The following is a joint press release from the Mendocino Coast Health Care District and Adventist Health:
Adventist Health and Mendocino Coast Health Care District (the District) are making steady progress on optimizing the existing agreement to provide access to healthcare on the coast. Both organizations share a mutual goal to retain Adventist Health’s expertise in providing quality healthcare for the community. Over the next month and a half, Adventist Health and the District will continue working together on the details of an updated partnership which would result in changes to the existing agreement.
Conversations between both organizations are resulting in a healthy path forward. We are working towards a mutually agreed-upon outcome that best serves the community. This shared goal unites us in our efforts. Both organizations will work to provide a weekly joint statement to keep the community informed.
“I am grateful for the good faith efforts made by our partners at Adventist Health,” said Paul Garza, Chair of Mendocino Coast Healthcare District. “I look forward to an enhanced agreement that is a win-win for both entities and the communities we serve.”
“I appreciate the passion and dedication our friends at the District have for our local community hospital,” said Adventist Health Northern California Network President Eric Stevens. “The community can be confident that both organizations are reaffirming our investment in helping keep healthcare local through a sustainable model.”
As the costs for providing healthcare continue to soar, tapping into existing government reimbursements will be important for both entities. Despite one third of all critical access hospitals across California not being able to break even, we believe there is a path forward for Adventist Health Mendocino Coast. The District and Adventist Health are committed to working together to access government funding to maintain healthcare for our rural, frontier, critical access hospital.
More information may be found at the District’s website:
This is happy talk with no substance behind it. Is there any reason to believe that the healthcare Board won’t give AH everything they want, especially with an artificial deadline of only 60 days? And what to make of this statement from the press release: “The District and Adventist Health are committed to working together to access government funding”? Translation, Adventist Health wants to use taxpayer money including the original property tax and the add-on Measure C money to run a hospital free of any interference by the public. The Board of Directors will show us whose interests they represent, AH or the public.
I wonder why they are pushing this artificial deadline so the negotiations will be complete prior to the new board members are sworn in. Is it because the current chair and his appointed cronies blindly support AH’s goals? It looks like it. Our past boards were very dysfunctional but this board only has the superficial appearance of better serving the community. They sit back and let AH shift a lot of high-revenue procedures and specialist visits to Ukiah so the resulting revenue doesn;t go through Fort Bragg any longer and then use that as an excuse to try to renegotiate an agreement for even more favorable terms (i.e., capture more revenue). I wouldn’t be surprised if they want all of the District’s money with no rental payment at all to help the District continue to function all the while shifting services and revenue to their preferred hospital in Ukiah, which they want to turn into a regional hospital never mind that it short-changes the Coast. I don’t often agree with John Redding but he seems right on with this one!
Your better off taking a drive to another hospital