labor and delivery unit, closed since Aug. 15 because of a clogged sewer line that was later rectified, would remain closed and that the 208-bed facility would continue to staff only a dozen inpatient beds.
- Contact Tim Kalich at 662-581-7243 or tkalich@gwcommonwealth.com.
