Rabyn Ratliff
VALDOSTA – The Valdosta-Lowndes Hospital Authority Board discussed the state of indigent care fund allocations to South Georgia Medical Center during the October meeting held Wednesday.
In efforts to offer emergency health care services for all persons in need, despite their ability to pay, the Indigent Care Trust Fund was established in 1990, to assist hospitals in covering the cost of providing such services to patients.
The fund operates as hospitals evaluate individual indigent care needs, and then puts forth a non-specific amount of money, to be matched by the state and federal governments.
In recent months, the Atlanta area Grady Hospital’s request for more indigent care funding has raised concern among hospitals throughout the state, specifically, rural hospitals which largely depend on ICTF funding in order to provide indigent care services.
With the turn of the new fiscal year, SGMC was among the many Georgia hospitals expecting lower indigent care fund allocations, as the state appropriated more funds to Grady, which currently serves the largest number of indigent care patients in the state, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle.
“All of the rural hospitals were really concerned about funding, but we essentially got the same as last year,” said Greg Hembree, SGMC Chief Financial Officer. “Grady was looking to get a larger distribution, and they did get a little more. There allocation was about $4 million more than they normally get, but they’d asked for an additional $50 million.”
Although allocations remained intact this year, Hembree shared his concerns for the fiscal year ahead, when he anticipates that more efforts will be made to reimburse Grady for free services provided to the indigent and uninsured, which totaled nearly $330 million last year, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle.
“It didn’t happen this year, but it might happen next year,” Hembree said. “If funds are reduced, the first thing we’ll have to do is look at the magnitude of the reduction and from there, we’ll develop our budget around that amount. Then, we would do some bell tightening while looking for additional funding sources.”
Following this months meeting, SGMC was joined by Pinnacle Prime Contractors Inc., community government officials and friends from the community, for the topping out celebration of the new Medical Office Building and Ambulatory Surgery Center.
Marking the fifth health care project Pinnacle has undertaken in the Valdosta area, construction for both facilities began in May of last year.
“As we continue to celebrate these construction milestones, the devotion and enthusiasm from community members, crew and partners is simply astounding,” said Pinnacle President Tom Hutchinson. “As we celebrate, let us not forget all the people who made this possible, from our government officials, to the hospital authority, to the architects and contractors. The men and women here today take this job incredibly seriously, and no matter how busy our pace is at work, we enjoy taking time to reflect on how far we’ve come.”
The new 75,749 square foot MOB facility will further unite the local health care community and provide greater convenience to patients, as it brings 20 physician office suites to the SGMC campus. The three-story facility will also hold a satellite laboratory, retail space and SGMC’s Cardiac Rehab facility.
The ASC will serve as a free standing outpatient surgery center for same day procedures, such as cataract removals and tonsillectomies. The 35,023 square foot facility will also house four operating rooms and one cystoscopy room, which will be relocated from the current location in the Surgical Services Department.
The MOB is expected to be completed over the next 12 months, and the ASC is expected to open in the early summer of 2008. Together, the new facilities will bring an additional 490 parking spaces to the SGMC campus.
The continuing expansion of SGMC’s campus and health care services is a direct reflection of the growth here in its surrounding community. As SGMC Chief Executive Officer James McGahee spoke to attendants Wednesday, he shared news of the collaborative efforts necessary to take the hospital and community into the next stage of development.
“When this Medical Office Building goes up, we’ll take down the old doctors building way across the Valdosta State campus, and that’s where the new parking garage will be placed,” said McGahee. “We joined VSU and the city and county governments, and were included on SPLOST for this. In addition to patients, students attending VSU’s North Campus and Medical Science Building will have access to this garage. Each new building is a symbol that Valdosta is doing well, and we are all very fortunate to be living in this progressive community.”
