If the University of Mississippi Medical Center takes over the operation of Greenwood Leflore Hospital, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann says he would be receptive to using state funds to help in the transition.
“From my standpoint, I intend to consider that favorably,” Hosemann said Monday during a 45-minute interview at the Commonwealth.
“The necessity for quality health care is a precursor to me (for) having a viable economic base and the safety of their citizens, of course.”
The financially troubled Greenwood hospital has been advertising for long-term lease proposals from other medical institutions. The submission deadline is Wednesday.
The state-owned UMMC, which has expressed interest previously in an affiliation with Greenwood Leflore Hospital, is expected to submit a bid. If it does and is successful, Hosemann said he does not expect the arrangement would immediately reverse the Greenwood hospital’s losses, which have run in the millions of dollars annually for several years. “Whatever they agree to will without question have a negative cash flow to start,” he said.
Greenwood’s situation is extreme, but most rural hospitals around the state are financially stressed, especially if they have a heavy Medicaid population, Hosemann said.
“They all struggle economically, not to where Greenwood is, but they’re struggling economically basically to make ends meet.”
Greenwood Leflore Hospital and other members of the Mississippi Hospital Association have been lobbying the Republican-controlled Legislature to expand Medicaid to cover an estimated 230,000 who are currently uninsured. Mississippi is one of 12 states that have not expanded Medicaid to the so-called “working poor” under a federal law that would pay for 90% of the cost. The hospitals claim that Mississippi’s failure to expand has compounded their financial difficulties because of the large amount of uncompensated care they provide.
Hosemann said, however, he sees no change in the opposition of the Legislature or Gov. Tate Reeves toward Medicaid expansion.
He said he expects the Senate in 2023 to again try to make permanent a Medicaid provision that during the COVID-19 pandemic has extended post-partum care to mothers for one year after giving birth, rather than the previous 60-day limit. That legislation was killed three times in the House during the 2022 session.
He said the necessity for longer post-partum care has been underscored by the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that has allowed Mississippi to ban most abortions.
“We can’t then tell these mothers, ‘Good luck.’ ... If we’re strong pro-life, we have to be strong pro-child,” he said.
Hosemann said if such a modest change in Medicaid eligibility can’t be adopted, the chances of a sweeping expansion are nil.
“In the event that we’re not able to get post-partum, I don’t think we’ll get any movement on anything,” he said.
Although the Legislature may be opposed to Medicaid expansion, it has pursued other avenues to improve health care in the state, he said, such as trying to ensure that every county has an emergency room and giving $55 million to UMMC to build a new nursing school and revamp its dental school to accommodate more students. The Legislature also attempted this year to provide UMMC with an additional $50 million to upgrade other facilities, but that measure was vetoed by Reeves after the Legislature had adjourned.
“We are trying to do a lot of things that are health-related that don’t necessarily mean that we are relying on the (federal) government to reimburse us,” Hosemann said.
He ticked off a number of accomplishments in the Legislature during his first term as lieutenant governor, including substantial decreases in the state’s income tax rates, number of state workers and debt level, and substantial increases in teacher pay and spending on roads, bridges, water systems and other infrastructure.
For the budget year ending June 30, Mississippi finished with a record $1.4 billion surplus, which could be reduced modestly by an unknown amount of outstanding bills, according to Hosemann. Another $700 million is sitting in the state’s “rainy day fund” for emergencies.
As with the rest of the country, Mississippi saw a boom coming out of the steep but relatively short-lived recession following the start of the pandemic in 2020. State revenues for the 2022 fiscal year were up 24% over projections.
In July, the first month of the current fiscal year, revenues were a more modest but still healthy 8% above projections. Hosemann said, however, he is concerned that a recession could be imminent.
How the Legislature uses the surplus carried over from this past year “will be critical to making sure that we have as soft a landing as possible in Mississippi,” he said.
Hosemann would like to see much of the surplus used for an income tax rebate and for additional infrastructure projects, the latter of which might be spread over several years.
Another initiative he plans to push for is greater adoption of a year-round school calendar, as has been done so far in a handful of districts with reportedly good results. Under the modified schedule, schools are typically in session for nine weeks, followed by two or three weeks off, and continue that rotation year-round. During the three-week intercession, remedial classes are offered to students needing to catch up and advanced classes for those who want to get ahead.
Hosemann would like to see the state adopt incentives to encourage school districts to make the change. “I think the educational and social benefits are significant,” he said. “Our kids need to be in school.”
- Contact Tim Kalich at 662-581-7243 or tkalich@gwcommonwealth.com.
