JEWISH community concerns over imminent changes in the ownership structure of Rose Medical Center were eased this week by Ken Feiler, the hospitals president-CEO, who recognized RMCs important history as an integral part of the Denver Jewish community.
In an email statement released this week, Feiler addressed questions from the Intermountain Jewish News about the potential impact on Rose of the impending sale of the Colorado Health Foundations 40% interest in HCA/HealthONE.
The proposed $1.45 billion sale agreement between the foundation and its current partner, HCA/HealthONE, would transfer total ownership and control of the seven hospitals: North Suburban, Medical Center of Aurora, Presbyterian/St. Lukes Medical Center, Swedish Medical Center, Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children, Sky Ridge Medical Center and Rose in addition to a network of other medical service and educational programs to HCA-HealthONE.
The Colorado Attorney Generals office began hearings this week on whether to approve the sale and is likely to hear community concerns that the sale might minimize or eliminate the systems traditional provision of charitable care and services to Colorado residents.
Jewish Denverites have also raised concerns about how the sale might impact the Jewish services and characteristics of Rose Medical Center, founded in the 1940s by the Denver Jewish community and long considered the unofficial Jewish hospital in the Denver area.
According to covenants originally signed during the sale of RMC to the Columbia healthcare network in 1995, the hospital would maintain its Jewish chaplaincy program, a Jewish chapel and various Jewish holiday observances, including a sukkah during the holiday of Sukkot.
The complex hospital ownership history began when Rose was purchased by Columbia (now the Hospital Corp. of America, or HCA).
The for-profit HCA later entered into a joint venture agreement with the nonprofit HealthONE system to form the Denver metro areas largest healthcare system.
Currently, HCA-HealthONE operates seven regional hospitals, 12 ambulatory surgical centers, more than 30 occupational medicine-rehabilitation facilities and a host of specialty and outpatient clinics.
In 1999, the nonprofit partner in the joint venture, HealthONE, became known as the HealthONE Alliance an organization that described itself as being committed to improving the health of Coloradans through graduate medical education, medical research, philanthropy and community programs.
Seven years later, its name was changed to the Colorado Health Foundation.
In the current situation, the foundation is seeking to sell its share of HCA-HealthONE as part of an overall effort to diversify and stabilize its endowment and to focus more on grant making than on running hospitals and clinics.
The Colorado Health Foundation says that since 2006 it has spent $250 million in grants.
IF the sale is approved by the Colorado Attorney General, the foundation would technically lose all control in the HCA-HealthONE network, but certain provisions of the joint venture agreement would remain at least for a 10-year period.
Under the current sale contract, HCA/HealthONE would have to continue accepting Medicare and Medicaid patients for a decade and would be obligated to continue putting hundreds of millions of dollars into charity care and community benefit programs for 10 years.
Concerns have been expressed, however, that 10 years is an insufficient period during which to guarantee such services. Critics have also pointed out that HCA/HealthONE would not have to even wait that long to close hospitals and clinics within its network.
Feiler, in his comments to the IJN, downplayed the possibility that Rose itself might be shut down or sold off.
I am confident that our hospital will remain an important part of the HCA family, he said, pointing out that HCA last year approved a $30 million capital improvement project at Rose, and that construction is scheduled to commence this fall in several areas of the hospital.
We continue to be a leader within the HealthONE hospitals for obstetrics and womens care, and our patient satisfaction and employee engagement rates are in the 90th percentile of all HCA facilities, Feiler wrote.
He also emphasized that the Jewish character of the hospital would be preserved if the sale goes through.
When Rose was first sold to the company that is now HCA, there were several important covenants in our sale agreement, Feiler said.
That included maintaining a commitment to the community through charitable giving that was comparable to what was done by Rose before the sale, creating the Rose Advisory Board, comprised of community leaders who help us continue our community programs, and maintaining a rabbi on staff as the leader for our chaplaincy services.
These covenants still continue today, and I dont see any change to them in the future.
Feiler predicted the same for the hospitals community giving and charitable programs, pointing out that every HCA hospital in the country participates in Medicare and Medicaid with the exception of a psychiatric hospital in Georgia that is prohibited by law from participating in the federal medical aid programs.
We dont see any scenario that would change any HealthONE hospitals participation in Medicare/Medicaid, including Rose, Feiler said.
Rose and the HealthONE hospitals have always been committed to serving our patients and communities and that will never change, Feiler said.
Rose provided $10.5 million last year in unpaid medical costs (not charges) to treat the indigent, uninsured and under-insured.
And Rose invested more than $3.5 million last year in community benefits, including community health education; health professional education; research; charitable contributions; and community-building activities beyond our campus. The Rose Advisory Board has also assisted us with providing important donations to community partners and organizations.
He also pointed out that HealthONE has long participated in TriCare, a medical program for military families.
Feiler emphasized that HCAs business philosophy is to leave day-to-day decisions on community needs to its individual hospitals, including Rose.
In addition to that commitment, he added, the current sale agreement binds HCA/HealthONE to its previously signed agreements.
In the sale agreement with the Colorado Health Foundation that the Attorney General is reviewing, there are several covenants included, Feiler said. These represent what we have always done for our patients and communities anyway, but we wanted everyone else to know in detail what we would do.
The take-home message from Rose Medical Center to the Denver Jewish community, Feiler summarized, is not to worry.
Rose has an important history that we recognize and that plays an essential part in what we do everyday putting the commitment to our patients foremost in our hearts and minds.
Copyright © 2011 by the Intermountain Jewish News
