Remodeling the hospital is unnecessary

So now- instead of asking the community for 10 million dollars to build a new facility, the hospital is going to invest 5 million dollars that they have in a savings account and ask the community for 6 million dollars to refurbish the old facility.

Ok now the big question. If the new 6 million dollar bond doesn’t pass, will the hospital close? No!

But the 5 million dollars will be used to bring the present facility up to state and federal standards, as they now require.

The standard response to this is that they are attempting to remodel the existing building to meet expected requirements. They are trying to out guess the state and federal agencies and build to meet requirements that are not yet required.

Let’s assume, for a moment, that the bond passes and we complete the remodel. Now we have 6 million dollars of payments for the next 30 years. We still have to meet any state and/or federal requirements.

How long do you think it will be until big government (who does not really understand small hospitals) changes direction and makes new rules that we must follow. And how much will it cost?

We’re already paying for the next thirty years. Will we have to compound our bond issues just to keep the doors open?

I see the hospital as a business. Would you upgrade and remodel your business if you were just making it? Or would you concentrate on existing customer service, expanding your customer base and find new income streams? Then once you found yourself on solid fiscal footing, remodel away! The hospital would still have bond issue possibilities for those pesky big government requirements. My suggestion is to vote “No” on the existing bond issue and keep our options open.

I also have very strong concerns about how the Life Care Center was put into the public taxing district without any input from the communities involved. I truly believe that our nursing home is needed. But I am also truly afraid that it will not support itself and make our hospital funding even harder. Do your see a nursing home bond issue in our near future?

James Preston, Ritzville